AAA Almost Any Ability

[Iynhe]

Round 1: https://pokepast.es/3517f71e025fdf8d
Round 2: https://pokepast.es/fd28fe03fde75b97

What do 104 Hp and 152 Speed (+ Timid) do on Zapdos?

 

[Slither Wing]

What do 104 Hp and 152 Speed (+ Timid) do on Zapdos?

It gives it enough Speed to outspeed Max Speed Great Tusk, with rest in bulk is what I'm assuming

 

[Betticus IV]

I have finally done it, I have hit #1 on the AAA ladder. I am super hyped about this as this is the first time I have done this, even after sitting in the top 10 for quite a bit. I have been every place but first, and when I would go for the #1 the queue times would be insanely long or I would get discouraged after losing one or two games(and in turn like 40 elo), but today I just decided I'm gonna do it and I did. I don't care how small of an achievement this is, I'm hyped about it so I'm gonna make a post about it.

Here is the team I used to finally get there:





Mixed dnite is the truth if you aren't going for setup, and even if you are it still works as evident from Cumps (gz on making council!) dnite spread from Maybca's game. Thing also tears it up in ND AAA (which you should play!), which leads me to believe it is an actual set one should prepare for and not just a gimmick. Dumped the bulk invested in HP into spatk so it could hit harder, I am honestly not sure if this affects dnite not living any important hits, but the extra damage is nice for things such as mandi.



The gholdengo spread allows for a +2 shadow ball to 2HKO a pert after getting its vest knocked. A niche-ish interaction but I still found it useful. The spread could go down to 96 spatk but the extra bulk was meh so I just kept the dump in the spatk for other interactions. WBB no item allows for you not to get steamrolled by ceru. I initially ran colbur/lefties but realized it's more advantageous to run no item as that helps against ceru and all the knock spam. Honestly found myself wanting EE more so I could actually 1v1 the pert, but having 3 flying types that would have been greedy and cost me the fire mu.



I had initially tried boots zama as I had faced off against some hazard stack and wanted to see if boots would help. They do not. You miss out on guaranteed KOs and that causes more of a headache than not taking hazards. The flexibility in clicking moves also doesn't matter as you are getting more or less the same net damage between clicking two neutral moves w band or a neutral and super effective with boots. So again, learn from my mistakes, just run CB if you're running SoR.

This team honestly was me wanting to get nice with defensive/utility EVs/items, but realizing that is silly and it's more worth to just dump into attack to do more damage. Also wanted to expand on the idea of 'mixed' attacking mons, as I still think that teams that are able to slot in random physical/special coverage on multiple mons will fare better as the meta progresses.

This next team I used was inspired by CareerEnded's gterrain HO team, although I tweaked it to be a balance team. I used it when I was in the 1500s but wanted to share anyway as it was a fun team to use.





I was watching the Wolfey video where he uses an AV gambit and thought that maybe this could work. I had also played a game against slither wing where I had tricked their WBB gambit a scarf, and despite no passive recovery, it still had longevity, so I thought why not try it. Building off the idea of a non phys def invested WBB mon, something I touched on in my tourney team post, this is what I ended up with. The spdef investment allows one to take on 3 attack heatran very well, something this team would otherwise struggle with, with EP having a 4.1% to 3HKO. With max atk it is able to dish out quite a bit of damage that some may not expect from a defensive gambit. Steel already has a great synergy w pert, but having a fire and psychic immunity in one slot was really useful and allowed for much need breathing room when it came to defenses.



I had experimented with this mon before my games with Isaiah to see if it could work, and while I don't think it is the best, it can carve out a small niche for itself on the right team structures. Intimidate helps with non-contact physical moves (specifically ic chien, eq moon, any physical fire), which clef otherwise folds to despite investment. I didn't run moonlight on this as lefties + gterrain meant it was getting a good amount back + I did not want corv to come in for free on clef every time. Overall mon is fun/has a surprisingly good amount of positive MU's into the physical threats of the tier but lacking in actual stats + not too much flexibility in what it can run makes it not the greatest.

Notes in general: None of the mons have EQ bc of gterrain, dnite is running flame bc clef already has tbolt coverage, and this team does struggle against set-up sweepers, especially phys def ones if clef is gone.


Proof Below - Name comes from Bonehead's Bank Holiday by Oasis

#1 Lets gooo

 

[cumps]

I have finally done it, I have hit #1 on the AAA ladder. I am super hyped about this as this is the first time I have done this, even after sitting in the top 10 for quite a bit. I have been every place but first, and when I would go for the #1 the queue times would be insanely long or I would get discouraged after losing one or two games(and in turn like 40 elo), but today I just decided I'm gonna do it and I did. I don't care how small of an achievement this is, I'm hyped about it so I'm gonna make a post about it.

Here is the team I used to finally get there:





Mixed dnite is the truth if you aren't going for setup, and even if you are it still works as evident from Cumps (gz on making council!) dnite spread from Maybca's game. Thing also tears it up in ND AAA (which you should play!), which leads me to believe it is an actual set one should prepare for and not just a gimmick. Dumped the bulk invested in HP into spatk so it could hit harder, I am honestly not sure if this affects dnite not living any important hits, but the extra damage is nice for things such as mandi.



The gholdengo spread allows for a +2 shadow ball to 2HKO a pert after getting its vest knocked. A niche-ish interaction but I still found it useful. The spread could go down to 96 spatk but the extra bulk was meh so I just kept the dump in the spatk for other interactions. WBB no item allows for you not to get steamrolled by ceru. I initially ran colbur/lefties but realized it's more advantageous to run no item as that helps against ceru and all the knock spam. Honestly found myself wanting EE more so I could actually 1v1 the pert, but having 3 flying types that would have been greedy and cost me the fire mu.



I had initially tried boots zama as I had faced off against some hazard stack and wanted to see if boots would help. They do not. You miss out on guaranteed KOs and that causes more of a headache than not taking hazards. The flexibility in clicking moves also doesn't matter as you are getting more or less the same net damage between clicking two neutral moves w band or a neutral and super effective with boots. So again, learn from my mistakes, just run CB if you're running SoR.

