Metagame AG Metagame Discussion [Pre-Home]

[Seldanna]

(gorgeous art by Albinson)​

Welcome to Scarlet and Violet Anything Goes! This thread will be used for all things related to the new metagame - theorymonning, metagame observations, and set sharing are all encouraged! Since we're entering a new generation, I'll clarify exactly how AG is going to work:

• No Megas, Primals, Z-moves, or Dynamax/Gigantamax: This should go without saying, but since these mechanics have been removed in Scarlet and Violet they will not be usable in the gen 9 metagame. Bye-bye Mega Rayquaza, Primal Groudon and Ultra Necrozma!
• Released Pokemon only: No more Marshadow, no more Xerneas, Yveltal, etc. In addition, Pokemon or movesets that are coded into Scarlet and Violet but aren't yet available ingame will not be usable.
• In-game Restrictions only: As it's always been in Gen6, Gen7, and Gen8 of Anything Goes, you're allowed to use whatever you want provided it's available via normal cartridge play. That means you can run OHKO moves and Evasion to your heart's content, but you still can't put Fissure on a Pichu since it doesn't learn it normally.

That's all - Feel free to discuss!

 

[Trade]

Few minor thoughts:

HO is king in this meta. Hit hard and switch lots is the name of the game.

Balance is okay. The problem is that there are way too many natural breakers for it.

Stall is still viable (at least in this undeveloped meta). I expect to see shifts in the meta from running Choice HO to more Taunt focused teams. It very much looks like we’ll have a triangle similar to Galar if this keeps up (which is much too early to say).

Terastilizing is really fun and you really need to think of a Tera type for all your mons as this will come in clutch even defensively. Put Ground on a Mon so that you can emergency check Electro Drift from Miraidon, etc.

Mons:

Houndstone is an incredible cleaner with Last Respects. Running a Band kills everything. Life Orb allows you to seitch to Body Press to kill those random Normals. And Scarf in Sand outspeeds Scarf Koraidon and Miraidon at + natures. Getting Sand up for the final sweep is fairly easy too. Run Tera Normal to beat Ditto, and Tera Fighting to beat Sucker.

Scarf Dugtrio is once again good, allowing you to Tera into Fairy to trap and OHKO Koraidon or Miraidon. Whether or not you want to use your Tera on this is a different story.

Pelipper + Basculin is still an effective duo. Seeing shades of early Galar AG as nothing really switches into Basculin aside from a few bulky waters.

Miraidon is busted. It’s good on everything and the grounds that supposedly check it get blown away by a random Tera Ice or Grass. I like Tera Ice atm because it allows you to retain a KO on opposing bike dragons. Honestly, run two of these on a team and you’re still good (with two different Tera types). Scarf’s also outrageously good to not worry about speed ties. You’re still insanely strong anyway. No single mon counter as Blissey gets 2HKOd by specs and Ting Lu has 0 recovery.

Koraidon is good, but the only two sets with merit imho are Band and another set I’ve been cooking up.

Iron Valiant is good, but overrated. Speed boost is nice, but you just don’t hit things you want to hard enough such as Scream Tail or other bulky mons.

Ting Lu must run Fissure or Ruination to make a slot inherently worth it. You need to run this with a wish passer or you have deadweight.

Scream Tail is decent. Very nice speed tier and you can choose to make it Spdef or Def, which allows it to sponge many hits under Orichalcum’s Sun.

Roaring Moon is bad. Don’t let its stats fool you.

Iron Bundle is a surprisingly good Pokemon. It outspeeds Miraidon in terrain, and hits hard even without coverage. Perfect Balance breaker.

Flutter Mane is an insane Pokemon. Access to boosting moves and high offensive stats allows it to fulfil many niches in teams.

Great Tusk is meh. It gets rocks up and proceeds to become irrelephant.
Ok I lied, the Bulk Up set is good. Please do not run rocks on this it’s a waste.

Iron Treads is a better Exca.I think it’s still mid af though. Under terrain, you outspeed Miraidon. One of the only hazard removal options too.

Palafin is garbage. Losing even 1 turn in this meta to an obvious Flip Turn only to get something with 100 speed is awful.

Iron Hands ruins anything that comes in on it and is a great Tera user with Tera Grass. But it’s so slow that it easily gets revenged.

All the other Protosynthesis and Quark Drive Pokemon that weren’t are unviable.

Baxcalibur is also good, since DD Ice Shard hits like a truck, and it forces so many switches, as it can run scarf too.

Chien Pao is insane. This thing needs to be used more, but it’s got serious 4MSS. SD can win you the game on the spot with Ice Shard and its ability to beat even bulkier things faster than it.

Clodsire is not a Miraidon check.

Butterfree/Vivillon/Venomoth are not good since Electric Terrain is always up.

Toedscruel is legitimately one of the best progress mons in the meta for slower teams. It has everything it needs and if you see it, you’ll know exactly what 4 moves it has.

Gothitelle is not good. It gets OHKOd by everything. In an offensive meta where all team slots matter to counter or revenge, this one goes in the trash.

Kingambit is quite good. Great comeback potential.

Ditto is once again amazing as is it is with any Hyper Offensive meta. You can run it on stall as well.

 

[Guard]

Had fun playing SV day 1, here are my personal rankings at the moment. Obviously, this is just a first impression and may ultimately be off on some fronts.

S:

Koraidon is excellent as expected. It's a very self-sufficient wallbreaker with the tools to make good progress in any given situation. However, I do think that it's pretty manageable on the whole with the wide range of speed control we have. There are a couple of fine checks to it as well in the form of Rocky Helmet Toxapex, Pelipper, and Scream Tail. Flutter Mane is insane. It's easily the best revenge killer in the tier, OHKO'ing pretty much the entire offensive metagame with its STAB moves alone. Its wallbreaking capabilities are not on par with the box legends, but that is easily overlooked due to how much pressure it can exert late-game by just spamming Choice Scarf Moonblast. Being immune to Koraidon's STAB moves makes Flutter Mane a fantastic offensive check to arguably the best Pokemon in the metagame as well. Miraidon requires slightly higher skill to pilot against a well-built team due to its STABs having immunities and Electro Drift being resisted by both itself / Koraidon. But at the end of the day, it is still a massive step above everything else due to just how easily it can slice apart entire teams with a few timely predictions.

