Resource Monotype Viability Rankings [April 2025]

[RainebowValiant]

Alright, time to drop my Mono-Bug Tier List. As someone with plenty of experience in the field and a 19,000 word google doc on Bug Monotype (Yes this is true. I'm around 5% done. Yes I have autism. Yes I will send to those who ask.) I feel qualified to make some nominations.

Word of warning: I am VERY open to niche sets and mons, so don't be suprised if you see any shitmons in these tiers.

S Tier
Volcarona
Scizor
Kleavor

All self explanatory.

A Tier
Araquanid
Forretress
Slither Wing - for its ability to break Steel-type teams, as well as function as a defensive pivot with AV or boots Morning Sun, which Lokix cannot do, I think it should be A. Being a burn spreader also helps this a TON, as Volcarona can rarely afford to run Will-o-Wisp. I can't possibly see a reason for this not to be in A
Ribombee - this is a fantastic lead into Dragon, Poison, and Fighting-type teams, as well as ensuring Sticky Web gets up earlygame better than any other Pokemon other than arguably Araquanid who excels in different matchups. It can also use a ton of random moves like Skill Swap to own Gliscor and Psychic Noise to piss off walls.

B Tier
Galvantula
Frosmoth - overrated IMO. It's a Quiver Dance sweeper that does nothing into Steel and Water. It also struggles to output meaningful damage into neutral targets due to being much slower and weaker than Volcarona. Still solid, but blanking into Steel and Water hurts really bad. Also only has one real set which does hurt its viability for me.
Lokix - First Impression hits hard but being an offensive pivot that doesn't run Boots on a Rock-weak team is unfortunate. Also, its attacks don't deal nearly as much as they should in a world without tera to justify its abysmal bulk and lack of any defensive utility.
Heracross - this guy is underrated. Guts AND Moxie are both solid abilities and being able to check Toxapex and Archaludon as a physical attacker with Guts is awesome. Moxie is good if you want a second Scarf Kleavor on a team and sweeps surprisingly often.
Yanmega

C Tier
Vikavolt
Vivillion
Scyther - genuinely not too bad of a mon. Has STAB Technician Dual Wingbeat along with Swords Dance to cosplay as Scizor and Yanmega's one night stand baby. Eviolite makes it surprisingly bulky and it has Scizor's movepool which is sick because Close Combat is a fantastic coverage option.

D Tier
Rabsca - this dude is ASS. Literally run anything over him.
Venomoth

 

[TheWyvernKing]

Alright, time to drop my Mono-Bug Tier List. As someone with plenty of experience in the field and a 19,000 word google doc on Bug Monotype (Yes this is true. I'm around 5% done. Yes I have autism. Yes I will send to those who ask.) I feel qualified to make some nominations.

Word of warning: I am VERY open to niche sets and mons, so don't be suprised if you see any shitmons in these tiers.

S Tier
Volcarona
Scizor
Kleavor

All self explanatory.

A Tier
Araquanid
Forretress
Slither Wing - for its ability to break Steel-type teams, as well as function as a defensive pivot with AV or boots Morning Sun, which Lokix cannot do, I think it should be A. Being a burn spreader also helps this a TON, as Volcarona can rarely afford to run Will-o-Wisp. I can't possibly see a reason for this not to be in A
Ribombee - this is a fantastic lead into Dragon, Poison, and Fighting-type teams, as well as ensuring Sticky Web gets up earlygame better than any other Pokemon other than arguably Araquanid who excels in different matchups. It can also use a ton of random moves like Skill Swap to own Gliscor and Psychic Noise to piss off walls.

B Tier
Galvantula
Frosmoth - overrated IMO. It's a Quiver Dance sweeper that does nothing into Steel and Water. It also struggles to output meaningful damage into neutral targets due to being much slower and weaker than Volcarona. Still solid, but blanking into Steel and Water hurts really bad. Also only has one real set which does hurt its viability for me.
Lokix - First Impression hits hard but being an offensive pivot that doesn't run Boots on a Rock-weak team is unfortunate. Also, its attacks don't deal nearly as much as they should in a world without tera to justify its abysmal bulk and lack of any defensive utility.
Heracross - this guy is underrated. Guts AND Moxie are both solid abilities and being able to check Toxapex and Archaludon as a physical attacker with Guts is awesome. Moxie is good if you want a second Scarf Kleavor on a team and sweeps surprisingly often.
Yanmega

C Tier
Vikavolt
Vivillion
Scyther - genuinely not too bad of a mon. Has STAB Technician Dual Wingbeat along with Swords Dance to cosplay as Scizor and Yanmega's one night stand baby. Eviolite makes it surprisingly bulky and it has Scizor's movepool which is sick because Close Combat is a fantastic coverage option.