This team honestly was me wanting to get nice with defensive/utility EVs/items, but realizing that is silly and it's more worth to just dump into attack to do more damage. Also wanted to expand on the idea of 'mixed' attacking mons, as I still think that teams that are able to slot in random physical/special coverage on multiple mons will fare better as the meta progresses.

This next team I used was inspired by CareerEnded's gterrain HO team, although I tweaked it to be a balance team. I used it when I was in the 1500s but wanted to share anyway as it was a fun team to use.





I was watching the Wolfey video where he uses an AV gambit and thought that maybe this could work. I had also played a game against slither wing where I had tricked their WBB gambit a scarf, and despite no passive recovery, it still had longevity, so I thought why not try it. Building off the idea of a non phys def invested WBB mon, something I touched on in my tourney team post, this is what I ended up with. The spdef investment allows one to take on 3 attack heatran very well, something this team would otherwise struggle with, with EP having a 4.1% to 3HKO. With max atk it is able to dish out quite a bit of damage that some may not expect from a defensive gambit. Steel already has a great synergy w pert, but having a fire and psychic immunity in one slot was really useful and allowed for much need breathing room when it came to defenses.



I had experimented with this mon before my games with Isaiah to see if it could work, and while I don't think it is the best, it can carve out a small niche for itself on the right team structures. Intimidate helps with non-contact physical moves (specifically ic chien, eq moon, any physical fire), which clef otherwise folds to despite investment. I didn't run moonlight on this as lefties + gterrain meant it was getting a good amount back + I did not want corv to come in for free on clef every time. Overall mon is fun/has a surprisingly good amount of positive MU's into the physical threats of the tier but lacking in actual stats + not too much flexibility in what it can run makes it not the greatest.

Notes in general: None of the mons have EQ bc of gterrain, dnite is running flame bc clef already has tbolt coverage, and this team does struggle against set-up sweepers, especially phys def ones if clef is gone.


Proof Below - Name comes from Bonehead's Bank Holiday by Oasis

#1 Lets gooo

View attachment 611097
View attachment 611098

gz on peak! I definitely got cooked by the dnite on ladder/during testing...

 

[matte]

Heya, I just wanted to shoot my shot for a sample team submission! I have two teams that i'm pretty confident that are good.

Iron Hands Fat:
https://pokepast.es/deda9d89e078d337

This team structure has always been my favorite, as Iron Hands' sheer bulk allows it to tank many hits. Lategame it turns into a wincon, as weakened teams cannot stop a Boosting Iron Hands. The team is pretty standard and is is remixed off of LordBox or cat (idk who made it first). The idea is that Chansey and Empoleon already beat all of the special attackers/have a decent matchup into them, but the supporting cast helps them out and we have 4 slots of mons to fit in other roles. Iron Hands is so bulky that it can scout many moves, like Icicle Crash from Chien-Pao and CB Ceruledge which can get PP stalled out of Poltergeist. Pecharunt on this team is to adapt to the increasing amount of Fighting spam, and gives good utility like walling Firepon and also Iron Moth (most run Fire move + Grass). Also can help Hands check Ceru by letting Hands scout first then going in to take a hit. Parting Shot lets it cycle Regenerator Iron Hands more, which can often get chipped down like crazy when facing strong breakers (Ceru) Mandibuzz is Magic Guard, because its the only hazard removal on the team and in my eyes, its a priority to ensure longevity of your only hazard remover. Magic Guard also serves as good utility like dealing with Poison, freeing up our item slot for Leftovers, and also being immune to Stealth Rocks. Its dark typing also can shut down Psyspam. A neat tech I found with this team, is that if you Thunder Wave the Ogerpon Wellspring with Chansey(all of the other variants we can deal with other teammates), then you can go to Mandibuzz and OHKO it with Foul Play. This is one of the surefire ways to kill Ogerpon. Try keeping it Para'd then its scared of switching into Mandibuzz/Setting up. Chansey > Blissey because mixed attackers exist as well as I feel like its more sturdy in general (idk i didn't do any calcs but trust me). I went Twave over ShadowBall, because it offers more utility and can help stop Stored Power spam. Also Heal Bell lets me be risky with Iron Hands to scout/go for kills. Also I went for a Calm nature instead of a physical one, to avoid the 2HKO from Stored Power Stamina Max Boost Latias (big word wow) + more Bulk in general. They take more turns to setup so we can just spam Stoss and hope for a Para. You can go Bulletproof Empo if you want a better Gholdengo matchup, but then you can be exploited with Zapdos. Do note that Hands can also help in the Zap matchup if you are running Bullet Proof Empo. Empo is just standard, and can overload Corviknight if its Brave Bird by Knocking off the item, setting Rocks, and spamming surf. Deo-D is the last member and I just slapped it on because this team was looking Boulder weak, but it also gives more utility like Spikes and more Knock-Off. You can run different moves on it, its just a preference. Thats all of this team, its very solid and has pretty good matchups vs the Meta. But the thing is that it suffers VS Exeggutor-Alola (don't ask me how I know this) as well as Ogerpon-W, but that can be played around. Overall, super solid team. Slashed moves = u can change them on the paste.

I'm like 8th on the ladder with this team (just posting this after I got some results to confirm w me that its an alright team.), I know 8th isn't very good especially on a dead ladder, so i'll push for 1st. I have gotten it before with a similar team structure, so i'm confident I can do it.

<-- old peak, will get there.
raining in cali, even tho its not :(

got no1 :D

CB Ceruledge
https://pokepast.es/a5ba2d4dbfc28319

will update this soon ^^

 

[Isaiah]

SAMPLE TEAMS ARE UP TO DATE AGAIN! ​

Thanks to everyone that submitted!
Now that the wave of suspect tests is over with, we should be able to work towards more regular sample team updates again. Enjoy!