A+:

Toxapex glues a lot of structures together very nicely (even offensive structures) as a good check to Koraidon and Chien-Pao with Rocky Helmet. It also sports a valuable resistance to Fairy, letting it scout Flutter Mane if need be. The new legendaries all being grounded and the limited distribution of entry hazard removal make Toxic Spikes a potent tool for progress-making, although you may have some trouble fitting it in. Iron Treads offers incredible utility as an Electric-immunity, soft-check / Speed control against Miraidon, Stealth Rock setter, Rapid Spin / Knock Off user, and a pivot with Volt Switch. It's also a great hyper offense lead as a result. Chien-Pao is a very dangerous threat with proper support, but it's still a cut below the big three due to having a defined check in Toxapex and being worn down quite swiftly by Stealth Rock. It can remedy this with Heavy-Duty Boots, but this compromises its output pretty significantly.

A:

Iron Bundle 2HKOes pretty much everything bar Blissey and Scream Tail, while outspeeding everything bar Dragapult. This makes it a good revenge killer and an okay wallbreaker, although you have to maneuver well around Sun. It does face the same issue as Chien-Pao however, wanting to run both Heavy-Duty Boots and a power boosting item. Roaring Moon hits incredibly hard after a Dragon Dance boost under the sun. There's a sore lack of bulky Dark-resistant Pokemon that have longevity apart from Scream Tail, which gets slaughtered by Tera Steel Iron Head. A simple DD / Crunch / Iron Head / Substitute set with Tera Steel does great on hyper offense, with Tera Steel letting it flip the script against revenge killers carrying Dragon-, Fairy-, and Ice-type moves. However, Roaring Moon mostly fits on hyper offense teams only. Dragapult is surprisingly good and can often just spam Choice Band Dragon Darts / Choice Specs Shadow Ball in a metagame without great bulky Fairy- and Dark-types. Dragon Darts in particular is very valuable as a two-hit move that breaks Focus Sash hyper offense bar the random Tera Fairy on the box legends. Its Speed is crucial, letting it scare out everything that doesn't come equipped with a Choice Scarf. However, Dragapult is held back a little by having to run Tera Blast for a good physical Ghost-type move and can thus feel limited if it loads into Steel-types / Scream Tail.

A-:

Gothitelle is very broken against the right teams due to how easily it can be pivoted in by the cover legendaries this generation. From there, it can proceed to trap and remove pretty much every defensive Pokemon such as Toxapex, Scream Tail, and Blissey (unless the latter carries Seismic Toss + another attack). It can also trap some crazy additional stuff like Koraidon locked into Fighting STAB, -2 SpA Miraidon, and Ditto locked into Collision Course / Close Combat / Draco Meteor. You do have to take care not to use Rest on Electric Terrain, though. Also, keep in mind that Rest has 8 PP. I have no doubt Gothitelle will be centralizing once the metagame settles in a bit more. Ditto is a fine revenge-killer, but it's unreliable due to stuff like Tera Fairy Miraidon / Flutter Mane. It also doesn't revenge Chien-Pao well unless the latter is chipped down heavily or carries Scared Sword. It's still fine into Pokemon like Koraidon, Dragapult, and Iron Valiant, but 9 / 10 times you get more value out of Flutter Mane as your form of Speed control. Masquerain is an okay Sticky Web setter that annoys opponents with Stun Spore / Intimidate and can Tera Ghost in a pinch to block Rapid Spin. Sticky Web is ridiculous, hence the relatively high spot.

Some other Pokemon I tried out, which I don't think are staples:
Iron Valiant is a fine pick on hyper offense, but lack of a strong Fairy-type STAB tends to let it down since it's such a glass cannon that can't afford to not OHKO its opponents. Blissey checks Miraidon, but that's pretty much all it does. It's even more passive than before due to movepool cuts. Scream Tail is a good Koraidon check, but also the definition of passive and doesn't do great against Koraidon carrying Tera Fire / Steel-type moves. Pelipper can deter Koraidon for a while, but ultimately doesn't have enough Roost PP to keep taking Choice Band Dragon Claw and is OHKOed by Wild Charge. Ting-Lu and Clodsire are fake Miraidon checks. Skeledirge is a fake Koraidon check.

Baxcalibur, Cyclizar, Amoonguss, Iron Moth, Chi-Yu, Corviknight, and Great Tusk are some other Pokemon that seem to have potential, but I haven't used them yet.

 

[Geysers]

[Posted on the behalf of Xynix]

ok peeps i can't access my smog acc rn so geysers will post this for me and get free clout <3
baton pass gang rise up!!

The Cool Things:

perrserker is a cool physically bulky steel that can iron defense and taunt and is immune to crits!! fuck crits nobody likes them
scream tail is busted. more on this later

espeon my beloved is the best sweeper again because of magic bounce and stored power. though it might be better to run lefties instead of shell bell for the time being because the hp stats aren't as high as they were in gen 7

drifblim is a great evasion passer as always with unburden. compared to gen 7 it also now has access to strength sap! this is great and lets it set up on physical attackers easily. unfortunately, now you have to pick between strength sap and defog since they're both so good. hazards, especially toxic spikes, are a pain.