D Tier
Rabsca - this dude is ASS. Literally run anything over him.
Venomoth

Don't feel like replying to all of this right now, but I'll make a few notes.
- This mon defs is not A tier. I mean it's a lead mon with pretty redundant coverage - that yes helps vs. fighting, as well as dragon on paper, but Fighting isn't exactly a loss matchup, especially with so many other options to help there. In addition, vs. dragon the primary problem mons are Gouging Fire and Raging Bolt. Raging Bolt is less common, but if Gouging Fire wasn't in the picture then Bug vs. Dragon wouldn't be a problem or disadvantage at all. If you're trick scarf or able to stun spore, then yeah I can see Ribombee helping vs. Gouging there in that sense, but generally speaking this is a lost slot in alot of matchups. Also, Psychic on Ribombee isn't exactly winning you the poison matchup unless your op is like a 1200s noob, and chances are they're expecting a ribombee lead to begin with, I'll also point out there are way better ways imo to try and handle poison. In general, Bug is a type that can do super well, but you always need to pick or choose a matchup. Ribombee is a super telegraphed mon that helps with matchups you either can already handle - or in the case of dragon, doesn't even help enough to turn the tables. I think C is a pretty fair place to put it TBH.
One last thing for Ribombee, when I look at other mons in C - and , I consider them way more valuable tbh. Heracross is a status absorber - though it has shite longevity - and can do a phenomenal job at break cores still and being super threatening with like Trailblaze for example. Yanmega has the typical speed boost set which is ok I guess, but it's specs tinted lense set especially vs. some of the bulkier types like Steel and Poison goes fucking hard. Doing 50% with buzz vs. standard Pex and hitting Gholdengo for up to 75% with air slash is super nice damage and like two examples of it's damage which I can justify fitting onto a team with webs. Ribombee has direct competition with mons which not only consolidate other useful perks well like araquanid, but even for the suicide lead role still needs to justify itself over Galv.
First, to correct you, Will o Wisp is fantastic on Volcarona. Bulk Volc with Will o may not be the same automatic win on preview vs. Flying it was earlier in the generation and is a pretty hard stomped vs. dragon now with Gouging, but still allows phenomenal utility and is an insane threat to multiple builds such as Flying, Fighting, etc. I'll also say as one of the few people that actually ran Will o Slither as a bulky pivot option, losing the coverage option hurts ALOT. It's super nice in Fighting and Ground for example, but Slither is a mon that already needs to make concessions just to fit in Morning Sun. Maybe I give 3 attacks + Will o a go, but generally speaking one of the primary issues of Slither is in the fact that you want the versatility of 4 attacking slots, the power of life orb or band, and the longevity of Morning Sun all in one mon. First Impression is pretty needed on it if you're running it imo unless you're scarf, but if you do FI + Morning Sun then you can't exactly run fire coverage since you'll end up with First Impression/EQ/CC/Morning Sun - leaving you hard walled vs. steel by Air Balloon Ghold as well as struggling vs. Skarm. This is moreso to point out why I'd imagine Slither is B - alot of more offensive bug teams fit Lokix easier which also has tinted lens first impression, I'm not super opinionated personally on this being A or B because I do love it and use it all the time, but especially in more recent renditions of bug I'd found it to be a mon that fights for a slot alot. If I'm being honest this is one of the suggestions I can get behind, but I think Slither kinda treads the line. It was a mon that was recently dropped to B, and when I look at how my bug builds have adjusted to the meta, I can kinda agree. It's become alot harder to fit than it was before, and even though it's still a solid mon, you need to cover all kinds of shit now which often require the typing or niches of other teammates.
I'm not totally sold on Heracross being B tier. Alot of bug builds require a First Impression user, where Slither Wing would immediately replace Hera for the coverage, plus as a scarf Slither Wing carries U-Turn and Flare Blitz which are both important. Heracross also has pretty big longevity issues with Guts, that being said Trailblaze Guts vs. types like Ground goes hard. I'll give the mon another shot in a team since I often overlook it, maybe it fits better in the meta now than I'd expected, but I still imagine it as a hard to justify mon.
As crazy as it sounds, Specs Frosmoth is fucking nuts LOL, I love that set. That being said I found it funny you said it does nothing into water when water is actually a great matchup for it - generally it runs QD/Sub/Ice Beam/Giga Drain, setting up in the face of bulky waters and +1 giga/ice beam does insane damage. It can be an autowin frankly once their Pex is low, or if you're able to burn Pex earlier in the match then it becomes that much more difficult for the water user to handle. This is actually a mon that appeared a bunch more especially pre-dlc2, but still to point out why this mon is used - it first really shined as a tournament mon. Bulk Volc + Frosmoth vs. some teams was absolutely brutal for some of the top tour types like Ground and Water, while also not being bad into the Poison matchup. In addition to that, Ice Scales makes it one of the few bug mons that can tank special hits. Pre-Dlc2 of course this made Frosmoth the premiere switchin to mons like Greninja - no Araquanid, but even now it still has some really important roles for a team. Raging Bolt is a monster for bug to handle, and Frosmoth is probably the best bug answer in the game to it, plus it's one of the only ways to handle strong special electric coverage which Bug has no resists to and Araquanid can't take. Specs Frosmoth is a bit of a meme, but when Dragon has shit like Archaludon, being able to OHKO turn 1 with a Specs Blizzard is fucking glory LOL. Anyhow, this is another mon I'm not entirely sure of. The problem in my opinion is moreso the fact that Dragon is the #1 type by farrr, and has like 3 separate mons which are absolutely busted in their own right, all of which give problems to Bug. Even if Frosmoth may have some deadbeat matchups like Steel, it still ends up being far far easier for me to fit onto a competitively viable team than the C and B tier mons. For me I see this mon slotted in A and Slither in B as responses to the metagame, there's definitely solid argument to drop it, but it's also a mon that's niche is beneficial enough to justify it's usage and make it standout apart from the c and b mons imo.
I will always agree on raising Vivi from D
This mon feels so awkward just looking at it. It's power output isn't enough to make it a super easy fit, if you run eviolite then you lose 50% to rocks, bad typing, and honestly idk if it's speed as the fastest physically attacking bug is enough when it's still too slow in comparison to the other offensive threats in the tier.

 

[Pengairxan]

New rambles, its show time.
Fire

A -> B
The main relevant Fire build right now is an effective hard 6 with Torkoal not being on it. Ninetales right now offers too much over Torkoal just through healing wish and everything Torkoal wants to do is mainly done better by a different mon, hazard setting is Heatran's job, Cinderace does the pivoting of hazards if necessary and in general, Fire plays similarly to Dragon where they deal with hazards but just accepting they'll go up and clicking their big strong kill buttons into everything else. All Torkoal offers is a momentum sink and some slight physical bulk. But just knock out the physical attackers before they knock you out silly.

Ghost

B -> A
Ghost right now is just fairly HO and Froslass helps to enable it greatly since it can generally lead off against most teams, get up at least a layer up, maybe more, that is not getting removed 9 times out of 10 and generally also get some other chaos done where stuffing up a Scarfer with Cursed Body or getting a trade with Destiny Bond. And any form of chip damage to wear down hard checks to Ghost like Alolan Muk, Hisuian Samurott, and Ting-Lu is just majorly appreciated.

Ice

B -> A
Ice currently lacks an A Tier and I believe Mamoswine is the most deserving of a bump up. Stealth Rock is still just too valuable to be ignoring and its servicable enough bulk along with neutralities to Fire- and Rock-types can provide some level of assistance into them. Also base 130 attack stat with STAB EQ hurts real bad.

Poison

B -> C
Glimmora is just, unfortatune. Its got a lot of good going for it but is just kind of medicore in everything. Like base 86 is faster than the base 85s but is still outsped by so much that it isn't that great. Its STAB Power Gem while on paper being super useful into Fire and Flying are nice struggles to actually pick up OHKOs on much and with how flimsy it is gets OHKOed in response. Corrosion is nice, but Poison has the regen spam while Steel has Gholdengo then every other type has some big whoops thing like Gliscor or is too fast an offensive for Glim to get Corrosion off reliably like Dragon or Ground. That only really leaves it access to hazards but Debris has easy counter play for most types running a lot of special spam, Poison-type, or is Flying/Poison/Steel while its low bulk generally means it can get Stealth Rock up once before it falls and that then gets removed later by Defog or Spin.

A -> S
My personal belief is that some Regen mon belong in S for Poison and one of them has been banned from discussion and the other I think is more of an A Rank so um. This thing. Glowking has seen a fairly large surge on Poison lately and I think its Poison really appreciating that second Special wall in this slowly more specially powercreeped Metagame. And its weirdly one of our best offensive progress makers with Future Sight either letting our offensive breaks get in to just bust through something or getting Status safely applied as a resist comes in to take sight. Being reasonably decent at worst into most of the top types outside of Ground is also a nice bonus.

Also how much is Neko paying you to keep Pex at B? I'll double it. I got nothing really new to say outside of Air Balloon is really good on it.

Water

C -> B
I honestly believe Gastro deserves a slight rise, Yeah pert is generally more applicable but Gastrodon superior special bulk does come into play fairly regularly and its ability to Hold boots while still having recovery is greatly appreciated since most Water teams don't have any form of hazard removal. Spikes on this are also appreciated on bulkier teams that can't really find a good way to put on Samurott-H.

 

[RainebowValiant]