P.S. sample team submissions are always open. If your team(s) didn't get accepted this time, don't be discouraged and keep sharing! Everyone sharing teams can only help the metagame develop more, after all :P

​

Hyper Offense
- Dual Screens Hyper Offense by cat
- Dual Screens Offense by cumps

Bulky Offense
- Choice Band Zamazenta PivotSpam by UT

- Tinted Lens Kingambit Bulky Offense by Atha

- Primordial Sea Primarina Bulky Offense by cumps

- Choice Band Ceruledge Bulky Offense by cumps


Balance
- Flame Body Great Tusk Balance by Slither Wing


Stall
- Flame Body Chesnaught Stall by GlalieGoesBoom

- Corrosion Pecharunt Stall by Isaiah

- Water Absorb Scream Tail stall by cumps

 

[Slither Wing]

Ignore that I'm like a week late with this shush
I can't recall ever doing one of those teamdump + big rant about whatever posts, so I thought now would be a good time with both the recent survey as well as the fact that I'm out of AAALT, So fuck it, big teamdump + my personal thought on the metagame at the moment:

(Regarding Teambuilding, I didn't really scout any of my opponents nor had I any clue what either would bring, so all teams here are just created from general ideas, and are not designed to specifically beat certain playstyles)

Vs Bijou:

Ever since Iron Hands dropped and people started to talk about Surge Surfer Hands, I wanted to make a bait-esque team with a Hadron Pivot, in this case Sandy Shocks. Idea is simple; you get up terrain, pivot into Hands. The opponent is likely to switch into their Great Tusk or other Ground-type to check it since they think its Surge Surfer, and boom, free setup opportunity. What ended up happening most of the times though was that EE Hands is simply too broken and won games without the whole "fooling the opponent" idea, but it was a cool idea to me none the less. Rest of team is extremely basic; Scarf Moon to clean up after Hands, Defensive Pivot core with Corv + Melo, and Deo-D as the obligatory fuck setup mon. Overall, very consistent ladder team from my experience and one of the teams I'm more prouder of.


I've always liked the idea of Fat structures with an unwallable breaker, and Dragon's Maw Wake is literally impossible to switch into consistently, and is especially good now with so few viable Fairy-types around. Regen Tusk is also something I'm a big fan of, as it literally soft-checks almost all physical attackers and annoys defensive mons. Una Blissey + VA Empoleon form a nice SpDef core, and remaining is just Physically defensive mons, with the classic Fluffy + Fire Immunity while also bringing Spikes + Spinblock. Colbur Ghold lets you almost always get a Twave off on Roaring Moon, letting Wake outspeed. Itemless is an option to completely wall Ceruledge, but since Roaring Moon's much more common I like Colbur.


This wasn't brought thankfully, but the idea was some type of Special Offense, where you bait in Special Walls with Eleki and Boom on them, letting Proto Manaphy and Scarf Ghold clean up. As you can see though, the rest of the team is honestly just a random defensive core + Zapdos, and yes, this gets 6-0ed by Empoleon, so it's definetly not a good team. I run Pixilate over Refrigerade mostly since it allows you to actually OHKO Roaring Moon unlike Refrigerate, since most Scarf variants disrespect Extreme Speed. You still hit eveything relevant that Refrigerate hits (Great Tusk, Dragonite, even stuff like Iron Hands, Walking Wake, and Zamazenta) and you can even Boom on Manaphy more easily (Yes this is just MnM Regieleki I don't care).


Vs Atha:

This team is yet another rendition of the idea of Special Offense, this time though its not based around Explosion. I realized that Knock Off on literally any Special Attacker is fucking broken, as you can easily force AV removals for easy cleanup later, and why not stack 2 of them if its so good? SFLO Deo-S is also quite underrated imo, as you can easily pick your checks, and is overall bonkers. The lame core of Corv + Melo returns, this time with a Scream Tail that can both take advantage of AV removals, but can also wishpass to Great Tusk, which isn't running Regen here. Flame Body is here to mostly shut down Roaring Moon, as it can otherwise overwhelm this team, but it can also fish against both Zamazenta, Dragonite (to an extent) and any mon overall that spams U-turn. Static could honestly be a cool alternative as well to punish the special attackers harder, as Melo helps bait U-turns from the likes of Azelf, Iron Moth, and Walking Wake. Another team I'm proud of, and it also made its way as a sample team so

If anyone has seen me playing recently they would know I have a weird obsession with making Trick Room work, and this isn't necessarily my best work, but it's an idea atleast. I was kinda sad first when Iron Hands & Ursaluna dropped since I'd hoped that they would help, but they were in fact, terrible on TR, as they can't really bruteforce through their checks. Enamorus-T however, is a different beast, and can pretty easily steamroll most teams with SFLO Moonblast alone. Semi-Room also feels more consistent imo, since it allow you to fall back onto a defensive core after TR ends instead of hoping that you can get it off again, and the main plan here was to have Enam break walls, with Scarf Ghold cleaning up. I originally ran Grass Knot, since you KO AV Swampert with Moonblast + Grass Knot, but I swapped it out last second which kinda sucked for the match, but oh well. This team might not be it, but trust me, I'll be back with more mediocre Semi-room teams.



yeah... this team is pretty bad in hindsight, but I hadn't found much time to test it and kinda had to rush it, but it's still unexcusable of how bad it actually is. I wanna say tho that Kommo-o is actually quite underrated imo, as it helps check all Ogerpon formes, Barraskewda, Iron Hands (kind of), Cinderace, and annoy Great Tusk. Counter Deo-D is also a nice tech to either bait & KO Roaring Moon, or to absorb a U-turn and then blow up whatever switches in. I think the team had some techs, but was overall lacking.


...I found this in my builder after my match, and I wonder if this could've maybe given me better odds of winning, as Normgar kinda owns slower, pivotless teams. I also had hazard removal, which would've been nice to have in the former team, and the general plan is to trap Azelf checks with Normgar and then slowly sweep with Azelf. I haven't actually played much with it, but I wonder... oh well, no need to cry over spilled milk.


Overall, I gotta say that AAALT has kind of changed how I both view and play AAA currently. There was a reason that qualifying for me took so long; playing ladder games really sucked, and I had like 0 motivation to actually put any effort into building. Maybe I just prefer building for Tournaments, as you are more free to pick what matchups you win versus lose againt, while also being able to bring cooler surprise techs. This tour also kind of showed me that I was lacking more in the teambuilding department in comparison to how I played. Naturally, I might've not played the greatest at times, but I felt like some of my teams were either subpar or lacking, which for me is fine, as I want to prioritize being a better builder in contrary to being a better player. In any case, huge shoutout to cat and Gimmicky for hosting this, was a really cool idea and I hope to see it return in the future.