Tera!! tera is *really* good for bp.

water is great for helping drifblim not get shat on by koraidon and the ice shard pokemon

flying is interesting on perrserker to not get beat up by fighting and ground moves. water is also good if you fear the ice moves

fairy and dark are good to prevent espathra from getting ohkoed by dark and ghost moves. if you can get a free cm up, that will go a long way in the long run because miraidon is so prevalent.

ground is good on anything that might face off against miraidon, for obvious reasons. bonus points to you if you don't actually have this and you pretend you do in chat and make them look dumb choosing a different move

but the most important tera is dark espeon. this shit beats ditto! ditto switches in and clicks stored power and you laugh in their face when you click tera and are immune to it. dark is also good on any other pokemon to beat prankster if that ever becomes a problem

Scream Tail:

protosynthesis consumes a booster energy when you switch in and multiplies your highest stat by 1.5. this is not a normal boost and stacks with normal boosts.

...and...

IT GETS BATON PASSED!! idk if it's a bug or not but whether it is or isn't, i'm running with it

scream tail has 115 hp, 99 defense, 115 special defense, and 111 speed, and it gets a free defensive boost of your choice just by switching in. but it's better than just a boost, because +1 + proto is x2.25, which is better than +2.

on top of that, it has access to amnesia, cm, and bulk up. and to fuck with its enemies, it has encore and disable. put those together, and you can force a pokemon to click struggle. it also has stealth rock if you want to break sashes

this thing is how we beat miraidon.

unfortunately, the calculator isn't updated for this yet but trust me, scream tail is seriously busted guys

The Bad Things:

perish song instawins because we don't have any soundproof bp pokemon

haze and taunt are hard to play against because as far as taunters go, perrserker is pretty slow

roar and whirlwind are significantly more difficult to beat because we have neither soundproof nor ingrain.

we have no passive recovery because ingrain is missing. aqua ring could be an option but then we'd need another taunter

speed boost options have been cut down to only espathra. it's a lot worse than scoli </3

miraidon deals a lot of damage. koraidon deals a lot of damage. you'll often have to tera to beat one of them

flutter mane is... a problem. it's fast, can taunt, KOs espathra easily if it doesnt tera, can set up cm, and has access to perish song

ditto is common, so you'll want to keep tera around on espeon or find a way to guarantee a substitute. also, it can turn into scream tail and encore you into a boosting move and make you cry

and... bp is, as always, predict heavy. predicting is hard when we don't have a meta.

Maybes:
these look like they might have potential but i couldnt find a place for them

umbreon, sylveon: cool bulky cm passers
vaporeon: passes defense and aquaring, nice slow pivot. staple on Just Another Baton Pass Team TM so there's not that much else to say

maybe look out for these but they're probably bad:
dachsbun: you can switch it into fire moves for a huge head start on defense. unfortunately its movepool is shit
alomomola: regen, decently bulky, access to aqua ring and cm. probably not that good though
farigaraf: cud chew could be interesting in conjunction with ganlon, apicot, kee, or maranga. i dont think its moveset is that promising though unfortunately

tldr scream tail is busted guys
i love you all and i cant wait to bring the great gift of bp to this new beautiful generation of pokemon <3

 

[Guard]

First Week Impression​

 

[Rose]

The Gen 9 AG Set Compendium TM (I will try to make sure every Pokemon ranked on the VR has at least one set).

Sets

Alomomola

Alomomola @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy / Flying
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Whirlpool / Chilling Water
- Play Rough / Baton Pass
- Wish
- Protect

Alomomola @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 166 HP / 252 Def / 76 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Whirlpool / Chilling Water
- Play Rough / Baton Pass
- Wish
- Protect

Amoonguss

Amoonguss @ Leftovers / Eject Button
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Water / Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Spore
- Giga Drain
- Stomping Tantrum / Foul Play / Sludge Bomb
- Toxic / Clear Smog

Annihilape

Annihilape @ Leftovers / Chesto Berry
Ability: Defiant
Tera Type: Fairy / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Bulk Up
- Drain Punch
- Rage Fist
- Taunt / Rest

Arboliva

Arboliva @ Leftovers
Ability: Seed Sower
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Energy Ball / Substitute
- Dazzling Gleam
- Strength Sap / Protect

Armarouge

Armarouge @ Choice Specs / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flash Fire
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 56 HP / 252 SpA / 200 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Armor Cannon
- Psyshock
- Energy Ball
- Focus Blast / Trick

Avalugg

Avalugg @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Sturdy
Tera Type: Fairy / Fighting
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Avalanche
- Body Press
- Recover
- Rapid Spin

Azumarill

Azumarill @ Choice Band
Ability: Huge Power
Tera Type: Ground / Water
EVs: 116 HP / 252 Atk / 140 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Liquidation
- Play Rough
- Ice Spinner
- Aqua Jet

Azumarill @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Encore
- Chilling Water
- Play Rough
- Protect

Barraskewda

Barraskewda @ Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Tera Type: Water / Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant / Jolly Nature
- Liquidation
- Close Combat
- Psychic Fangs
- Aqua Jet / Tera Blast

Baxcalibur

Baxcalibur @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Loaded Dice
Ability: Thermal Exchange
Tera Type: Dragon / Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Glaive Rush
- Icicle Crash / Icicle Spear
- Earthquake / Ice Shard

Blissey

Blissey (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
Tera Type: Ground / Fire / Fairy
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock / Shadow Ball
- Seismic Toss
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave / Shadow Ball

Blissey (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
Tera Type: Ground / Fire / Fairy / Ghost / Steel
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Ice Beam / Seismic Toss
- Shadow Ball
- Soft-Boiled

Breloom

Breloom @ Loaded Dice
Ability: Technician
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Spore / Swords Dance
- Bullet Seed
- Close Combat
- Mach Punch

Ceruledge

Ceruledge @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flash Fire
Tera Type: Fairy / Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bitter Blade
- Close Combat / Shadow Claw
- Shadow Sneak

Cetitan

Cetitan @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Sitrus Berry
Ability: Slush Rush
Tera Type: Ice / Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Belly Drum
- Ice Spinner / Ice Shard
- Earthquake
- Play Rough / Heavy Slam / Ice Shard