Don't feel like replying to all of this right now, but I'll make a few notes.
- This mon defs is not A tier. I mean it's a lead mon with pretty redundant coverage - that yes helps vs. fighting, as well as dragon on paper, but Fighting isn't exactly a loss matchup, especially with so many other options to help there. In addition, vs. dragon the primary problem mons are Gouging Fire and Raging Bolt. Raging Bolt is less common, but if Gouging Fire wasn't in the picture then Bug vs. Dragon wouldn't be a problem or disadvantage at all. If you're trick scarf or able to stun spore, then yeah I can see Ribombee helping vs. Gouging there in that sense, but generally speaking this is a lost slot in alot of matchups. Also, Psychic on Ribombee isn't exactly winning you the poison matchup unless your op is like a 1200s noob, and chances are they're expecting a ribombee lead to begin with, I'll also point out there are way better ways imo to try and handle poison. In general, Bug is a type that can do super well, but you always need to pick or choose a matchup. Ribombee is a super telegraphed mon that helps with matchups you either can already handle - or in the case of dragon, doesn't even help enough to turn the tables. I think C is a pretty fair place to put it TBH.
One last thing for Ribombee, when I look at other mons in C - and , I consider them way more valuable tbh. Heracross is a status absorber - though it has shite longevity - and can do a phenomenal job at break cores still and being super threatening with like Trailblaze for example. Yanmega has the typical speed boost set which is ok I guess, but it's specs tinted lense set especially vs. some of the bulkier types like Steel and Poison goes fucking hard. Doing 50% with buzz vs. standard Pex and hitting Gholdengo for up to 75% with air slash is super nice damage and like two examples of it's damage which I can justify fitting onto a team with webs. Ribombee has direct competition with mons which not only consolidate other useful perks well like araquanid, but even for the suicide lead role still needs to justify itself over Galv.
First, to correct you, Will o Wisp is fantastic on Volcarona. Bulk Volc with Will o may not be the same automatic win on preview vs. Flying it was earlier in the generation and is a pretty hard stomped vs. dragon now with Gouging, but still allows phenomenal utility and is an insane threat to multiple builds such as Flying, Fighting, etc. I'll also say as one of the few people that actually ran Will o Slither as a bulky pivot option, losing the coverage option hurts ALOT. It's super nice in Fighting and Ground for example, but Slither is a mon that already needs to make concessions just to fit in Morning Sun. Maybe I give 3 attacks + Will o a go, but generally speaking one of the primary issues of Slither is in the fact that you want the versatility of 4 attacking slots, the power of life orb or band, and the longevity of Morning Sun all in one mon. First Impression is pretty needed on it if you're running it imo unless you're scarf, but if you do FI + Morning Sun then you can't exactly run fire coverage since you'll end up with First Impression/EQ/CC/Morning Sun - leaving you hard walled vs. steel by Air Balloon Ghold as well as struggling vs. Skarm. This is moreso to point out why I'd imagine Slither is B - alot of more offensive bug teams fit Lokix easier which also has tinted lens first impression, I'm not super opinionated personally on this being A or B because I do love it and use it all the time, but especially in more recent renditions of bug I'd found it to be a mon that fights for a slot alot. If I'm being honest this is one of the suggestions I can get behind, but I think Slither kinda treads the line. It was a mon that was recently dropped to B, and when I look at how my bug builds have adjusted to the meta, I can kinda agree. It's become alot harder to fit than it was before, and even though it's still a solid mon, you need to cover all kinds of shit now which often require the typing or niches of other teammates.
I'm not totally sold on Heracross being B tier. Alot of bug builds require a First Impression user, where Slither Wing would immediately replace Hera for the coverage, plus as a scarf Slither Wing carries U-Turn and Flare Blitz which are both important. Heracross also has pretty big longevity issues with Guts, that being said Trailblaze Guts vs. types like Ground goes hard. I'll give the mon another shot in a team since I often overlook it, maybe it fits better in the meta now than I'd expected, but I still imagine it as a hard to justify mon.
As crazy as it sounds, Specs Frosmoth is fucking nuts LOL, I love that set. That being said I found it funny you said it does nothing into water when water is actually a great matchup for it - generally it runs QD/Sub/Ice Beam/Giga Drain, setting up in the face of bulky waters and +1 giga/ice beam does insane damage. It can be an autowin frankly once their Pex is low, or if you're able to burn Pex earlier in the match then it becomes that much more difficult for the water user to handle. This is actually a mon that appeared a bunch more especially pre-dlc2, but still to point out why this mon is used - it first really shined as a tournament mon. Bulk Volc + Frosmoth vs. some teams was absolutely brutal for some of the top tour types like Ground and Water, while also not being bad into the Poison matchup. In addition to that, Ice Scales makes it one of the few bug mons that can tank special hits. Pre-Dlc2 of course this made Frosmoth the premiere switchin to mons like Greninja - no Araquanid, but even now it still has some really important roles for a team. Raging Bolt is a monster for bug to handle, and Frosmoth is probably the best bug answer in the game to it, plus it's one of the only ways to handle strong special electric coverage which Bug has no resists to and Araquanid can't take. Specs Frosmoth is a bit of a meme, but when Dragon has shit like Archaludon, being able to OHKO turn 1 with a Specs Blizzard is fucking glory LOL. Anyhow, this is another mon I'm not entirely sure of. The problem in my opinion is moreso the fact that Dragon is the #1 type by farrr, and has like 3 separate mons which are absolutely busted in their own right, all of which give problems to Bug. Even if Frosmoth may have some deadbeat matchups like Steel, it still ends up being far far easier for me to fit onto a competitively viable team than the C and B tier mons. For me I see this mon slotted in A and Slither in B as responses to the metagame, there's definitely solid argument to drop it, but it's also a mon that's niche is beneficial enough to justify it's usage and make it standout apart from the c and b mons imo.
I will always agree on raising Vivi from D
This mon feels so awkward just looking at it. It's power output isn't enough to make it a super easy fit, if you run eviolite then you lose 50% to rocks, bad typing, and honestly idk if it's speed as the fastest physically attacking bug is enough when it's still too slow in comparison to the other offensive threats in the tier.

Ribombee deserves A because it's literally the only Bug-type with Fairy STAB as well as a fantastic lead. Always getting Sticky Web up is huge on hyper-offense which Bug loves to run, and it can blow holes in Dragon- and Fighting-type teams if you have methods to deal with Archaludon and Goodra-H. I will defend this Pokémon forever and you will never stop me.

Will-o-Wisp is very hard to fit on Volcarona, with most top-level Volcs being Morning Sun Bulkarona. Slither Wing is a fantastic burn spreader.

Frosmoth is walled by Toxapex and Empoleon way harder than Volcarona is due to a lack of Recovery and Psychic for coverage. Water isn't a great MU for Frosmoth in my experience unless it's a very offensively-based Water team. Even then, Barraskewda can fuck Frosmoth up hard. I give it B tier, although I understand why others would put it A tier.

You calling out Scyther being 4x weak to rocks while saying you liked Specs Frosmoth and while Specs/Spray Yanmega is extremely strong and common confuses me a bit.

Overall, I will forever defend my choices for this VR until significant changes in the metagame occur. Slither Wing and Ribombee to A, Lokix and Frosmoth to B, and Vivillion to C.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

Ribombee deserves A because it's literally the only Bug-type with Fairy STAB as well as a fantastic lead. Always getting Sticky Web up is huge on hyper-offense which Bug loves to run, and it can blow holes in Dragon- and Fighting-type teams if you have methods to deal with Archaludon and Goodra-H. I will defend this Pokémon forever and you will never stop me.

Will-o-Wisp is very hard to fit on Volcarona, with most top-level Volcs being Morning Sun Bulkarona. Slither Wing is a fantastic burn spreader.

Frosmoth is walled by Toxapex and Empoleon way harder than Volcarona is due to a lack of Recovery and Psychic for coverage. Water isn't a great MU for Frosmoth in my experience unless it's a very offensively-based Water team. Even then, Barraskewda can fuck Frosmoth up hard. I give it B tier, although I understand why others would put it A tier.

You calling out Scyther being 4x weak to rocks while saying you liked Specs Frosmoth and while Specs/Spray Yanmega is extremely strong and common confuses me a bit.

Overall, I will forever defend my choices for this VR until significant changes in the metagame occur. Slither Wing and Ribombee to A, Lokix and Frosmoth to B, and Vivillion to C.

Fairy coverage is pretty redundant to Bug, you don't benefit from the super effective on dark, the super effective on fighting isn't exactly unique or necessary, and dragon literally wouldn't be a bad matchup if it wasn't for Gouging/Raging Bolt, so the fact you have an anti-dragon mon that doesn't touch gouging while still getting walled by the steel drags is hard to justify in my opinion.
Bulkaronas love Will o, I'd say 90% of bug teams I'd used at high ladder are the will o set for sure. I will say I was trying out 3 attack will o slither again, only a few matches in with it and I will say I do like it in this meta.
Pex not only can't outstall frosmoth with Haze + recover, but is pure fodder to sub with the common infestation pex set, doesn't break with pjab when burned, and especially with will o support will end up being a losing sequence of turns for the pex user. It isn't really super hard to get a sub up for frosmoth in the water mu which also helps with offensive checks, and with ice scales it's one of two mons that can really tank the strong special attacks you expect in the water mu. As I said I'm not sold on Frosmoth in A, but it for sure has a crucial niche in this meta.

