np: SV UU Stage 0 - Start of Something New (Hello SV UU!)

[JunkyardSteel]

I will take my bro gallade to the top. If gholdengo, chien-pao and pult couldn't stop me from

running him in OU, then UU will be a breeze in comparison

 

[SBPC]

So labbing out another generation of UU has lead to some funny stuff to try out

This thing has Quiver Dance now and arguably has the funniest tera interaction in the game, being that it changes rev dance with its typing, creating a pokemon that can give itself an instant flip on its offensive and defensive profile while retaining STAB Hurricane. Using this with physdef feels like cheating sometimes because you just win at +2

run pom pom the other birds just lose to pom pom

Oricorio-Pom-Pom @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Dancer
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Revelation Dance
- Hurricane
- Roost
- Quiver Dance

Slither Wing is a pretty solid mon overall, been enjoying a scarf set but it can also run 0 atk iv bulk up booster energy+spe to become bootleg kartana, which is ok to use as an endgame cleaner.

Staraptor is returning to its UUBL nest egg soon but Boots and LOrb are both fun sets to use and effective.

Gengar is honestly one of the most insane mons I've played with in awhile and generally can win games on the spot with nasty plot sets, scarf is funny as speed control and SubWisp beats Bisharp which has seen a lot of usage due to its bulk with Eviolite being nuts.

Semi lazy post but just wanted a reason to share oricorio since its arguably pretty broken, enjoying uu alpha no johns tour when

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

Iron Thorns @ Booster Energy
Ability: Quark Drive
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch

my fav mon to use rn... litterally 1 shots 90% of the tier at +1 and pretty much nothing really can take it on with hazards up. It has great bulk and with tera it can fix its mediocre defensive typing to make it impossible to revenge kill especially if you have no idea what typing it is

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1728613712-oe51da2oa6hdnmuwt8qdctpq1609997pw

Gyarados @ Leftovers
Ability: Moxie
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Ice Fang
- Substitute

gyarados is also so easy to setup... the many mons that gyara can just setup on many pokemon and with tera it can turn its weaknesses into its advantage or its setup fother. I love gyara

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1727930630 shows how its able to just come in late game esp with the lack of status and a removal of a lot of moves can help it
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1728622534-rvql2jbwlob308natwsylk6jmmxhry3pw wouldve swept if not for sash drednaw

 

[Porygon-Q2]

Kilowattrel @ Choice Specs
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Discharge
- Air Slash
- U-turn
- Volt Switch

Ngl, Kilowattrel is so fast for this tier. It's typing is fantastic and with Specs, it dishes out a ton of damage

 

[I am New]

Venomoth @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Tinted Lens
Tera Type: Buge/Poison
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Bug Buzz
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder
This mon is so fun to play especially on hyper offense partner it with broken things like Espathra and polteageist yikes

 

[JunkyardSteel]

With noivern, hydreigon, mence, haxorus, and dragalge legal, some pretty brutal dragon-spam should be possible. Especially since the choices of fairies and steels are pretty limited at the moment, and magnezone is in the tier to get up to his old tricks.

 

[Brambane]

I was able to play a decent chunk of games last night and today, so here are some Day 1 impressions.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, this Pokemon is pretty bonkers. Does pretty much the same thing here as it does in OU: try to squeeze in a Calm Mind, usually with Tera, and then sweep with Stored Power and its coverage of choice. The dominant Tera-types for the ostrich appear to be Fairy and Fighting, both of which help immensely vs Hydreigon. Steel seems like another good option to me, as it protects you from Gyro Ball Forretress enough to PP stall the move. I tried a Lumina Crash TrickSpecs set since that move is absolutely insane, but the opportunity cost is too high. If you are running the ostrich, just use the better set. The sheer amount of decent priority in the tier make this Pokemon not completely able to runaway with games, I am curious to see if the meta will develop enough to curb Espathra's poweress, and how the funny bird will adapt.

More than just Revival Blessing, Pawmot has a good Speed tier, great STAB, three useful abilities (slightly hyping up Iron Fist Ice Punch here), and great coverage. Seed Bomb and Ice Punch gives you the ability to smack around Ground-types, and the ladder gives Salamence pause. Close Combat off of the respectable 115 Attack stings a fair bit, and it can pivot with Volt Switch too! Revival Blessing is the ace in the sleeve, especially when combined with strong priority like Lucario and Azumarill, or Scarfers.

One of the best offensive Tera users, STAB Extreme Speed is an excellent anti-offense tool. Lucario is an imposing physical threat lategame with one of the strongest priority moves in the tier, Swords Dance, and nearly unrivaled coverage at its disposal. Inner Focus is icing on the cake, protecting it from Intimidate from Gyarados, Tauros, and Salamence. Fast Ghost-types are at a premium in the builder due to this Pokemon (and because Gengar and Mimikyu are quite good in their own right!) Special sets seem like a meme.