Chansey

Blissey (F) @ Eviolite
Ability: Natural Cure
Tera Type: Ground / Fire / Fairy
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Seismic Toss
- Soft-Boiled
- Thunder Wave

Chien-Pao

Chien-Pao @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Life Orb
Ability: Sword of Ruin
Tera Type: Ice / Dark
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Crunch
- Icicle Crash / Ice Spinner
- Ice Shard / Sucker Punch

Chien-Pao @ Choice Band
Ability: Sword of Ruin
Tera Type: Ice / Dark
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Sucker Punch / Sacred Sword / Psychic Fangs
- Icicle Crash / Ice Spinner
- Ice Shard / Sucker Punch

Chi-Yu

Chi-Yu @ Choice Specs
Ability: Beads of Ruin
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid / Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Pulse
- Flamethrower
- Fire Blast
- Overheat

Chi-Yu @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Beads of Ruin
Tera Type: Fire / Dark
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Pulse
- Flamethrower
- Fire Blast
- Psychic

Chi-Yu @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Life Orb
Ability: Beads of Ruin
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Dark Pulse
- Flamethrower
- Taunt / Flame Charge / Overheat

Clodsire

Clodsire @ Leftovers / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Unaware / Water Absorb
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Spikes / Stealth Rock / Haze
- Earthquake
- Recover
- Toxic Spikes / Toxic

Cloyster

Cloyster @ Focus Sash
Ability: Skill Link
Tera Type: Ghost / Rock
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shell Smash
- Icicle Spear
- Rock Blast / Liquidation
- Spikes / Toxic Spikes

Corviknight

Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Tera Type: Steel / Flying / Fighting
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn / Body Press / Iron Head
- Brave Bird / Body Press
- Roost
- Defog

Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure / Mirror Armor
Tera Type: Steel / Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn / Protect
- Iron Head / Brave Bird
- Roost
- Defog

Corviknight @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Tera Type: Steel / Flying / Fighting
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn / Iron Defense
- Body Press / Brave Bird
- Roost
- Defog

Cyclizar

Cyclizar @ Choice Scarf / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Draco Meteor / Rapid Spin
- Shed Tail
- Knock Off / Rapid Spin

Dachsbun

Dachsbun @ Leftovers
Ability: Well-Baked Body
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Play Rough
- Body Press / Charm / Roar
- Wish
- Protect

Ditto

Ditto @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Imposter
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Transform

Dondozo

Dondozo @ Leftovers / Heavy-Duty Boots / Rocky Helmet
Ability: Unaware
Tera Type: Fairy / Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Liquidation / Wave Crash
- Sleep Talk / Earthquake / Body Press
- Curse
- Rest

Dondozo @ Leftovers / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Unaware
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Fissure
- Body Press
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Dragapult

Dragapult @ Choice Specs
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn
- Draco Meteor
- Shadow Ball
- Flamethrower / Thunder

Dragapult @ Choice Band
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Ghost / Dragon
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Dragon Darts
- Tera Blast / Phantom Force
- Sucker Punch

Dragapult @ Leftovers
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Fairy / Ghost
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Darts
- Phantom Force / Tera Blast
- Substitute

Dragapult @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Infiltrator
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn
- Draco Meteor
- Hex
- Will-O-Wisp

Dragonite

Dragonite @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Multiscale
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant / Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Extreme Speed
- Earthquake
- Ice Spinner / Fire Punch / Roost

Dudunsparce

Dudunsparce @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Coil
- Body Slam
- Smart Strike
- Roost

Dugtrio

Dugtrio @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Arena Trap
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Tera Blast
- Stone Edge / Sucker Punch / Fissure
- Sucker Punch / Final Gambit / Fissure

Espathra

Espathra @ Leftovers / Electric Seed
Ability: Speed Boost
Tera Type: Fairy / Fighting
EVs: 144 HP / 252 Def / 112 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Stored Power
- Dazzling Gleam / Tera Blast
- Roost / Substitute / Protect

Floatzel

Floatzel @ Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Wave Crash
- Liquidation
- Ice Spinner
- Aqua Jet

Florges

Florges (F) @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Leftovers
Ability: Flower Veil
Tera Type: Water / Steel / Grass
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Baton Pass
- Moonblast / Petal Blizzard
- Wish
- Protect

Flutter Mane

Flutter Mane @ Life Orb
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy / Ghost / Fire / Normal
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind / Taunt
- Shadow Ball
- Moonblast
- Psyshock / Mystical Fire / Taunt

Flutter Mane @ Choice Specs / Expert Belt
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy / Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Shadow Ball
- Moonblast
- Mystical Fire
- Psyshock / Thunderbolt

Froslass

Froslass (F) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Cursed Body
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Icy Wind
- Spikes
- Destiny Bond
- Taunt

Garchomp

Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
Tera Type: Steel / Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail

Garganacl

Garganacl @ Leftovers
Ability: Purifying Salt
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Water
EVSs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Salt Cure
- Body Press / Stealth Rock
- Recover
- Iron Defense / Protect

Gholdengo

Gholdengo @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Fighting / Fairy / Steel
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot / Focus Blast / Recover
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball
- Trick

Gholdengo @ Air Balloon
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Normal
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball
- Recover

Gholdengo @ Leftovers
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Ghost / Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot / Make It Rain
- Hex
- Recover
- Thunder Wave

Glimmora

Glimmora @ Focus Sash
Ability: Toxic Debris
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Spikes / Stealth Rock
- Mortal Spin
- Earth Power / Dazzling Gleam
- Memento / Stealth Rock

Gothitelle

Gothitelle @ Choice Specs
Ability: Shadow Tag
Tera Type: Grass / Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Psyshock
- Thunderbolt
- Grass Knot
- Trick