I will say you are incorrect to compare Scyther to Frosmoth and Yanmega though, especially when you consider the roles of the mon. Specs Frosmoth I said was a bit of a meme, but even there it's a mon that gives immediate ability to get rid of some of bug's top threats on dragon. Yanmega with specs + tinted lense is able to hit alot of bulkier mons for incredible damage which Bug would otherwise struggle with, and again is a mon not intended to take hits but rather for it's ability to do 50% to a fucking pex with bug buzz or like up to 75 vs. ghold with air slash. It still can be awkward but with bug support it has decent enough synergy to justify for what it wants to do. Throat Spray Yanmega is for a late game cleaner with Speed Boost - it's a set not intended to come in multiple times but rather come in once and try and run away with the battle. These two sets in particular are further justified by Bug's lack of special attackers, as many bug teams literally only have volc as a special attacker and then if they want a second they don't have a whole lot of options. In contrast Scyther's eviolite is an item that runs in complete contrary to how many bug teams operate. Even if you have a spinner, the justification for a mon such as Sash Vivi for example would be for it's ability to operate as a counterlead or lead, it's almost always a lead mon that doesn't need HDB. With Scyther you're looking at a mon that is in direct competition with multiple other physical attackers - over which scyther has few niches. Many bug-teams drop a spinner in leu of a HDB build, and Scyther literally wouldn't be able to come in on these teams without taking 50% in many matches if it's benefit is Eviolite. To add to that, as hard as it is to fit, it's even more difficult to fit alongside Forretress because of the staples bug uses. Volc/Scizor/Forre/Kleavor/sticky webber/First Impression User is pretty much what you would see for most Forre Builds, with the role of sticky webber/f.i user (usually webber here) sometimes being replaced with a special attacker such as Vivillon or frosmoth.

There are some parts of what it can do that do seem appealing - decent speed sd with fighting/dark coverage, trailblaze potentially, and technician dual wingbeat can give some builds trouble on paper. That being said, it's not exactly a revelation that Scyther has an eviolite and decent stats. People have been giving Scyther chances since Gen 5 in monotype, and it simply doesn't follow through. You lack the ability to really use an item, and are reliant on either having HDB or Eviolite. I can imagine HDB Scyther putting in more work, but it still just seems awkward, outsped by common threats and hit super effective by tons of common type attacks. I'll give Scyther another trial run for the fun of it but when mons such as Lokix are able to consolidate First Impression into a fearful SD late game cleaner set, many physical walls can handle it fairly well, and you're tight on slots, idk if I'm expecting much.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

Ribombee deserves A because it's literally the only Bug-type with Fairy STAB as well as a fantastic lead. Always getting Sticky Web up is huge on hyper-offense which Bug loves to run, and it can blow holes in Dragon- and Fighting-type teams if you have methods to deal with Archaludon and Goodra-H. I will defend this Pokémon forever and you will never stop me.

Will-o-Wisp is very hard to fit on Volcarona, with most top-level Volcs being Morning Sun Bulkarona. Slither Wing is a fantastic burn spreader.

Frosmoth is walled by Toxapex and Empoleon way harder than Volcarona is due to a lack of Recovery and Psychic for coverage. Water isn't a great MU for Frosmoth in my experience unless it's a very offensively-based Water team. Even then, Barraskewda can fuck Frosmoth up hard. I give it B tier, although I understand why others would put it A tier.

You calling out Scyther being 4x weak to rocks while saying you liked Specs Frosmoth and while Specs/Spray Yanmega is extremely strong and common confuses me a bit.

Overall, I will forever defend my choices for this VR until significant changes in the metagame occur. Slither Wing and Ribombee to A, Lokix and Frosmoth to B, and Vivillion to C.

ok Update
Scyther has viability. I think eviolite is wrong way to go with it still, HDB on webs HO is pretty funny, though it's still a give and take situation. Losing prankster immunity which Lokix has makes Sableye annoying, with webs support it can go hard vs. some types like ghost, damage output is kinda nice tbh off Dual Wingbeat.
As I said, it's give and take. Not a bad mon, I can get behind it being C tier, the reliance on HDB though and kinda mid bulk and 105 speed which is outpaced by much of the game can give it alot of difficulty coming in in some games. One of the difficulties with it is your sacrificing a slot for a mon which objectively will do nothing to help defensively, and unlike Lokix for example, it doesn't have the ability to remedy this with powerful priorities moves. In Swift Swim Rain games for example, you'll definitely wish you had a different mon. It's typing also isn't great synergy wise for mons such as Araquanid. You already lack elec resists, so doubling up with the elec weakness if you want to run araquanid isn't a sound idea. All the while, mons such as Archaludon, Raging Bolt, Gouging Fire all don't really care about it, and it's also a mon that struggles to help in the flying matchup. In a way I think I may have more use for it on future bug teams that Heracross tbh.

 

[RainebowValiant]

ok Update
Scyther has viability. I think eviolite is wrong way to go with it still, HDB on webs HO is pretty funny, though it's still a give and take situation. Losing prankster immunity which Lokix has makes Sableye annoying, with webs support it can go hard vs. some types like ghost, damage output is kinda nice tbh off Dual Wingbeat.
As I said, it's give and take. Not a bad mon, I can get behind it being C tier, the reliance on HDB though and kinda mid bulk and 105 speed which is outpaced by much of the game can give it alot of difficulty coming in in some games. One of the difficulties with it is your sacrificing a slot for a mon which objectively will do nothing to help defensively, and unlike Lokix for example, it doesn't have the ability to remedy this with powerful priorities moves. In Swift Swim Rain games for example, you'll definitely wish you had a different mon. It's typing also isn't great synergy wise for mons such as Araquanid. You already lack elec resists, so doubling up with the elec weakness if you want to run araquanid isn't a sound idea. All the while, mons such as Archaludon, Raging Bolt, Gouging Fire all don't really care about it, and it's also a mon that struggles to help in the flying matchup. In a way I think I may have more use for it on future bug teams that Heracross tbh.

I really disagree with the idea that Ribombee is bad. If you can't run Yanmega and Volcarona isn't Morning Sun or is dead to hax or just being overwhelmed, Ribombee is fantastic to chip Archaludon and also bully Gouging/Arch/Goodra/whoever with Stun Spore.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

I really disagree with the idea that Ribombee is bad. If you can't run Yanmega and Volcarona isn't Morning Sun or is dead to hax or just being overwhelmed, Ribombee is fantastic to chip Archaludon and also bully Gouging/Arch/Goodra/whoever with Stun Spore.