As for survey stuff, I don't really have any big opinions on Native Ability clause, if it gets implemented, cool I guess? if not, that's fine by me, I don't think it will have any major impact outside of Gliscor / Gholdengo, but if it gets freed then that's neat I guess. Ceruledge is definetly not a problem and should probably never be banned, as you often have to build around it rather than slotting it in freely. I originally voted 4 on Chien-Pao, but in hindsight that was probably stupid and should've been lower. Chien-Pao might lack defensive checks, but it takes waaaay too much effort to just get it in, only for it to click the wrong move and die. Like, most teams might not have a hard counter to it, but running it means that you need to play around Hazards perfectly while also not bringing it on stuff it can't reliably beat. Overall, its kinda like Ceruledge, high risk, high reward to use, neither should be banned.
Welp, that's all for me, if something's confusing with what I said then so be it, peace.

 

[TDLoriat]

Regenerator the GOAT ​

There are very few high level teams that don't run an regenerator Pokémon. There would probably be multiple a team if not for ability clause. If not for hyper offense, regenerator would probably be on every team. Regenerator Assault vests are near omnipresent in the meta and it is difficult to find a team without one (not complaining because I like Psyshock). If a team doesn't run a Regen-Vest Mon, then it would most likely run another regenerator Pokémon. The lovely teams above this post by Slither Wing (based and pill-bugged) all feature a regenerator Pokémon, most often Great Tusk. All three A+ Pokémon in the tier have regenerator listed on their VR. Regenerator shows up in 14 different entries on the VR. While it only beats out Sword of Ruin by 1 Pokémon, Sword of Ruin only has a place on much more offensive Pokémon that are typically lower on the VR (only 3 are A- rank or above). It's incredibly difficult to rank abilities because of the complexities of offense vs defense, but regenerator kicks teeth in regardless.

 

[Cyril tbh]

There was a reason that qualifying for me took so long; playing ladder games really sucked, and I had like 0 motivation to actually put any effort into building.

This is a hard agree for me. Ladder is so wonky and inconsistent for me thatI have a hard time actually playing it lmfaoo

 

[TDLoriat]

Offensive multiplier review
Everyone know that sword of ruin is run on any offensive pokemon without something better. And it’s definitely justified. A 1.33 modifier is only matched by the far more limited adaptability. Beads of ruin would be the Ghold standard for special attackers were it not to share the same issue with adaptability, but also sheer force. Sheer force is weaker than the ruin abilities, only giving a 1.3 modifier. It makes up for this weakness by giving nearly free access to Life orb, making sheer force life orb hit an astonishing 1.69 multiplier. Sheer force does not specify which attacking side is required, but is generally run less often on physical attackers due to a lack of relavent fighting and ground moves. Hadron engine and the illegal Orichalcum pulse both provide a 1.33 times bonus to the special and physical attack stat respectively, while also setting up electric terrain and sun. Terrains (bar misty terrain) provide a 1.3 multiplier to moves of the same type as the terrain, and sun and rain boost the power of fire and water moves by 1.5 respectively. Electric types like Sandy Shocks run hadron engine, but some non-electric types like Latios also run it. However, niches held by certain abilities are slowly being taken over by others. Why run adaptability when you can just run sword of ruin instead? Why run Desolate land when you can just use a generalist. It unfortunately homogenizes the tier into a few overpowering abilities that creep into other niches.

 

[UT]

Okay my open run didn't go as planned, but I wanted to talk about some cool techs that I do think have potential.

Eject Button spam: (game)

Eject Button spam was an idea that I pitched to Isaiah as a meme, but the more I play around with it, the less sure I am it's a meme. It's no secret that pivots and breakers are very strong in AAA right now, and Eject Button is a fantastic way to get your breakers in faster and disrupt the opposing team's pivoting at the same time. Cobalion I stole from Atha, it's a neat rocker for offense that is hard to switch into, has pivoting, and can slow down Moon and Pao, two huge threats for offensive teams. Walking Wake and Roaring Moon are both amazing Choice-item breakers if you get them in, and this team (should) do that. Just be aware that Knock Off does not trigger Eject Button, sadly.

Burnt Kitchen: (not worth watching lol)

Yeah this team sucked. It was kind of all over the place. Well-Baked Body Hisuian Zoroark was supposed to lure Fire-types and RegenVests in the same slot, and maybe there is another comp for it, but this was not it. Also found out the very hard way that this team has nothing for Iron Hands.

Dragon Spam: (game)

I have been really enjoying the Choice Scarf Walking Wake + Choice Specs Latios combination. Latios is very good at bringing in and beating common RegenVesters and special walls, potentially opening up the door for a Wake sweep. Wake can even support Latios with Knock Off on stuff like physically defensive RegenVest Manaphy and just pivot it in. I can never settle on Adaptability or Tinted Lens for Latios though; Tinted Lens blasts through Steels like Empoleon, Gholdengo, and Hoodra much more reliably, so it's usually what I run to set the table for Wake, but the extra power is nice. I tried to run Pecharunt, Spikes, and Rocks to get away with no removal, but bit me hard against Taunt Great Tusk.

ggs Ivar57, rooting for you next round.

TL;DR: use Scarf Wake, Specs Latios, Eject Button. Do not use Well-Baked Body Hisuian Zoroark.

 

[cumps]

hello friends, as I look through the builder I keep finding mons that I feel should be good or at least usable but don't see too much actual play. these are the ones that I've collected so far.

I'm looking for any useful, anti-meta, or even just fun sets that people have for these mons or any other ones you think are underutilized. for example, I used this set in AAALT:


Fezandipiti (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 228 SpD / 28 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Roost
- Toxic
- Heat Wave
- Moonblast

this was intended as a wake and prima hard counter, but it ended up being very useful against IDBP zama, which I didn't even consider. keep in mind these are "underexplored" just from my perspective, perhaps you consider dragalge or something a meta staple and have entirely solved all possibilities for it. in that case, please share!

 

[TDLoriat]

Moltres (Moltres-Galar) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Air Slash
- Agility
- Fiery Wrath
- Nasty Plot


It might be a hyper offense gimmick but who cares, fiery dance is very dumb.