Great Tusk

Great Tusk @ Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground / Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Bulk Up
- Headlong Rush / Earthquake
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin

Great Tusk @ Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground / Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock / Rapid Spin
- Headlong Rush
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin / Knock Off

Great Tusk @ Leftovers / Rocky Helmet
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy / Water / Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock / Bulk Up / Knock Off
- Earthquake
- Body Press / Play Rough
- Rapid Spin / Knock Off

Great Tusk @ Choice Band / Choice Scarf
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground / Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Rapid Spin / Play Rough

Great Tusk @ Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 96 Def / 160 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Earthquake
- Ice Spinner
- Substitute

Grimmsnarl

Grimmsnarl @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Ghost / Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough
- Light Screen
- Reflect
- Taunt / Parting Shot

Grimmsnarl @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Ghost / Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Play Rough / Spirit Break
- Light Screen
- Reflect
- Taunt / Parting Shot

Gyarados

Gyarados @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Moxie
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Tera Blast
- Earthquake

Hatterene

Hatterene @ Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 204 Def / 52 Spe
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Draining Kiss
- Psyshock / Stored Power
- Mystical Fire / Nuzzle

Hippowdon

Hippowdon @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Fairy / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Slack Off
- Whirlwind / Yawn

Houndstone

Houndstone @ Choice Band
Ability: Sand Rush
Tera Type: Ghost / Normal / Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Last Respects
- Shadow Sneak
- Body Press
- Trick

Houndstone @ Leftovers
Ability: Fluffy
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Impish Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Last Respects
- Body Press
- Rest

Iron Bundle

Iron Bundle @ Choice Specs
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Ice / Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Ice Beam
- Freeze-Dry
- Hydro Pump
- Flip Turn

Iron Bundle @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Ice / Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Freeze-Dry
- Hydro Pump
- Substitute / Ice Beam
- Encore / Taunt / Flip Turn

Iron Hands

Iron Hands @ Leftovers / Punching Glove
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Flying / Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 116 SpD / 140 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Drain Punch
- Thunder Punch
- Earthquake / Ice Punch

Iron Moth

Iron Moth @ Booster Energy
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Agility
- Fiery Dance
- Energy Ball
- Psychic

Iron Treads

Iron Treads @ Leftovers / Assault Vest
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Water / Fairy / Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
IVs: 16 Def
- Stealth Rock / Iron Head
- Earthquake
- Knock Off / Volt Switch
- Rapid Spin

Iron Treads @ Assault Vest
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head / Volt Switch
- Knock Off / Volt Switch
- Rapid Spin

Iron Valiant

Iron Valiant @ Life Orb
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Moonblast
- Close Combat
- Thunderbolt
- Shadow Ball / Psyshock / Knock Off

Iron Valiant @ Choice Specs
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Moonblast
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt
- Shadow Ball / Psyshock

Kingambit

Kingambit @ Leftovers / Life Orb
Ability: Supreme Overlord
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 112 HP / 252 Atk / 144 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Iron Head / Tera Blast
- Kowtow Cleave
- Sucker Punch

Koraidon

Koraidon @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Fire / Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Dragon Claw / Heavy Slam
- Flare Blitz

Koraidon @ Choice Band
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Fire / Steel / Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Dragon Claw / Outrage
- Flare Blitz / Heavy Slam

Koraidon @ Life Orb
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Fire / Steel / Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance / Outrage
- Close Combat / Collision Course
- Flare Blitz
- Stomping Tantrum / Wild Charge

Koraidon @ Leftovers
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Fire / Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Claw / Stomping Tantrum
- Low Kick / Collision Course / Iron Head
- Flame Charge

Koraidon @ Leftovers
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Low Kick
- Flare Blitz
- U-turn / Heavy Slam / Stomping Tantrum / Wild Charge
- Taunt

Magnezone

Magnezone @ Choice Specs
Ability: Magnet Pull
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 188 HP / 252 SpA / 68 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Tera Blast

Masquerain

Masquerain @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn / Baton Pass
- Sticky Web
- Stun Spore / Quiver Dance
- Whirlwind

Miraidon

Miraidon @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn / Dazzling Gleam
- Electro Drift
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat

Miraidon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Dragon / Ice / Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn / Volt Switch / Tera Blast
- Electro Drift
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat

Miraidon @ Leftovers
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 236 HP / 16 Def / 216 SpA / 40 Spe
Modest Nature
- Calm Mind
- Parabolic Charge
- Dragon Pulse / Dazzling Gleam
- Agility

Miraidon @ Leftovers
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Electro Drift
- Dragon Pulse / Dazzling Gleam
- Taunt / Substitute

Miraidon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Water / Dragon
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- U-turn
- Electro Drift
- Draco Meteor
- Tera Blast / Overheat

Miraidon @ Life Orb
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Dragon / Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid / Modest Nature
- Calm Mind
- Electro Drift / Parabolic Charge
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat / Tera Blast / Substitute

Palafin

Palafin @ Leftovers
Ability: Zero to Hero
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Atk / 92 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Bulk Up
- Jet Punch
- Drain Punch
- Taunt

Palafin @ Leftovers
Ability: Zero to Hero
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Bulk Up
- Jet Punch
- Drain Punch
- Taunt

Palafin @ Choice Band
Ability: Zero to Hero
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Flip Turn
- Jet Punch
- Wave Crash / Close Combat
- Zen Headbutt / Ice Punch

Pawmot

Pawmot @ Leppa Berry
Ability: Volt Absorb
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Double Shock
- Close Combat
- Revival Blessing
- Mach Punch

Pelipper

Pelipper @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- U-turn
- Hurricane
- Knock Off / Surf
- Roost

Quaquaval

Quaquaval @ Leftovers
Ability: Moxie
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 212 Def / 44 Spe
Impish Nature
- Bulk Up
- Aqua Step
- Close Combat
- Taunt

Roaring Moon

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Acrobatics
- Crunch
- Roost / Taunt