I'm not saying Ribombee is bad, C tier doesn't necessitate bad, but bug is a type that asks it's mons to consolidate as much as it can into each slot. If you look at S tier mons, A tier mons, or even B tier mons for Bug you will see pokemon that do just that for Bug teams. I see C as a fitting tier for Heracross for example, because while it can be an effective wallbreaker, and it can be a scarf user, it ends up with a very liminal niche since there are other pokemon that can do the same role while fulfilling more. Yes it can be a scarf, but Kleavor is a more reliable scarf user, which can pivot with U-turn, set up rocks, and provide rock typing to help with flying and fire types. Yes it can be a wallbreaker, but Slither Wing not only has more utility options, ability to run U-Turn and Morning Sun as wanted to perform different sets, and also First Impression which is a near necessity to help establish Bug's advantage in many matchups, Heracross's direct competition in this sense are mons that both fill more than one roll needed or very much wanted on a Bug Mono.
Now, let's compare Ribombee to other Sticky Webbers. Yes, Ribombee helps with Dragon, Fighting, and Dark, but Dark is a won matchup regardless, Fighting can easily be prepped for and handled without Ribombee, and Dragon still isn't autowon or even favored with it. It can stun spore, and potentially QD I guess, but as a qder it's far far easier to stop than even other low viability mons such as Vivillon. The net gain of Ribombee largely comes in the form of Fast Webs + Moonblast.
In contrast, Araquanid not only has webs, but is a fire resist on bug, a water resist which is not seen elsewhere, and a special tank which can pivot into moves, mirror coat potentially, or even run sets like Iron Defense to help against threats like Gouging Fire. It's a mon that provides essential resists, special defensive utility, webs, and half measures to a top threat in Gouging Fire.
Galvantula - which is B Rank - is also worth comparing to. Like Ribombee it can paralyze foes and offer sticky web support, and has way more immediate of an offensive presence with Thunder. Thunder + Energy Ball coverage makes it extremely difficult to answer for water, and with utility options like Gastro Acid it can even turn the tables on the primary Elec Immune on Flying which is Gliscor. A pretty notable achievement I'd say considering how much of a beast Gliscor is, while still having other options in Volt Switch for pivoting. I don't think Galvantula is the best mon, but it's certainly not worse or worth having lower ranked than Ribombee lmao. Galv is way less of a dead weight than Ribombee is in many very important mus, and even if we can argue Ribombee can go up - that's based entirely on it's help in 1 matchup which I simply don't think is enough for it.

 

[RainebowValiant]

I'm not saying Ribombee is bad, C tier doesn't necessitate bad, but bug is a type that asks it's mons to consolidate as much as it can into each slot. If you look at S tier mons, A tier mons, or even B tier mons for Bug you will see pokemon that do just that for Bug teams. I see C as a fitting tier for Heracross for example, because while it can be an effective wallbreaker, and it can be a scarf user, it ends up with a very liminal niche since there are other pokemon that can do the same role while fulfilling more. Yes it can be a scarf, but Kleavor is a more reliable scarf user, which can pivot with U-turn, set up rocks, and provide rock typing to help with flying and fire types. Yes it can be a wallbreaker, but Slither Wing not only has more utility options, ability to run U-Turn and Morning Sun as wanted to perform different sets, and also First Impression which is a near necessity to help establish Bug's advantage in many matchups, Heracross's direct competition in this sense are mons that both fill more than one roll needed or very much wanted on a Bug Mono.
Now, let's compare Ribombee to other Sticky Webbers. Yes, Ribombee helps with Dragon, Fighting, and Dark, but Dark is a won matchup regardless, Fighting can easily be prepped for and handled without Ribombee, and Dragon still isn't autowon with it. It can stun spore, and potentially QD I guess, but as a qder it's far far easier to stop than even other low viability mons such as Vivillon. The net gain of Ribombee largely comes in the form of Fast Webs + Moonblast.
In contrast, Araquanid not only has webs, but is a fire resist on bug, a water resist which is not seen elsewhere, and a special tank which can pivot into moves, mirror coat potentially, or even run sets like Iron Defense to help against threats like Gouging Fire. It's a mon that provides essential resists, special defensive utility, webs, and half measures to a top threat in Gouging Fire.
Galvantula - which is B Rank - is also worth comparing to. Like Ribombee it can paralyze foes and offer sticky web support, and has way more immediate of an offensive presence with Thunder. Thunder + Energy Ball coverage makes it extremely difficult to answer for water, and with utility options like Gastro Acid it can even turn the tables on the primary Elec Immune on Flying which is Gliscor. A pretty notable achievement I'd say considering how much of a beast Gliscor is, while still having other options in Volt Switch for pivoting. I don't think Galvantula is the best mon, but it's certainly not worse or worth having lower ranked than Ribombee lmao. Galv is way less of a dead weight than Ribombee is in many very important mus, and even if we can argue Ribombee can go up - that's based entirely on it's help in 1 matchup which I simply don't think is enough for it.

I think that S should be mandatory, A mandatory on certain archetypes or just overall fantastic, B should be helps in a couple MUs or is decent helpful generally, and C and D niche. I'd argue Ribombee is A because it's extremely solid in multiple MUs like Dragon and Fighting while also providing free webs and paralysis spreading while also having unique tech options like Skill Swap, Psynoise, and having Quiver Dance which is nice.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

I think that S should be mandatory, A mandatory on certain archetypes or just overall fantastic, B should be helps in a couple MUs or is decent helpful generally, and C and D niche. I'd argue Ribombee is A because it's extremely solid in multiple MUs like Dragon and Fighting while also providing free webs and paralysis spreading while also having unique tech options like Skill Swap, Psynoise, and having Quiver Dance which is nice.

I mean even by this criteria, I think we're arguing whether Ribombee is B tier or not aren't we? It's not mandatory on certain archetypes (Galv is literally a mon that fills the exact same role on said archetypes), it may be good but it's still deadweight in alot of mus, and I don't know if I'd say it's solid in more matchups or more solid in it's own matchups than Galv for example while being extremely comparable in support options.

 

[RainebowValiant]

I mean even by this criteria, I think we're arguing whether Ribombee is B tier or not aren't we? It's not mandatory on certain archetypes (Galv is literally a mon that fills the exact same role on said archetypes), it may be good but it's still deadweight in alot of mus, and I don't know if I'd say it's solid in more matchups or more solid in it's own matchups than Galv for example while being extremely comparable in support options.

I'd argue Ribombee is nearly mandatory on HO with the role of Sticky Web setter, and while Galv does the same thing, I think Ribombee's contributions to the Dragon matchup, speed and ability to get Webs up (which is WAYYYYY better than Galvantula's due to being slower). I put Galv at the top of B though, and they're extremely close. Both are great but I think Ribombee is slightly better and therefore deserves A as the HO offensive web setter. I can understand putting Galvantula in A and Bee in B though because both are very valid choices.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

I'd argue Ribombee is nearly mandatory on HO with the role of Sticky Web setter, and while Galv does the same thing, I think Ribombee's contributions to the Dragon matchup, speed and ability to get Webs up (which is WAYYYYY better than Galvantula's due to being slower). I put Galv at the top of B though, and they're extremely close. Both are great but I think Ribombee is slightly better and therefore deserves A as the HO offensive web setter. I can understand putting Galvantula in A and Bee in B though because both are very valid choices.

Neither Ribombee or Galv are A, I can understand Ribombee being graded the same as Galv at B in VR, but they both have their own uses which make both mons both quite viable. Stab Thunder, coverage with energy ball, and a still solid speed stat of 108 make Galv more than good for it's job and offers alot of offensive utility which Ribombee simply doesn't bring to the table, all the while a way more accurate paralysis with compoundeyes twave, electric typing, and gastro acid or volt switch for utility options. Electric + Grass for offensive coverage is way more useful to a bug mono than fairy imo, and as a hazard setter it also means galv hits many common defoggers while also being notably good into the water mu, something I highlight because of how replacing araquanid as your webber will certainly impact the bug v. water. Skill Swap I think is a bit of a niche for Ribombee - while Galv is far more likely to be able to bring in Gliscor against it to use gastro to begin with since it actually poses a threat to flying monos, skill swap means you can web in the face of hatterene. I think they both have their own uses, for sure neither are A but they have their own options.

 

[Sificon]

Good morning. Idk what came over me but I just felt like posting in here and giving my opinion about the grass viability rankings because that is the only type that I do feel comfortable enough ranking.
I personally would suggest the following changes:

A -> S
In my opinion this mon is the absolute best carry for grass teams and one of the reasons why you would wanna use grass in the first place. I think Ogerpon-Hearthflame is needed on 90% of all grass teams and the remaining 10% do not use it because Ogerpon-Cornerstone is a very great mon by itself and you can't run both of them at the same time due to the species clause. Broken mon that turns autolost matchups into winnable ones.