Edit: I feel that the power of the mon is inconsistent, but it has incredible peaks. Air slash and hurricane are interchangeable, but both provide incredible power in contrast to fiery wrath. https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9almostanyability-2079426318

 

[Isaiah]

hello friends, as I look through the builder I keep finding mons that I feel should be good or at least usable but don't see too much actual play. these are the ones that I've collected so far.
View attachment 614693
I'm looking for any useful, anti-meta, or even just fun sets that people have for these mons or any other ones you think are underutilized. for example, I used this set in AAALT:


Fezandipiti (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 228 SpD / 28 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Roost
- Toxic
- Heat Wave
- Moonblast

this was intended as a wake and prima hard counter, but it ended up being very useful against IDBP zama, which I didn't even consider. keep in mind these are "underexplored" just from my perspective, perhaps you consider dragalge or something a meta staple and have entirely solved all possibilities for it. in that case, please share!

Had to re-open the cellar of dastardly ideas for this, but here are some of the things still in my teambuilder:


Landorus (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Galvanize
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake
- Body Slam
- Taunt

This blows up pretty much every regenvest and still manages ~40% to Fluffy Corviknight. I've theorymonned putting this on some sort of dual screens or just as a "what weird breaker are they unlikely to predict" slot.


Zamazenta-Crowned @ Rusted Shield
Ability: Dauntless Shield
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Endure
- Reversal
- Crunch
- Agility

Way before Fluffy Corv became as popular as it is now and people considered spdef VA a little more often, I cheesed ladder a couple of times while going for shenanigans with this. 150 or 200 BP Reversal can be pretty annoying for ppl to try and deal with, especially if you can somehow find a turn to get off an agility. Crunch is just there so you can still pretend to do damage to defensive Gholdengo.


Palafin-Hero @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Zero to Hero
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Wave Crash
- Endeavor
- Taunt
- Substitute

(Yes, I'm a big fan of low HP cheese). This one is pretty self-explanatory tbh, idea is to chip yourself down with Wave Crash and Substitute, then try to fry at least a couple of guys with Endeavor. SUPER stall cteam set that I thought was pretty funny while people were spamming old versions of Glalie's team.


Hydreigon @ Focus Sash
Ability: Wandering Spirit
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Draco Meteor
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot

Annoying HO lead that gets the jump on their regenvest by denting with a [hopefully +2] strong STAB move and then making it pseudo permanent, which can be a big deal if you have another guy like QD Volcarona or Polteageist or something in the back. Wandering Spirit instead of Mummy for the off chance that stealing Regen or some random immunity ends up being a cool tech in a battle.


Infernape @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Close Combat
- Focus Blast
- Flare Blitz
- Earthquake

This is basically that early SS Lucario set that jrdn used to use, not much else to say. It was always kinda mid in practice bc 104 Attack is sadly exactly as mediocre as it sounds, even when trying to spam CC, but it can be a pretty cool set if you get every prediction right (Hint: I didn't in testing).



Salamence @ Flame Orb
Ability: Aerilate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Facade
- Fire Blast
- Roost
- Dragon Dance

I tried to force the SS AAA set a couple of times. Findings: This SUGGS. SAC AAA is way more offensive and punishing of guys like this that need the convenience of getting in against lots of fat mons in order to be effectiv. At best it'll take out maybe one guy on average, which you can certainly find easier ways to pull off in this meta.

I'll go digging through team backups to see if I have anything on the other Pokemon, but here's this for now :P

 

[UT]

Lucario @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe OR 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Rash / Naughty Nature
- Close Combat
- Steel Beam
- Nasty Plot / Swords Dance
- Dark Pulse / Psychic / Earthquake / Extreme Speed

Close Combat + Steel Beam is oddly hard to switch into; most of our RegenVest do not like eating STAB Life Orb Close Combat, and most of our physical guys don't like eating Steel Beam. It can set up on both sides and run coverage to hit the guys that do switch in (Hands, Ghold namely).

Lucario @ Life Orb
Ability: Galvanize / Refridgerate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Extreme Speed
- Close Combat
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake

Or, it can run -ate Speed to do some funny priority damage and nail Corv at the same time. Especially with Triage gone, anti-priority is less rampant now, but does still exist.


Tornadus-Therian (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force / No Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Focus Blast
- Nasty Plot
- Heat Wave

Great speed tier, Nasty Plot, and good coverage options that all work with eitehr Sheer Force or No Guard. Basically, do you want to be lucky or consistent.


Chi-Yu @ Choice Scarf
Ability: No Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Inferno
- Dark Pulse
- Fire Blast
- Memento

Funny Scarfer that can burn things and then sacrifice itself with Memento when the time is right.

Chi-Yu @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Flamethrower
- Dark Pulse
- Nasty Plot
- Taunt

Funny set if you really hate fat.


Zarude @ Life Orb
Ability: Tough Claws
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Power Whip
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat

I'll be honest, it is really hard to figure out what this does over Meow, but Swords Dance has to be something right?


Jirachi @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn
- Future Sight / Doom Desire
- Iron Head
- Psychic Noise

RegenVest that can switch in on the broken Psychic types running around. Future Sight / Doom Desire gives it some interesting techs over the main RegenVesters, and it can do stuff like Psychic Noise on predicted switch ins.

 

[BijouMode]

hello friends, as I look through the builder I keep finding mons that I feel should be good or at least usable but don't see too much actual play. these are the ones that I've collected so far.
View attachment 614693
I'm looking for any useful, anti-meta, or even just fun sets that people have for these mons or any other ones you think are underutilized. for example, I used this set in AAALT:


Fezandipiti (M) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 228 SpD / 28 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Roost
- Toxic
- Heat Wave
- Moonblast

this was intended as a wake and prima hard counter, but it ended up being very useful against IDBP zama, which I didn't even consider. keep in mind these are "underexplored" just from my perspective, perhaps you consider dragalge or something a meta staple and have entirely solved all possibilities for it. in that case, please share!

Enough time has passed.