Remember Ice Gem Cloyster? What if I told you you could have Ice Gem more than once? Or Tera-boosted Rock Blast? It lives Extreme Speed from Lucario after Shell Smash and drops it with Liquidation. The smashes. You lose. You weep. You find another game, and GUESS WHO'S BACK! I hate Cloyster, every time I use it and I face the only Specs Thunderbolt Gyarados in the world. I want to use the funny clam too :(

Eviolite makes this Pokemon insanely bulky. Max SpD hits like 393, which is absurd number. It also can play support with Stealth Rock and Thunder Wave, or offensive with Swords Dance. Bisharp's raw bulk, good STAB typing, and access to TWave and Swords Dance makes it great at trading into many threats in the metagame. It's a surprisingly effective defensive glue that isn't lacking offensive potential either.

I don't think this one needs much explanation. Rotom-Wash has a great typing and all the wonderful utility and offensive moves it has last gen, minus Defog. Tera into Electric for both boosted Electric STAB and no weaknesses! One of the most annoying Scarfers in the game due to Trick and how strong it is a Tera user. Tera-boosted Volt Switch and Thunderbolt is scary. Shoutouts to that one guy using Water Absorb Quagsire on the ladder.

For some reason Game Freak gave it Stealth Rock, so one of the scariest breakers gained a little extra role compression. U-turn is wonderful for scouting the inevitable Azumarill switch-in and Specs Draco Meteor continues to claim lives. A really funny Tera mon too, Tera Electric lets you Terablast Azumarill and turns you into Mega Eelektross. I have been using Tera Dark on Specs since it makes Dark Pulse a much more respectable STAB option that few things want eat.

In all honesty, Salamence has underwhelmed me in practice, but there is a lot of potential here. Dragon Dance with Dual Wingbeat/EQ seems good but then you remember Rotom-Wash made it to UU. Salamence doesn't have a moveset that covers enough of what I want it to; you want Dual Windbeat, Outrage, Earthquake, Fire Fang alongside Dragon Dance and probably Roost too. At the end of the day the Pokemon still has two excellent abilities and great stats, when combined the Tera potential keep it a relevant threat in my mind.

I am going to lump these 6 into the same category of "rain." Drizzle is back in force for UU, and is pretty oppressive to deal with considering the range of Pokemon that benefit. Floatzel and Barraskewda are pretty similar. Floatzel has stronger Water STAB while Barra is way faster. Sushi mon has Rapid Spin for rain, Water immunity for opposing Rain teams, and crucially a strong af Hydro Pump. Qwilfish is basically there for Azumarill, but it definitely a more niche Swift Swimmer. Kilowattrel is an Electric immunity with excellent rain moves, while Tera Water synergizes with Weather Ball and keeps it safe from Aqua Jet users. Gyarados and Azumarill are also excellent on rain. A strong archetype, and probably of the most overbearing things in the metagame at the moment.

Big Hippo is back. Super customizable to EV thanks to its stat spread and Whirlwind remains excellent. Losing Toxic hurts a lot, as does the return of Drizzle, but the beefiest Rocker in the metagame will have its place on some teams.

Okay Speed, Intimidate, and two 120 BP STABs? They are bulky enough to eat physical hits thanks to Intimidate and they hit quite hard. I have seen Bulk Up, Band, and Scarf, and all three seem good. I did not respect them enough because, come on, its TAUROS, but they have surprised me more than once with how difficult they can be to switch into and how easily Intimidate let's them come in. The main issue for both of them is the Pokemon below, which somewhat necessitates Wild Charge in their moveset. Or Will-O-Wisp for the Fire one.

Offensive powerhouse and defensive cornerstone simultaneously, Azumarill is both a boon and pain for the builder. It's Fairy-typing, Water resistance, and naturally solid bulk are great buffers against threats like Hydreigon, Heracross, Slither Wing, and rain. Aqua Jet helps weaken or pick off Espathra. At the same time, Azumarill remains nigh impossible to switch into until you scout its set. Choice Band forces meaningful damage on pretty much everything except like Qwilfish lol. I am not keen on Belly Drum, it gets revenge killed by the likes of Lucario and all the faster Dragons and Waters a little too easily, of which there are many. You still must respect the threat of Belly Drum in preview and play accordingly.

Quiver Dance turns garbage into gold. Surprisingly potent offensive threats, especially the pom-pom one. Ghost gets a shoutout for its three awesome immunities and almost unresisted STABs. Revelation Dance is hilarious with Tera. I never thought I would play in a UU where mf Oricorio would make me sweat on team preview. I suspect their threat will taper off as the metagame gets more figured out, but I am still eager to see what creative sets people come up with considering the wild potential behind Revelation Dance.

Intimidate very gud. Gyarados is a pretty fun Tera mon. With Grass and Terablast, you can use it effectively against most Rain teams to countersweep after a Dragon Dance. Ground is good but somewhat predictable. Dragon turns you into a juiced Kingdra, clicking the Outrage and Waterfall button. Without Tera, it remains a solid wincon with good coverage (RIP Power Whip) and Taunt. I haven't tried Moxie yet, but not proccing Bisharp's Defiant seems quite good and the snowbally nature of Tera DD makes it look good on paper.