B -> A
I think Amoonguss is just extremely amazing on grass team. Between Spore, just being an overall sponge and also the very nice utility, that mon just has so many things to offer. Eject Button Amoonguss works great to provide some additional pivoting which grass desperately needs. I slap this on literally every single grass team that I've been building and I never regretted it. I've even tried something like Growth, Stomping Tantrum, Giga Drain + Synthesis which can beat certain poison builds on it's own which is otherwise the absolute worst matchup for grass.

A -> B
It just gets outclassed by Amoonguss. Yes, it can be a very nice defensive switch-in but after that it just... kinda sits there and dies. The main issue I have with Hydrapple is that it only really helps in the matchups that grass is doing alright anyways and it doesn't help at all in the matchups that grass usually struggles against (except for steel). It definitely has a niche and can be good every now and then but I don't think it's consistently good. It kinda wants to fit onto more bulky teams and grass just can not do that.

D -> C
Pretty decent mon that just helps out a ton in unfavored matchups. One of the main issues that grass has is that it does allow your opponents for easy setup opportunities due to grass being a horrible offensive typing and Whimsicott with prankster Encore helps against that. That being said it's stats still really hold it back but I've had quite some success with it on the ladder, especially against dragon teams, which is otherwise an extremely horrible matchup for grass.

D -> UR
This mon doesn't really provide any good value for your team and there is simply no reason to use it, since if you're using regular Ogerpon you can't use any of the other forms. No grass team should ever use this mon.

D - UR
Gets outclassed by Hydrapple, also has the same issues as Hydrapple but just struggles with them even more.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

(Ice) UR-->C/B Tier

 

[RoyalReloaded]

I believe Hisuian Goodra should move from B to A tier on steel. It's a lot easier to fit on now that Kingambit doesn't automatically occupy a slot. Good special wall, knock off is always good, protect is great to scout against choice locked pokemon, dragon tail to phaze and enable hazard stack reliable switch in to special attackers like Primarina, Flutter Mane, Greninja, etc.

 

[AhmedxWaleed]

UR -> C/D
Well I didnt think would be writing for this, thought Jakhem's post would let it get in but here we go. Meowstic reliably sets ups screen unlike Deoxys-S which gets out speed by threats such as Scarf Dragapult and Meowscarda. Prankster allows it to set screens neglecting the foes speed. It also gets multiple moves that it can benefit from Prankster such Thunder Wave, Yawn and Trick. It also gets Psyshock which lets it damage special walls such as Blissey. I think it could be used a niche mon in Psychic Teams. I have used it myself and is usable.

B -> A
Ah a great Psychic mon. This should be placed a bit higher as after Esphatra has gone, this is only one of viable Stored Power user on Psychic. It can sweep hard when paired with dual screen which most of the psychic teams opt to use. Agility and Calm Mind increases it's durability. Tachyon Cutter Double Hitting also helps in removing sashed mons.

Here 2 replays I think are good enough to add here (I used both in pairing sorry for that ) :
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9monotype-2240528772?p2
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9monotype-2235198217

 

[Leafium Z]

(Ice) UR -> C/B

Ice has always been a weird type in SV (some can say it has always been a weird type). It has a great Snow setter with access to Aurora Veil, (essentially giving it a 1.5x boost on the Special Defense and a 2.25x boost on the Defense of the team when Snow and Veil are together), terrifying weather sweepers like Cetitan, amazing wallbreakers like Kyurem and even great regular setup sweepers like Avalugg and Weavile. But despite all of these traits, it always felt that all these individual great components never actually worked together. Almost like the team needed some kind of a glue to make it's partners have a chance to shine.

The Glue

Dewgong @ Assault Vest
Ability: Ice Body / Thick Fat
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Flip Turn
- Knock Off
- Liquidation
- Ice Shard / Aqua Jet / Endeavor

Heavily inspired by its Random Battles set, Dewgong swims in to provide something that Ice always asked for and never really was able to pull off in a satisfying manner until now: slow pivoting. Granted by the great typing providing key neutralities and respectable 90/95 bulk bolstered even further with Assault Vest (and possibly with Aurora Veil), Dewgong is capable of putting the momentum in your favor whenever your opponent tries to make use of the tier's powerful Special Attackers, such as Latios, Latias, Volcarona, Heatran, Gholdengo and Flutter Mane, and pivot out to one of Ice's deadly breakers to inflict immediate pressure on the opposing team, completely changing the way Ice teams are usually played.

The Glue's Calcs

252 SpA Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Dewgong: 100-118 (26.1 - 30.8%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Dewgong: 159-187 (41.5 - 48.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Heatran Magma Storm vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Thick Fat Dewgong: 34-42 (8.8 - 10.9%) -- guaranteed 5HKO after trapping
252 SpA Choice Specs Flutter Mane Power Gem vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Dewgong: 136-160 (35.5 - 41.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Neither of the calculations above are taking Aurora Veil into account.

Talking about the moveset, Flip Turn is self-explanatory and it's the main selling point of the set, but the other moves also enhances Dewgong's supporting capabilities. Knock Off allows Dewgong to cripple choiced attackers who take light of Dewgong's passivity, knocking off the Specs off of pokemon such as Flutter Mane, Latios and Iron Valiant should they choose to stay in. Liquidation is the best STAB against Fire types - most notably Volcarona, allowing it to 2HKO non-bulky variants with Liquidation into Flip Turn. The last slot goes to either Dewgong's two priority options - Aqua Jet and Ice Shard, allowing Dewgong to get chip damage before being knocked out, with Ice Shard offering better coverage and Aqua Jet hitting notable setup sweepers such as Ceruledge and Volcarona for super effective damage. Endeavor allows Dewgong to not only cut down opponents when Dewgong is low on health, but especially against bulkier opponents, creates Flip Turn opportunity for Dewgong as your opponent tries to heal off the damage or double out.

Long Story Short

Dewgong enables Ice to be played the way it always wanted to be played: switch in on strong moves, pivot out to one of the breakers, hence and repeat. While other pivoting options do exist, Dewgong distinguishes itself with a better typing, better bulk and better movepool overall.

 

[RoyalReloaded]

hello folks I am here to spread more propaganda and nominate Primarina to S on water. I know it's very funny when I say x Pokemon is broken but I am so serious when I say that I genuinely believe Primarina is at least a top 10 Pokemon in the tier. The set I have been using is the following:

set

Primarina @ Leftovers
Ability: Torrent
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Psychic Noise
- Draining Kiss
- Surf

this is customizable. you can use liquid voice with psychic noise and go for ice beam instead of surf. you can even use rest and chesto berry, a good option to help beat toxic and all that jazz. you can even use heavy duty boots instead of leftovers because of draining kiss recovery, wow!!

Primarina is already naturally bulky, so opting to put all of the evs into bulk make it near unkillable, and calm mind boosts not only its offensive stat but its uninvested (already massive) specially defensive stat as well. basically, primarina becomes extremely dangerous when its counters are removed. or sometimes your opponent doesn't even have one (because theyre very hard to come by) and primarina can just win by itself without any help). Its typing and moves it can use match up very nicely into the top types and very few things can reliably counter it. Unfortunately I don't really have much to say but I very strongly believe in this, attached are some replays. The first of which shows Primarina's prowess as a late game sweeper when its checks are dealt with and the second is what happens when teams don't have a reliable counter.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9monotype-2257683513-8k9ef36ec92ygdfgkgiwn75646erba0pw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9monotype-2257699771-i680rz850gkznfufvtwzvljvbxzvg91pw



I also believe there is a discussion to be had about Cloyster, so I'll nominate it from C to B. I once said Keldeo would be the best pokemon ever made if it got ice beam (hyperbole), so I decided to instead give Keldeo a teammate with a very strong ice move. I don't feel as strongly about this one, but it's been doing quite well for me. It is not the easiest to position but when it finds its spot it is very strong, pairs nicely with Keldeo as once the steel types are chipped down Cloyster has free reign. Also works well as an early game option to apply immediate pressure.