Salamence @ Life Orb
Ability: Tinted Lens
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Dual Wingbeat
- Substitute

 

[Giagantic]

Been a moment since I posted anything AAA (I post all the time in the discord) but here is a monster mixed set:

Pecharunt @ Spell Tag
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 220 Atk / 252 SpA / 36 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Poltergeist
- Shadow Ball
- Malignant Chain
- Nasty Plot

It 2hko's many common answers to Pecharunt through it's mixed nature and how stupidly good Ghost typing is offensively.

Replay of it in extreme action: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9almostanyability-2080419477

Calcs ahead:

Hide

252+ SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Corviknight: 204-240 (51 - 60%) -- 85.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Swampert: 240-284 (59.4 - 70.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Manaphy: 220-260 (54.4 - 64.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ SpA Adaptability Pecharunt Malignant Chain vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Roaring Moon: 182-216 (51.8 - 61.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon: 147-173 (41.8 - 49.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Empoleon: 246-290 (66.1 - 77.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

EDIT: I made the set better!

Pecharunt @ Spell Tag
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpA / 4 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Poltergeist
- Shadow Ball
- Gunk Shot
- Recover

Gunk Shot 2hko's some things that are pain for it, namely Meloetta, Blissey, and RegenVest Roaring Moon (it can tank a hit IIRC from non-offenisve rmoons). I think if running Recover for the filler slot you could arguably also run life orb.

 

[Gambit]

Been a moment since I posted anything AAA (I post all the time in the discord) but here is a monster mixed set:

Pecharunt @ Spell Tag
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 220 Atk / 252 SpA / 36 Spe
Naughty Nature
- Poltergeist
- Shadow Ball
- Malignant Chain
- Nasty Plot

It 2hko's many common answers to Pecharunt through it's mixed nature and how stupidly good Ghost typing is offensively.

Replay of it in extreme action: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9almostanyability-2080419477

Calcs ahead:

Hide

252+ SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Corviknight: 204-240 (51 - 60%) -- 85.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Swampert: 240-284 (59.4 - 70.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Manaphy: 220-260 (54.4 - 64.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ SpA Adaptability Pecharunt Malignant Chain vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Roaring Moon: 182-216 (51.8 - 61.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon: 147-173 (41.8 - 49.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 Atk Spell Tag Adaptability Pecharunt Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Empoleon: 246-290 (66.1 - 77.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Ok, I know how this looks... but that shit is nasty. This meta heavily supports mixed attackers because defensive walls almost always invest in defense with Intimidate or Fluffy or in special defense typically being an AV user. However, mixed attackers can be supported in both offensive stats thanks to abilities like Adaptability and Sheer Force, and Adaptability being the example in this case. This mon is scary and congrats to Gia for making this!

 

[zezaktest]

Jirachi @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn
- Future Sight / Doom Desire
- Iron Head
- Psychic Noise

RegenVest that can switch in on the broken Psychic types running around. Future Sight / Doom Desire gives it some interesting techs over the main RegenVesters, and it can do stuff like Psychic Noise on predicted switch ins.

This set looks the most promising against stall. It has mixed potential while also preventing heals. It unfortunately gets walled by most team's regenerator slot (and Empoleon), but stall typically uses pokemon like Great Tusk as their regen slot, since Blissey is Blissey. If this had knock it would be really good at forcing progress.

 

[Atha]

Some teams...


This is the team I've had the most success with recently. I originally built it around MGLO Mew but the mon, although very strong against fat/stall, is a bit too weak against offense/BO. The Iron Moth slot is flexible. Pecharunt is amazing at preventing any cheese and forms the speed/cheese control core alongside Dragonite and Whirlwind Ting-Lu. The latter lives pretty much everything on the physical side (takes like 70 from Pao Icicle Crash) and gets up Spikes consistently except against Regen Tusk. Empoleon + Roost Roaring Moon cover most things on the special side; Moon spamming Knock Off with hazards up is gonna be the gameplan in a lot of games. Facade on Dnite helps a bit in the Cinderace and Manaphy matchups. Manaphy is still annoying for this team (admittedly Wandering Spirit could be an option on Empoleon to help vs Mana).


Lil Rain team made around Dry Skin Enam-T, which very conveniently counters opposing Walking Wake and Empoleon ; and is hard to deal with after one CM. Archaludon is SD Dragon Claw for Swampert but a more reasonable set might be better (or maybe like ID Body Press idk). Roaring Moon is a nice setter cause it covers the primal weather users like Zapdos, Oger-Hearthflame, Moth + provides useful u-turns. Wake is the Water breaker + speed control outside of rain. Don't ask me about the spreads I forgot.


2 Fire type breakers paired with a classic defensive core (Goodra-H fell a bit in usage but it's still amazing). The main idea is Mold Breaker Cinderace should be quite strong into teams that rely on WBB to beat Fire types; and if their switchin is Primsea Zapdos I U-Turn into Ogerpon and claim. If they don't rely on immunities I overload them. Ogerpon is notably one of the few mons that have an easy time switching into Manaphy (if Rocks aren't up).


This one I'm happy about. I wanted to build a Boots spam BO with RegenVest Jirachi cause I think it's underrated currently; but I had a hard time finding a solid spiker without the option of Regen Ting-Lu. I settled on Skarm; Boots SoR Zama for speed control and the last 3 mons are basically here to cover the holes (the problem with Jirachi is you still need a Fire, Water immunity, and a switchin to Gholdengo).


This team is built around RegenVest RMoon + Empoleon core, that covers pretty much everything on the special side, provides Rocks and very solid pivoting. Empoleon is Fluffy to help vs Pao and Boulder. With such a consistent pivoting core the go-to is always a choiced breaker - Latios felt like a consistent breaker currently, exploiting opposing Empoleon. Then classic stuff, Barra for speed control, EButton on Tusk to make the Ceruledge matchup a bit better (although Regen RMoon is alright vs it). Mold Breaker feels a bit better than Scrappy on Tusk currently, with the amount of Fluffy Corv/Skarms.


Manaphy is consistent at knocking AVs so I usually try to put pressure on the special side when building around it. Here I chose Specs Scream Tail cause as well as being a strong breaker, it gives a Dragon immunity which is necessary with Manaphy. MGLO RMoon covers the Electric types and gives good u-turns to STail. Ghold + Mana + Tusk core covers most things on the physical side. Nasty Plot Ghold is surprisingly threatening to a lot of teams. WS on Tusk allows you to win even faster by taking Regen from something like Mana or Swampert. Boots for T-Spikes matchup but it's still dire ngl.


