With such a meta-changing tier shift, it's time for some
likebait theorymonning!
The Rises
Good riddance. The utility Clefable brought was unmatched, but T-Wave coupled with Magic Guard made it supremely annoying to deal with. It wasn't broken, but I will enjoy having Steel types be a good switch in to Fairies again.
Keldeo's departure opens up a big door for Scizor, especially since most of the drops don't really check it so well. Stall gets a slight boost since SubCM Keldeo was a massive thorn in its side. Keldeo fit really well on a lot of teams, and it was so unique that I think a lot of teams are being deleted lol.
Lol njnp webs. I guess Galv isn't total ass now, or at least webs teams aren't forced to run Bewear/Coba to avoid being steamrolled by Bisharp. HO will miss such a powerful pokemon that did pretty much everything. Great typing, priority, Knock Off, and punish Defog. On the other hand, stall gets a huge buff, I think. Previously Quagsire was a a near must, but Bisharp's departure opens up the use of more bulky waters like Alomomola or Slowbro. This is pretty big considering Mamo just dropped Quagsire cannot stomach Adamant Earthquakes.
Massive pain to switch into, but Gengar was something I'd never use due to Pursuit's prevalence. Again, another slight buff to stall, and Balance teams everywhere rejoice as they no longer need to pivot around all of Gengar's moves. It's departure is the least relevant (except Smeargle I guess).
This was really unexpected. Big, big buff for stall since there really is nothing to stop all of its sets. Mew's customization is unmatched and it could pick and choose what it breaks and what it checks. Maybe we will see it again back in UU in a few months.
The Drops
This is my favorite drop by far. M-Aero's dominance is cemented even further with these drops, so having the best offensive check to it back from ORAS opens up a lot of doors in team building for offense. The bulk is great. Typing is great. Power is great. M-Swampert really does it all, and I can't wait to use it. Prediction: I'm biased but I put M-Swampert in S. It's extremely rare to have such an offensive threat bring so much defensive utility.
If Pursuit wasn't everywhere before, then it's now going to be on 107% of teams now. Having an 4th moveslot free and not needing to waste a turn with Protect is going to make Mega Bee a huge nuisance. SD, Toxic Spikes, Tailwind (it's good!), or 4-attacks are all possibilities. More importantly, VoltTurn is a threat again. Specs Rotom-C/Raikou/XURKITREE PLEASE BAN THIS are obvious great partners with it, making Ground types mandatory once again. I don't know if Beedrill is going to be too powerful, but I am not looking forward to its presence. Prediction: A+ for now. Maybe as time goes on it goes to S.
Yet another big buff for stall, but M-Steelix is going to be a very useful mon for a lot of playstyles. It has Stealth Rock, amazing typing to counter VoltTurn, Latias (unless CM Hydro Vortex), Scizor, and Flying types. The latter of which we desperately need with M-Pidgeot's drop and a general scarcity of Flying resists. Prediction: I think it'll cement itself solidly in A- with the amount of utility it brings and lack of competition from M-Aggron.
Nice to have M-Sceptile back again. Unfortunately nothing really changed it its favor from ORAS, and in fact, the metagame has trended negatively. Bulky Waters are still good but nowhere near as prevalent as ORAS with Suicune/Swampert everywhere. Maybe they will rise, though, to check M-Swampert for balance teams. Then there's the obvious drop of Scizor that forces HP Fire, but that honestly might be a good thing because Focus Blast is a garbage move. It still looks to be a pain for offense, though, so I'm thinking A/A- for it like in ORAS.
Flying resists are still nonexistent, but we have more tools to deal with it since its ban in Raikou, Klefki, and Mamo. Strong neutral priority is everywhere too. I don't think it will be unmanageable, but no doubt is it going to be a top tier threat. Stall should have little trouble with it with Blissey + Steel type, and offense gives it no breathing room to switch in, relegating it to a revenge killer. Balance, of course, will struggle the most, but balance also sucks. Prediction: A+ rank.
It seems like all the Megas dump on Latias. M-Houndoom, though, still has the same struggles as it did in ORAS: it struggles mightily against all the other megas, and it's hard to justify using it over NP Ape + another mega. Nonetheless, its speed tier and Dark typing gives it a solid niche. Prediction: B+ rank.
Honestly, this looks kinda trash. Sure, it Pursuits Latias, but we already have a good amount of Pursuit pokemon and a lot of new Latias checks. It's hard walled by any Ground type, which are now more important than ever to run with VoltTurn's potential rise. A Poison type that doesn't resist Fairy/Fighting is also lame. Prediction: B-/C+.
Hello darkness my old friend...On a more serious note Ice Shard looks real nice, HO gets its favorite toy back, expect a lot more Z-move Slowbros. Prediction: A.
Buzzwole is the most interesting out of all the drops. It's sheer power and bulk puts it on par with M-Swampert, but what makes this mon so cool is its movepool. Roost + 3 attacks, CB, SubPunch, Phys Def, Bulk Up, and a million moves for coverage makes this unwallable. Conkeldurr is a pokemon that I think of to compare it with, but it blows it out of the water with bulk, access to recovery, and Beast Boost allows it to snowball against slower teams. I think this is too strong for UU, but only time will tell. Prediction: S.
Edit: 240 Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Icicle Crash vs. 248 HP / 184+ Def Buzzwole: 109-129 (26.1 - 30.9%) -- 3.4% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Guts Conkeldurr Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 180+ Def Buzzwole: 159-188 (38 - 44.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
Buzzwole is thicc as fuck...
Ehh. Prediction: Ehhh...
Busted.
lol Prediction: Free Drizzle