Thanks as always for your consideration

 

[Showl]

Here are some new nominations from my side.

(Dragon) B -> C
Walking Wake does not stand on the same ground as the other B-ranked mons. It is much more similar to Hydreigon in that they are used to improve very specific matchups while being nigh-useless in many other MU's. Claiming Fire MU does not help it either, as Dragon has better immediate answers like Roaring Moon and Dragonite.

(Dark) B -> A
SD Hisuian Samurott becomes the new standard in Dark to break through Dragon defensive core. Its typing also provides a nice Fire resistance to make its setup on Gouging Fire easier. However, far from being limited on solely improving the Dragon MU, it also shines in the Fire, Steel and mirror MU's.

(Dark) A -> B
Despite stellar offensive stats, Hoopa-U fails to cement itself as a staple mon in Dark. Its somewhat middling speedtier makes it prone to revenge kill and limits its potential in a type that functions best as HO. Greninja is a much better special attacker thanks to its great speedtier and decent SpA, while physical variants cannot compare with the powerful physical wallbreakers the type possess. Its Mix set, feared in old times, does not fit the current SV trend.

(Fire) UR -> C
Disregarded for a long time, Charizard has a niche as a Special Sun Wallbreaker that combines well with Gouging Fire to give Fire fearsome dual offenses. Although it comes with a glaring Rock weakness, its typing provides a useful Ground immunity to the team. Offensively, Solar Power Charizard can prove as deadly as Gouging Fire for many types.

 

[Elvira]

For the first time in a while here are some nominations from me.

(Dragon) B -> C.
Personally aside from Flying, this is pretty much rarely used on Dragon. Yes Multiscale with the exception of being able to setup is great but Dragon already seems to have its core structure planned out with Double Steels + Gouging Fire. It just gets outclassed by so many harder hitting Dragon types like Latios, Choice Scarf Latias (with Healing Wish), Scarf Roaring Moon, etc.

(Dark) C -> B.
Yes its evolution is banned, but thoroughly looking at the statistics of Dark and how its able to be more efficiently handled with the likes of Bisharp being a replacement, I'd say give Bisharp her 10s across the board. She is a secondary fairy neutrality that can also help vs the likes of the matchup by spamming Iron Head (Definitely not infront of Iron Valiant!), but with Double Water + Hazard stack being the predominant way of playing can Bisharp also be a lategame cleanup.

(Bug) B -> C.
Half of the times that I remotely see a bug team be used, this pretty much does nothing. Good Dark check & First Impression mon though. Its placement in the current meta is very niche.

(Fairy) C -> B.
Fezandipiti is, in all seriousness, an excellent specially defensive means of spreading status and pivoting into other hard hitting Fairy types. Beat-up + Toxic Chain almost always guaranteeing Toxic Poison damage overtime, U-turn while being slower, roost, and you could opt for Alluring Voice for continuous Toxic Chain damage behind substitute or Moonblast for raw damage.

 

[Pengairxan]

Some just general thoughts for once. Nothing Poison related (if the Zama suspect didn't come around, I would be arguing for D Rank Salazzle but my eyes have been reopened to it)
Dark
A -> S
Amazing Speed tier with pivoting utility that just does a lot of work for the type overall. Choice Band Flower Trick is a great destroyer of Water while Triple Axel ruins Flying teams that don't get lucky with misses, Molt burns or send everything they have on keeping Skarm healthy while Scarf just gets the jump on basically everything. Basically mandatory on every well built Dark team.

Normal
C -> D
There is basically no reason to run this over Blissey. Boots on your big special wall is just incredibly valuable as most types will force too many hazards and special attackers that Chansey will be taking regular rounds of chip that it just won't handle making it less reliable as a special wall. In matchups where Hazards aren't plentiful then it can be better but basically every top type is running too many for Chansey to be worth it over Blissey.

Rock
B -> C
This is the only B Rank you never see ever on Rock. There really isn't much use for this when Rock sends most of its Choice Band breaking power into Arcanine-H which hits more consistently harder thanks to Flare Blitz and has a better matchup into more types overall. Doesn't help that your relying on Coverage to make the most out of its power instead of Stone Edge.

Water
S -> A
Its very telling that through MWP Ogerpon has kind of just, fell off a cliff in usage which isn't surprising. with how Dragon Focused this metagame is Ogerpon-W just has a hard time keeping up overall with Samurott-H now ending up as the main SD attacker for Water teams looking for one. Its still great into several key matchups such as the mirror and Steel teams (Once Arch is weakened) but not a must run like Pex and Gren generally end up being.

 

[Showl]

It's been a few days since Good Doggy left us for a better world and while Fighting is still in shambles, I think we can already draw some lines of what it will become in the coming weeks/months. As a result of this great loss for the type, I will nominate a few mon's for upper ranks.

(Fighting) B -> A
In a Post-apocalyptic Zama ban world, Iron Hands naturally becomes more dominant. As Zama isn't there anymore to revenge kill special attackers like Latios, Flutter Mane, etc, mon's like Iron Hands which can tank hits from them and kill them in return will inevitably grow stronger in popularity.

(Fighting) D -> B
It may seem a bit overkill, but Scrafty emerges as one of the clear winners of the Zama ban. Psychic immunity with a great special bulk and a nice ability in Shed Skin makes it the premier option to deal with pesky Dragon and Ghost mons, as proved recently by a certain Council member. I don't think it will become dominant enough to warrant an A-rank in the future. Nonetheless, future looks bright for Scrafty.

(Fighting) D -> C
Another Pokémon previously overshadowed by Zama, Kommo-o is a potent wallbreaker that can easily wreak havoc in the Dragon mu as well as in many other mu's like Water / Fire / Ground / Flying. With Zama gone, it is also the best IDPress user in Fighting, should you want something juicier than the classic Clangorous Soul set. As it is still early, I think C-rank suits it more than upper ranks, but depending on how the meta will evolve, it could definitely become a top pick.

(Fire) C -> UR
With Zama ban, there is no reason to ever use Moltres in Fire. Not only is the type mostly stuck in a 6-mon's meta, Moltres also lost the last remnants of utility it had over Talonflame. Unlike its fellow bird mate, Moltres has lost defog this gen and comes with a much less favorable speedtier, leaving it at the mercy of many attackers like Urshifu-R, Keldeo, and Iron Valiant.

 

[TheWyvernKing]

(Grass) UR-->D
Webs Grass is still a grass build, meaning it's gonna be bad, but it's still a fun and workable idea for grass with numerous offensive threats like Ogerpon-H, H Lilli, and Meow. Definitely a fish. Hard win Ground/Water, Fairy is fun because with Serperior if they try to bounce webs you end up with +1 speed Serp, your offensive threats can take advantage of dark esp. with misplays though Bisharp is a problem, and Ogerpon with Webs can cook steel.
Using it lost me like 80 elo - some games were lost to H Lilli misses and others just unplayable like poison, but webs grass definitely has winnable mus to alot of the meta.

 

[RoyalReloaded]

gonna hit a buzzer beater because neko said before mwp finals went up but yea whatever

alomomola and manaphy should be b on water. Manaphy matches up very nicely into a bunch of the top meta threats, sub scald ice beam tail glow is really strong, especially in the face of something that cant break a sub in 1 hit. Alomomola is broken, slow wish with 534 hp is super busted and can undo almost any amount of progress instantly. Doesn't have to be used exclusively on stall, I've had some success using it on rain teams as a way to let band barraskewda switch in on hazards multiple times. two replays from mwp featuring basically the same team made by the genius e sword https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9monotype-810398 https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9monotype-813208

 

[Neko]

VR Update - February
Thank you for your support again. As promised, here are the VR changes post MWP:

(Dark) A->S

Amazing Speed tier with pivoting utility that just does a lot of work for the type overall. Choice Band Flower Trick is a great destroyer of Water while Triple Axel ruins Flying teams that don't get lucky with misses, Molt burns or send everything they have on keeping Skarm healthy while Scarf just gets the jump on basically everything. Basically mandatory on every well built Dark team.