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy / Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Jaw Lock
- Iron Head
- Roost / Substitute

Roaring Moon @ Choice Band
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Dragon Claw / Outrage
- Crunch
- Earthquake

Roaring Moon @ Utility Umbrella
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 152 HP / 252 SpD / 104 Spe
Careful Nature
- U-turn / Dragon Dance
- Crunch
- Earthquake
- Roost

Scizor

Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Close Combat
- Quick Attack

Scovillain

Scovillain @ Leftovers
Ability: Moody
Tera Type: Fairy / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Flamethrower
- Substitute
- Protect

Scream Tail

Scream Tail @ Leftovers / Rocky Helmet
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 192 Def / 64 Spe
Bold Nature
- Stealth Rock / Thunder Wave / Encore / Perish Song
- Dazzling Gleam
- Wish
- Protect

Scream Tail @ Leftovers
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 188 Def / 68 SpD
Bold / Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock / Thunder Wave / Perish Song
- Dazzling Gleam / Play Rough
- Wish
- Protect

Skeledirge

Skeledirge @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Unaware
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Will-O-Wisp
- Torch Song
- Hex / Earth Power
- Slack Off

Slither Wing

Slither Wing @ Choice Band
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Bug
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- First Impression
- Close Combat
- Earthquake / Wild Charge

Slowbro

Slowbro @ Rocky Helmet / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Chilling Water / Body Press
- Future Sight / Psychic
- Slack Off
- Thunder Wave

Slowking

Slowking @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Chilling Water / Thunder Wave
- Future Sight
- Slack Off
- Chilly Reception

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze (M) @ Leftovers / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Body Press
- Raging Bull
- Protect / Rest

Ting-Lu

Ting-Lu @ Leftovers
Ability: Vessel of Ruin
Tera Type: Steel / Fairy / Ghost / Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Ruination
- Whirlwind / Protect

What the Ting-Lu (Ting-Lu) @ Leftovers
Ability: Vessel of Ruin
Tera Type: Steel / Ghost
EVs: 76 HP / 252 SpD / 180 Spe
Careful Nature
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Ruination
- Taunt

Toedscruel

Toedscruel @ Leftovers
Ability: Mycelium Might
Tera Type: Steel / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 204 Def / 52 Spe
Bold Nature
- Spore
- Earth Power
- Knock Off / Leech Seed
- Rapid Spin

Toxapex

Toxapex @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Fairy / Grass / Ground
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Chilling Water / Surf / Infestation
- Recover
- Haze
- Toxic Spikes / Toxic / Baneful Bunker

Tyranitar

Tyranitar @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Ground / Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Rock Blast / Crunch
- Thunder Wave
- Rest

Volcarona

Volcarona @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Flame Body
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 248 HP / 108 Def / 152 Spe
Timid Nature
- Quiver Dance
- Fiery Dance
- Morning Sun
- Giga Drain / Will-O-Wisp

Wo-Chien

Wo-Chien @ Leftovers
Ability: Tablets of Ruin
Tera Type: Fairy / Steel / Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Leech Seed
- Knock Off
- Power Whip / Taunt
- Protect

 

[Glory]

Now that a week has gone by and people are starting to get the hang of the meta, I want to bring to people's attention what I believe to be the most effective wallbreaker currently, Iron Bundle

Due to its excellent STABs in Hydro Pump and Freeze Dry, consistent defensive counterplay is hard to come by. Blissey is one of the only Pokemon that is able to stomach its hits, but is able to be Flip Turned on, putting the Blissey user at a disadvantage. Iron Bundle's excellent speed stat of 136 allows it to get the jump on the almost entire metagame, providing it with many Pokemon that it can force out. Revenge killers are limited because Quark Drive prevents scarf Miraidon, the metagame's premier revenge killer, from outspeeding it.

Of course it isn't all sunshine and rainbows for Iron Bundle, as it has a few notable downsides that hold it back. Outside of its great special attack and speed, Iron Bundle's stats are rather lackluster, with terrible special bulk leaving it unable to tank many unresisted attacks. Iron Bundle's partial Ice typing leaves it with a weakness to stealth rock, limiting the number of times it is able to come in and fire off powerful attacks. Hydro Pump's poor accuracy often disappoints it in important situations, and a reliance on prediction makes it difficult to hit all of its targets.

Iron Bundle makes a good partner for both Miraidon and Koraidon as it pressures common checks to both of them, such as Ting-Lu and Iron Treads for Miraidon, and Skeledirge and Great Tusks for Koraidon.

 

[Tic-Tac-Toe Guru]

What the gen 9 VR should look like:
S+++++
S+
F- everything else

 

[Tic-Tac-Toe Guru]

On the real though Toedscruel got shafted with its ability. Base 100 speed and it can’t even use it to Spore anything.

 

[LocalMetagross]

Its been a fair bit since the meta has released and people have already started shaping the meta, and I'd like to talk abt some Pokemon that I personally think are very good or have important niches on teams.

I believe Ting-Lu has a very solid place on a lot of teams due to its good stats, ability, and movepool. Its ability Vessel Of Ruin allows it to be better at checking Miraidon, and it also takes this opportunity to set up Spikes.



Ting-Lu @ Leftovers
Ability: Vessel of Ruin
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Spikes
- Earthquake
- Ruination
- Whirlwind

This is the standard Ting-Lu set I use, and I personally love it. Its huge 155 base HP beats even Giratina, and its base 125 Defense is good even without much or any investment. 80 Sp.Def is not the best but its definitely helped by its ability, Vessel Of Ruin, which helps it to take more special hits than normal. It isn't a sitting duck, either. It's above average 110 Attack along with a powerful stab Earthquake, and the fairly annoying Ruination can easily cause problems for teams due to the nerfed recovery PP. It can rack up damage repeatedly by using Whirlwind and Spikes to slowly chip down the opposing team. The premise is pretty simple: spam Spikes whenever you're given time, cause repeated annoyances with Ruination, rack up damage with Whirlwind, use Earthquake when necessary, rinse and repeat. Protect can be used over Whirlwind to allow some extra leftovers recovery over turns, but the inability to phase with Whirlwind can be detrimental. The EVs allow Ting-Lu to survive a lot of hits, even some super effective ones, and can live some crucial hits, like Shadow Ball into Moonblast from Flutter Mane.