Another Mana + special breaker team, this time SFLO Deo-S. STail is still here for Draco Meteors. Cinderace carries the hazards game and gives entries to Deo-S. Unaware Mandi is the anti-cheese of choice.



...And Thoughts

The Regen slot feels quite diverse rn; still somewhat dominated by Manaphy but not nearly as much as it has been in the past. Thanks to new-found specially defensive options like Empoleon and max hp Scream Tail there's also room for physically defensive Regen mons like Ting-Lu or Great Tusk.
Swampert seems to have fallen off a little bit; idt it's that much because people run Grass coverage, just because it's generally less impactful than Mana and not as good at covering threats like Chien-Pao and Walking Wake. It's still a strong tool though.
Pecharunt seems to fit in structures that we're not that used to but it's clearly worth it. An actually good Prank DBond user, which is a strategy that I've always found underrated. Whenever you have it you can just be like "worst case I trade with this threat" and it's actually hard to avoid for the opposing player. You can legit pretend it's your Boulder check. Also it feels refreshing to have another viable Poison type so T-Spikes aren't as free.
Empoleon's popularity has skyrocketed recently and while it cover a lot of things conveniently I'm slightly skeptical of it staying a staple for that long; I think any slight meta shift could make it niche again (for example Manaphy raising in popularity, cause Empoleon gets bullied hard). For now it's good though.
Scream Tail being one of our two viable Fairy type (and way more splashable than Primarina) in a meta so flooded with Draco Meteor makes it feel hard to not put it in every team. Fast Pixilate sets are amazing at getting up rocks and passing wishes, Pixilate Boomburst allowing them to not be passive at all. Calm Mind, T-Wave or Encore are other options on the Rocks/Protect slots, making it flexible too. It's still a debate whether the best spread is max hp or max spa; I used to think max spa clearly but now I use max hp more often cause it's convenient (not letting stuff like Pao RMoon and Boulder threaten ohkoes).
Amazing mon : strong, fast, pivots, convenient defensive utility (checking Shocks and Gholdengo; even Ogerpon-Fire and Water), flexible. Roost sets (MGLO or Boots SoR) are definitely underused for how good they are. DD RMoon is also a scary one, especially terrorist sets like Fluffy WP.
Zamazenta feels like a good addition to the tier so long as people don't run cheesy sets like Sub Scrappy (I'm looking at you cumps) which is honestly not that good (doesn't do shit vs at least 2 of STail, Zap, Pecha). I like Boots 4atks SoR like in the 4th team above, but Band works too.
People started using temporary items on Tusk and friends, making Ceruledge less appealing than it used to be. It's still threatening but you'll need to get more 50/50s right which I think is not worth trying with such a slow and weak to rocks mon with no defensive utility.
Earth Eater Hands has been used quite a lot recently but I'm not a fan of the mon; doesn't do anything vs STail or Pecharunt although it's definitely a threat if you don't have one of those. Regen Hands feels weird to build around cause it doesn't offer Knock or removal and kind of deters you from using Tusk cause you already have a bulky Fighting type. So your removal tends to be Defog which can be fine but I don't find Regen Hands easy to justify rn.
Some briefer remarks : Boots too passive but LO strong Yes Not a fan at all Only if you're desperate vs hazards Yes, still Same Not a fan, too slow and weak Yes Yes Yes, ghostlike will tell you about it Still amazing Hard to avoid using it in offense, too much defensive utility Regen Yes, Unaware meh Underused as fuck, very strong mon Hard to use, still the same threat in the builder though Don't know why people stopped using it Worse Gengar, mixed sets suck Underexplored, even non-Regen sets could be nice.

There would be much more to say but I covered the main things. The meta is in a really good state now imo, excited to see how AAA Open and counterteaming tour unfold. See you there :)

 

[Giagantic]

I come bearing a fun team that I got to number 3 on ladder with and then couldn't be bothered going for number 1 due to my first loss in around 30 games.

Team:
​

Featuring my current favourite set, Mixed Offensive Pecharunt aims to be very difficult to answer confidently 2hko-ing a vast majority of the metagame, only really struggling versus things like Kingambit, Mandibuzz, and some rarer Pokemon such as Ting Lu. Roaring Moon is atypical in that it is fast Fluffy with Jaw Lock and U-turn, you can easily bluff the set as being an adapt set by using U-Turn and can setup versus various things such as non-setup corvs; it also is capable of being swapped for more offensive Roaring moons such as:

Roaring Moon @ Choice Band
Ability: Strong Jaw
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Crunch
- Fire Fang
- Outrage
- U-turn

Which is chosen over conventional Knock Off sets with SOR or Adapt due to Knock Off being anti-synergistic with Pecharunt.

Great Tusk is also a very flexible slot, capable of being changed to more standard sets but as is Stamina let's it threaten a variety of things such as Corv's with Taunt and SR making it easy to keep up hazards and gaining defensive boosts. Corviknight is as standard as they come, won't go any further then saying this. Primarina is my choice of Regen for it can deny heals and has a good typing.

Iron Hands is a bit atypical, the move set is standard for Earth Eater sets but the investment is max hp max spdef letting it tank a wide array of special moves on top of physical moves, setting up in the face of stuff like Sandy Shocks, capable of tanking Zapdos', and so forth. Itemless was an intentional choice as well, lets it act as a soft check to Ceruledge, in a pinch.

 

[Gambit]

Please Free Ice Scales​

Hi, I'm back with a proposition. Please free Ice Scales. I feel like the special attackers we have in the current metagame are a lot to handle, and I think that this might help the problem. Here's why I think we should free Ice Scales:

Swampert is currently the most popular way of dealing with special attacker thanks to its solid natural bulk and the Assault Vest it always holds. However, it can sometimes struggle against Walking Wake. This is because Walking Wake can freely Weather Ball against Swampert, allowing it to almost always 2HKO Swampert. In addition to that, Walking Wake is also able to Knock Off Swampert's Assault Vest, making it even more vulnerable to Weather Ball, as well as Draco Meteor.