(Dark) B->A

SD Hisuian Samurott becomes the new standard in Dark to break through Dragon defensive core. Its typing also provides a nice Fire resistance to make its setup on Gouging Fire easier. However, far from being limited on solely improving the Dragon MU, it also shines in the Fire, Steel and mirror MU's.

(Dark) C->B

Yes its evolution is banned, but thoroughly looking at the statistics of Dark and how its able to be more efficiently handled with the likes of Bisharp being a replacement, I'd say give Bisharp her 10s across the board. She is a secondary fairy neutrality that can also help vs the likes of the matchup by spamming Iron Head (Definitely not infront of Iron Valiant!), but with Double Water + Hazard stack being the predominant way of playing can Bisharp also be a lategame cleanup.

(Dark) B->A
Zamazenta got banned, and Mandibuzz proves to be a great pivot to bring in scary threats like Hoopa-U, Meowscarada, Greninja, and Hisui Samurott. Worth noting that Mandibuzz literally has been used almost every Dark game after the Zama ban in MWP. Also, the drop of Hydreigon makes Mandi's Ground immunity and ability to check DD Gouger just nice.

(Dark) A->B
Zamazenta ban, now Sab feels more of a momentum sink. While still ok because Prankster status will always find use, Mandibuzz is just easier to fit w/ Dark's offensive playstyle.

(Dark) A->B
Its not horrible, its just that Darkrai's superior speedtier which lets it outspeed and murder Greninja, Latios, and Ogerpon-H is wanted most of the time.

(Dragon) B->C

Walking Wake does not stand on the same ground as the other B-ranked mons. It is much more similar to Hydreigon in that they are used to improve very specific matchups while being nigh-useless in many other MU's. Claiming Fire MU does not help it either, as Dragon has better immediate answers like Roaring Moon and Dragonite.

(Fighting) B->A

In a Post-apocalyptic Zama ban world, Iron Hands naturally becomes more dominant. As Zama isn't there anymore to revenge kill special attackers like Latios, Flutter Mane, etc, mon's like Iron Hands which can tank hits from them and kill them in return will inevitably grow stronger in popularity.

(Fighting) D->B

It may seem a bit overkill, but Scrafty emerges as one of the clear winners of the Zama ban. Psychic immunity with a great special bulk and a nice ability in Shed Skin makes it the premier option to deal with pesky Dragon and Ghost mons, as proved recently by a certain Council member. I don't think it will become dominant enough to warrant an A-rank in the future. Nonetheless, future looks bright for Scrafty.

(Fighting) D->C

Another Pokémon previously overshadowed by Zama, Kommo-o is a potent wallbreaker that can easily wreak havoc in the Dragon mu as well as in many other mu's like Water / Fire / Ground / Flying. With Zama gone, it is also the best IDPress user in Fighting, should you want something juicier than the classic Clangorous Soul set. As it is still early, I think C-rank suits it more than upper ranks, but depending on how the meta will evolve, it could definitely become a top pick

(Fighting) B->A
SD sets with Surging Strike feast on passive-r Flying teams, if paired with Ice Spinner it deals with the Dragonite, else Close Combat would give Archaludon a very hard time. Worth noting that with the rise of SD Unburden Sneasler, Scarf Urshifu is a niche option thats able to kill Flutter Mane and pivot out with U-turn.

(Fire) UR->D

Disregarded for a long time, Charizard has a niche as a Special Sun Wallbreaker that combines well with Gouging Fire to give Fire fearsome dual offenses. Although it comes with a glaring Rock weakness, its typing provides a useful Ground immunity to the team. Offensively, Solar Power Charizard can prove as deadly as Gouging Fire for many types.

(Grass) A->S

In my opinion this mon is the absolute best carry for grass teams and one of the reasons why you would wanna use grass in the first place. I think Ogerpon-Hearthflame is needed on 90% of all grass teams and the remaining 10% do not use it because Ogerpon-Cornerstone is a very great mon by itself and you can't run both of them at the same time due to the species clause. Broken mon that turns autolost matchups into winnable ones.

(Grass) B->A

I think Amoonguss is just extremely amazing on grass team. Between Spore, just being an overall sponge and also the very nice utility, that mon just has so many things to offer. Eject Button Amoonguss works great to provide some additional pivoting which grass desperately needs. I slap this on literally every single grass team that I've been building and I never regretted it. I've even tried something like Growth, Stomping Tantrum, Giga Drain + Synthesis which can beat certain poison builds on it's own which is otherwise the absolute worst matchup for grass.

(Grass) UR->D

Webs Grass is still a grass build, meaning it's gonna be bad, but it's still a fun and workable idea for grass with numerous offensive threats like Ogerpon-H, H Lilli, and Meow.

(Grass) D->UR

This mon doesn't really provide any good value for your team and there is simply no reason to use it, since if you're using regular Ogerpon you can't use any of the other forms. No grass team should ever use this mon.

(Grass) D->UR

Gets outclassed by Hydrapple, also has the same issues as Hydrapple but just struggles with them even more.

C->D

There is basically no reason to run this over Blissey. Boots on your big special wall is just incredibly valuable as most types will force too many hazards and special attackers that Chansey will be taking regular rounds of chip that it just won't handle making it less reliable as a special wall. In matchups where Hazards aren't plentiful then it can be better but basically every top type is running too many for Chansey to be worth it over Blissey.

B->C

This is the only B Rank you never see ever on Rock. There really isn't much use for this when Rock sends most of its Choice Band breaking power into Arcanine-H which hits more consistently harder thanks to Flare Blitz and has a better matchup into more types overall. Doesn't help that your relying on Coverage to make the most out of its power instead of Stone Edge.

(Water) C->B
Balance Water is slowly getting traction, often using team mates like Empoleon and Toxapex to make a sturdy defensive core for its remaining team mates to fall back on. Access to recover makes it also a slightly better check to special attackers packing an Electric move over long games and Spikes makes hazard stacking easier alongside Empoleon, but use Swampert if you're using Rain or more offensive teams.

C->B

Alomomola is broken, slow wish with 534 hp is super busted and can undo almost any amount of progress instantly. Doesn't have to be used exclusively on stall, I've had some success using it on rain teams as a way to let band barraskewda switch in on hazards multiple times.

C->B

Manaphy matches up very nicely into a bunch of the top meta threats, sub scald ice beam tail glow is really strong, especially in the face of something that cant break a sub in 1 hit.

(Water) S->A

Its very telling that through MWP Ogerpon has kind of just, fell off a cliff in usage which isn't surprising. with how Dragon Focused this metagame is Ogerpon-W just has a hard time keeping up overall with Samurott-H now ending up as the main SD attacker for Water teams looking for one. Its still great into several key matchups such as the mirror and Steel teams (Once Arch is weakened) but not a must run like Pex and Gren generally end up being.

D->C
Cat. Stall cat flips matchups that rely heavily on Physical attackers, like Fighting for instance. Scald also is great for making progress through chip damage, eventually overrunning Articuno-less Flying or Steel. Its hard to fit, with only Cee o-o's stall team coming to mind on who actually uses this cat. But effective is effective, so it gets tuna (a rise).

We'll have a revoting slate soon (surely before MPL) where the VR team will rank the mons again over just voting rises and drops, so make sure to pester your favorite VR council member for rises and drops, or just continue to post here.

Cya next VR Shift