I love Flutter Mane. It is without a doubt one of the best Pokemon in the current meta in my opinion. It has a very threatening offensive STAB combination, and it is capable of running a number of tera types to great effect. Its Protosynthesis also allows it to outspeed non Choice Scarf Koraidon, Miraidon, and Chien-Pao and everything below while also speedtying with those Pokemon during sunlight, as well as opposing Flutter Manes. Unfortunately, it is pretty physically frail due to its low HP and physical Defense, both at 55. However, it can be specially bulky due to its high 135 Special Defense. However, it doesn't need to be extremely bulky at all in order to be threatening due to its good speed tier and good coverage options.



Flutter Mane @ Leftovers / Life Orb / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy / Ghost / Normal / Dark
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid / Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Shadow Ball
- Moonblast
- Thunderbolt / Mystical Fire / Psyshock

My favorite set right now is Calm Mind + 3 Attacks. With Protosynthesis, Flutter Mane becomes faster than nearly the entire unboosted metagame, only being outsped by Iron Bundle, and can speed tie with Choice Scarf users like Koraidon, Miraidon and Chien-Pao. After it sets up a Calm Mind or 2, its capable of OHKO'ing or 2HKO'ing basically the entire metagame. Leftovers gives Flutter Mane some passive recovery throughout the game, which is always nice on nearly any Pokemon. Life Orb gives Flutter Mane even more breaking power than it already has (Calcs posted below.), and Heavy-Duty Boots allows Flutter Mane to freely switch in and out of battle repeatedly on longer battles, and preventing it from being affected by the rare Sticky Web.

+1 252 SpA Flutter Mane Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 96 SpD Corviknight: 207-244 (51.7 - 61%) -- 94.1% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Koraidon: 640-756 (187.6 - 221.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Miraidon: 284-336 (83.2 - 98.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Iron Bundle: 240-283 (94.8 - 111.8%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Chien-Pao: 452-534 (150.1 - 177.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Damage Calcs with Stealth Rock

+1 252 SpA Flutter Mane Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 96 SpD Corviknight: 310-366 (77.5 - 91.5%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+1 252 SpA Flutter Mane Psyshock vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Flutter Mane: 217-256 (86.1 - 101.5%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 284-336 (83.2 - 98.5%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Iron Bundle: 241-285 (95.2 - 112.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Flutter Mane Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Iron Bundle: 204-240 (80.6 - 94.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

Damage Calcs with Life Orb

+1 252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 96 SpD Corviknight: 403-476 (100.7 - 119%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Iron Bundle: 265-312 (104.7 - 123.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Skeledirge: 439-523 (106.5 - 126.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+1 252 SpA Life Orb Flutter Mane Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Ting-Lu: 517-611 (100.5 - 118.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The last Pokemon I want to talk about is Chien-Pao. Its wallbreaking power is absolutely INSANE and it capable of ripping apart unprepared teams. Its ability Sword Of Ruin aids it in its breaking power by lowering its opponents defense by 25% just for being on the field. It also has a pretty decent movepool with coverage to hit a lot of Pokemon, such as Koraidon, Miraidon, Skeledirge, opposing Chien-Pao, and can even do hefty damage to physically defensive Pokemon like Corviknight.


Chien-Pao @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Life Orb
Ability: Sword of Ruin
Tera Type: Ice / Dark / Flying / Ghost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance / Ice Shard / Sucker Punch
- Icicle Crash / Ice Spinner
- Crunch / Throat Chop
- Ice Shard / Sucker Punch

Chien-Pao has a relatively good movepool, but it sometimes doesn't even matter due to its insane power with Life Orb and Sword Of Ruin. Swords Dance can be used to boost Chien-Pao's attack to staggering levels and giving it the power to punch enormous holes in teams and claim at least one KO. Icicle Crash is a tiny bit stronger than Ice Spinner and has a very handy flinch chance, but its somewhat unreliable 90% accuracy can be jeopardizing at times. Ice Spinner also has the added benefit of removing Miraidon's Electric Terrain, as well as removing the Iron Paradox Pokemon's Quark Drives, potentially allowing it to remove defense boosts or speed boosts to its advantage. Crunch and Throat Chop are a very similar situation to Icicle Crash and Ice Spinner. Crunch is a little bit stronger and has a useful chance to drop defense, while Throat Chop has a niche of preventing Skeledirge from using Torch Song. The last slot should be dedicated to a priority move, in either Ice Shard or Sucker Punch. Ice Shard is noticeably weaker than Sucker Punch, but is able to hit non-tera'd Koraidon harder, as well as hitting Miraidon harder and always OHKO's Flutter Mane at +2. Sucker Punch has a higher power than Ice Shard, but fails to hit non-tera Koraidon super-effectively, doesn't hit Miraidon as hard, but will occasionally OHKO Flutter Mane even without a Swords Dance boost. I think Sacred Sword deserves some sort of mention in order to hit opposing Chien-Pao, but its hard to fit in on a team and its STABs are enough to punch big holes in teams on its own. Life Orb can be used to give it explosive breaking power, but Heavy-Duty Boots is another viable option that allows Chien-Pao to wallbreak more effectively in longer games. A Choice Band set can be utilized to give it even more power than Life Orb can provide, but the inability to switch moves and the lack of a potential access to Swords Dance is pretty undesirable and is very reliant on predictions.