So, if Walking Wake is the problem, why not just use Manaphy? It has even higher bulk, also uses an Assault Vest, and is able to resist Weather Ball from Walking Wake. Well, the issue with using Manaphy is that you are now vulnerable to Electric-types like Zapdos, which can 3HKO with Thunder and threaten paralysis, and Sandy Shocks, which 2HKOs with Thunderbolt.

If the problem is Electric-types, then why not Volt Absorb Empoleon? It easily switch ins to Zapdos and can't get punished by Knock Off from Walking Wake, as well as the fact that it resists both of Wake's STABs. Unfortunately, it gets 2HKOed by Earth Power from Sandy Shocks.

Loses to Latios, Azelf, Deoxys-Speed, Sandy Shocks, and Scream Tail.

Loses to Zapdos, Sandy Shocks, SFLO Gengar (if Sludge Bomb).

Loses to Scream Tail, Primarina, and doesn't switch in to most physical attackers like most special defensive mons can.

Scream Tail, Primarina, Deoxys-Speed, Walking Wake.

Beats pretty much every special attacker ig, but loses to Trick and is easy setup fodder for physical attackers and also can't pivot.

This mon actually seems pretty good, but U-turn chips it down quite a bit.

But why?

Struggles with Walking Wake and Primarina and can't pivot.

I don't know what to say here but I think Ice Scales should be added back. Also, I would keep on eye on Sandy Shocks cause I find that it seems really, really good right now.

 

[Hera]

Please Free Ice Scales​

Hi, I'm back with a proposition. Please free Ice Scales. I feel like the special attackers we have in the current metagame are a lot to handle, and I think that this might help the problem. Here's why I think we should free Ice Scales:

Swampert is currently the most popular way of dealing with special attacker thanks to its solid natural bulk and the Assault Vest it always holds. However, it can sometimes struggle against Walking Wake. This is because Walking Wake can freely Weather Ball against Swampert, allowing it to almost always 2HKO Swampert. In addition to that, Walking Wake is also able to Knock Off Swampert's Assault Vest, making it even more vulnerable to Weather Ball, as well as Draco Meteor.

So, if Walking Wake is the problem, why not just use Manaphy? It has even higher bulk, also uses an Assault Vest, and is able to resist Weather Ball from Walking Wake. Well, the issue with using Manaphy is that you are now vulnerable to Electric-types like Zapdos, which can 3HKO with Thunder and threaten paralysis, and Sandy Shocks, which 2HKOs with Thunderbolt.

If the problem is Electric-types, then why not Volt Absorb Empoleon? It easily switch ins to Zapdos and can't get punished by Knock Off from Walking Wake, as well as the fact that it resists both of Wake's STABs. Unfortunately, it gets 2HKOed by Earth Power from Sandy Shocks.

Loses to Latios, Azelf, Deoxys-Speed, Sandy Shocks, and Scream Tail.

Loses to Zapdos, Sandy Shocks, SFLO Gengar (if Sludge Bomb).

Loses to Scream Tail, Primarina, and doesn't switch in to most physical attackers like most special defensive mons can.

Scream Tail, Primarina, Deoxys-Speed, Walking Wake.

Beats pretty much every special attacker ig, but loses to Trick and is easy setup fodder for physical attackers and also can't pivot.

This mon actually seems pretty good, but U-turn chips it down quite a bit.

But why?

Struggles with Walking Wake and Primarina and can't pivot.

I don't know what to say here but I think Ice Scales should be added back. Also, I would keep on eye on Sandy Shocks cause I find that it seems really, really good right now.

there's definitely a case to free ice scales but i don't think you're looking at it correctly. expecting one mon to effortlessly cover every single special attacker in the meta is a bad idea from a building perspective. the reality is that you'll be giving up matchups whenever you choose your regenvest, and you can't or shouldn't really change that. if you're struggling vs special attackers, just remember two things:

a. most teams don't have more than 2 special attackers, so you can often get away with just running a regenvest + double immunity to special attackers you're specifically scared of (e.g regenvest mana + air balloon va emp)
b. immunity abilities aren't fullproof but give you outs vs annoying special attackers with paired with other immunities or resists to stabs (e.g wake struggles into scream + moth builds short and mid term cause it has to choose between draco and wball, or shocks into tusk + corvid builds for the same reason)

 

[Greybaum]

Please Free Ice Scales​

i havent contemplated ice scales enough to have a solid opinion on it but hera's right. you should not be able to beat every special attacker in one slot if only because impossible matchups lead to games that are both extremely boring and extremely linear.

if you want to use swampert, pair it with iron moth to switch into weather ball from walking wake and primarina. swampert is only taking 80% max if it's been knocked off, so you can switch into walking wake at minimum twice (more with basic regenerator plays) before you even have to make a prediction. if you're using manaphy, pair it with blissey, or a desoland mon and landorus, or va corv or something. you have 6 pokemon to cover as many pokemon as possible and expecting one to beat every special attacker is silly - especially when the answer to this is literally blissey. there are only a handful of special attackers that can break past it without significant support, and being passive in return is what you give up by using it.

 

[Gambit]

there's definitely a case to free ice scales but i don't think you're looking at it correctly. expecting one mon to effortlessly cover every single special attacker in the meta is a bad idea from a building perspective. the reality is that you'll be giving up matchups whenever you choose your regenvest, and you can't or shouldn't really change that.

Ok, while it shouldn't be the case that the special defensive mon you have should not counter every single special attacker, there's still combinations like Sandy Shocks + Walking Wake or Latios + Iron Moth that can straight-up beat Empoleon, Swampert, and Manaphy, and if Ice Scales existed, this wouldn't be a problem.

a. most teams don't have more than 2 special attackers, so you can often get away with just running a regenvest + double immunity to special attackers you're specifically scared of (e.g regenvest mana + air balloon va emp)

It is usually very tough to fit in double immunity on a team since you always want a phys def mon, a speed control mon, and 2 wall breakers, so at most you're typically only fitting in one immunity mon. Also, RegenVest Manaphy and VA Empoleon isn't a good pairing, plus Air Balloon is rarely ever used on Empoleon.

Just also gonna say that the post I made was filled with not good reasoning, but I still do think its worth it to bring Ice Scales back.