+2 252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 252 HP / 160+ Def Corviknight: 257-304 (64.2 - 76%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 252 HP / 168+ Def Scream Tail: 265-313 (61 - 72.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Koraidon: 304-359 (89.1 - 105.2%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Ice Shard vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Koraidon: 143-172 (41.9 - 50.4%) -- 0.4% chance to 2HKO (Useful for late game!)
252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 343-406 (100.5 - 119%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Flutter Mane: 274-325 (109.1 - 129.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Chien-Pao Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Skeledirge: 234-276 (56.7 - 66.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Just Kidding! I lied :D! I'll go over one more mon bc I was editing this post and felt bored. The Pokemon I want to mention is Iron Bundle. It is a fairly good wallbreaker that can make do even with its extremely shallow movepool.

Iron Bundle @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Choice Specs
Ability: Quark Drive
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Freeze-Dry
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Flip Turn / Taunt

This is the standard and best Iron Bundle set. Freeze-Dry and Hydro Pump form nearly unresisted coverage, and reliable switchins or answers are very scarce, except for Blissey. Even with Blissey, it can easily be used as a free switch with Flip Turn, which gives Iron Bundle the momentum and puts the Blissey user at a disadvantage. Ice Beam hits everything that resists Hydro Pump, while Hydro Pump provides amazing coverage with Freeze-Dry, which hits Pokemon that resist water. Choice Specs provides a set that is nearly impossible to switch in to, and anything that can "reliably" (they don't exist) switch into its moves will just become Flip Turn fodder for a better teammate. Life Orb may look like an appealing option that provides a power boost and allows the ability to switch moves, but it gets chipped down infinitely fast with the ubiquity of Stealth Rock and Spikes, of which it is vulnerable to both. Iron Bundle also possesses an extremely convenient speed tier of 136, which allows it to outspeed all non-scarfed base 135 speed Pokemon such as Flutter Mane, Koraidon, Miraidon, and Chien-Pao, and all of those even while they're scarfed while its Quark Drive is active. While Ice is a great type offensively, its terrible defensively, having a weakness to Stealth Rock, as well as weaknesses to fighting and electric type moves (it's not like the two centralizing Pokemon are part fighting and part electric type), meaning that without its Heavy-Duty Boots set, it gets chipped down extremely fast, which doesn't give it the longevity it needs in longer battles. Taunt should only be used on the Heavy-Duty Boots set in order to prevent Blissey from healing up from repeatedly taking strong Hydro Pumps, but the loss of a pivoting move is a lot to give up. Its also somewhat hindered by Freeze-Dry's somewhat disappointing base power, and the fact that sun is up a lot of the time, weakening its Hydro Pumps, which prevents it from forcing the progress that it desires. It also has a low base HP stat at only 56, a reasonable Defense stat of 114, and a very subpar Sp.Def of only 60, which makes it difficult to bring in safely without being threatened by hefty damage from even neutral attacks. Its typing is awkward defensively, being weak to Rock (and Stealth Rock), Fighting, Electric, and Grass.

Calcs

252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 96 SpD Corviknight: 267-315 (66.7 - 78.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Hydro Pump vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Flutter Mane: 202-238 (80.4 - 94.8%) -- 50% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Koraidon: 426-504 (124.9 - 147.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Miraidon: 378-446 (110.8 - 130.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Ting-Lu: 434-512 (84.4 - 99.6%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Bundle Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Iron Treads: 470-554 (122.3 - 144.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO


Thanks for reading :)

 

[Geysers]

Got a few cool techs to talk about here now that we're out of snake!


Chien-Pao @ Leftovers
Ability: Sword of Ruin
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Swords Dance
- Crunch
- Icicle Crash

Fat cteam: the mon. This set takes advantage of many common Chien-Pao switchins, like Toxapex, Body Press Corviknight, Alomomola, and that awful Fissure Dondozo that ladder's been spamming. Chien-Pao's already insanely fast so all it needs is one sub on Toxapex or a Corviknight that can't break its sub and then it instantly wins games. It also beats Pelipper that tries to U-turn out to slow pivot after eating a hit. Tera Steel is also an option that beats non-Body Press Corv and does just as well against Toxapex, but in return is a lot worse on ladder because it loses to fissure Dondozo. This does beat Fissure Dondozo because it can just stay in and fish for defense drops until Dozo is forced out, letting it kill something else. Chien-Pao already forces a ton of switches, notably forcing out Ting-Lu, some Great Tusk sets, and, as long as it hasn't revealed its set, Miraidon. An added bonus of getting rid of the Ice typing is that you're no longer weak to Stealth Rock, which can drastically increase your longevity. This set's an absolute terror for any team that relies on Toxapex to handle Chien-Pao and still provides a lot of utility in other matchups by virtue of forcing exploitable switches. An added bonus of Tera Poison as opposed to Tera Steel is that it lets you beat Sacred Sword Chien-Pao in a pinch, which can be pretty useful.
tl;dr: nobody knows you don't have priority until you've subbed, at which point they've lost the game.


Walking Wake @ Choice Specs
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 12 Def / 244 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Hydro Steam
- Draco Meteor
- Flamethrower

These evs make sure it gets a speed boost from sun, letting it outpace anything that isn't scarfed or otherwise boosted and then spam out terrifying Hydro Steams. There's been a lot of talk about modest Wake, but for most purposes speed is just fine too since Blissey isn't very common and being able to outspeed and pick off Mirai and Korai is incredibly valuable.

 

[LocalMetagross]

keeping this short:
flutter mane is a fraud that is ko'd by everything and ohko's nothing

 

[Hyper-Go-ons]

Let's talk about a case with Baton Pass and Protosynthesis / Quark Drive.

For example, If I Baton Pass into Flutter Mane after a Nasty Plot boost from Grafaiai, it will always get Protosynthesis to boost its special attack if its Booster Energy activates or Sunny Day is in effect, Identically to Iron Valiant and its Quark Drive.