The most Tera dependent Pokemon I am going to mention, but Ice Scales lets Tera Water set up on a lot of special attackers. Tera Blast also gives the Pokemon pretty good coverage after a Quiver Dance thanks to Giga Drain and Ice Beam. This isn't an exceptional Pokemon, but its very funny and a real wincon if you can get it in vs something like Gengar. The large amount of physical attackers and priority in the tier make it a risky, if not suboptimal, option.

Mimikyu's biggest gripe has always been the base power of its Ghost STABs. Tera Ghost alleviates this issue and makes it a formidable offensive threat. A free Swords Dance, Extreme Speed immunity, and its own STAB priority makes Mimi a solid choice into opposing offense teams. I haven't tried any of the other Tera types, mostly because passing up the extra power on Shadow Claw and Sneak seems too costly.

Pretty cheesy as usual, although I don't think I have lost to this mon yet. You have a lot of priority and Intimidate users available in builder to help against Hawlucha, and Mimikyu helps against it as well. Unburden is good, and it is unironically one of the better Defog users thanks to its Speed and access to utility move like Encore and U-turn.

A good defensive pivot, its typing and STAB Gyro Ball also allow it to answer non-Substitute Espathra well. It has Rapid Spin and hazards of course, but those are just icing on the cake. The real draw to Forretress in this offensive meta is how bulky it is and its ultra slow Volt Switch. Most Electric immunities let you spin or Spike for free, while Ghost-types are a free Volt Switch. It has a bunch of tech options too, Forretress has one of the most bizarrely stacked movepools in the game. One day I will get Ice Spinner'd by one and I will smash the X button. I can feel it in my bones.

Staraptor does the exact same thing it always has, but now it can make its Brave Bird even STRONGER. The amount of strong priority in the tier helps a fair bit, but the bird looks positioned to claim at least 1 every game, and then give you a bit of momentum as it nukes something while KOing itself with recoil. It's still too early to call this mon overbearing for me, but Staraptor outside of BL hurts the soul, bring the bird home.

Great offensive potential, useful Extreme Speed immunity, and highly unpredictable. Gengar is a premier offensive threat. The sky is the limit with Gengar's movepool and Tera, which either gives it a big enough power boost to secure an OHKO with Shadow Ball or enough survivability to squeeze in a crucial attack. Fast Will-O-Wisp and Trick are excellent anti-set up tools, Destiny Bond is great cheese for grabbing a 2 for 1, and Cursed Body will forever exist to make Choice item users seethe. The Normal immunity and Speed make Gengar invaluable on offense, I cannot not overstate how terrifying Lucario is right now.

A relatively strong Fairy-type that benefits from the coverage of Tera Blast. I think Azumarill fits on more teams but Florges doesn't seem that bad, although without Tera it gets eaten absolutely alive by common Pokemon like Gengar and Lucario.

An UnderUsed regular for now 5 generations, first impression of the metagame do not favor the crocodile. Rain exists, faster threats with super-effective coverage exist and also have Intimidate, and while Krookodile is faster than Lucario, it cannot Intimidate it and takes a ton for Extreme Speed. Slither Wing has shown up a lot on the ladder, which hurts Krookodile's viability a ton too. The biggest loss for Krookodile is Knock Off, hurting its utility and offensive presence tremendously. I suspect Gen 9 may finally be too much for this UU veteran.

Rapid Spinner support is great, and Earthquake/Knock Off slams all the common Spinblockers I have seen. Donphan hasn't really changed much this generation, but the lack of solid Defog options makes it a lot more appealing out of necessity.

Prankster Encore and Will-O-Wisp make Sableye worth mentioning. Getting your Gyarados Encore'd is like watching your dad get beat up. It also is a pretty great Spinblocker against Forretress. You can't really set-up confidently with a lot of mons if the opposing team has a Sableye.

Water resists are always appreciated against rain. These two seem like natural picks for balance teams, the loss of Teleport and Scald hurts the slowtwins a lot. At least Slowking has Chilly Reception. I like Yawn on Slowbro in such an offensive metagame. I will build more with them and have more thoughts for a later post.

The strongest First Impression in the game commands respect, this Pokemon hits very hard with solid coverage to boot. It also has middling Speed and mediocre physical bulk, which hurts it a lot against stuff like Salamence, Staraptor, and Mimikyu. Scarf sets seem outclassed by Heracross to me. I have seen this Pokemon hyped a fair bit, but I would be pleasantly suprised if the hype lasts. Min Attack to get a Speed boost with Protosynthesis for Bulk Up is saucy, but seems risky. It looks very cool though.

A decent Scarfer. Guts sets seem too slow in the early metagame, maybe if balance teams with Hippowdon, Florges, and Blissey pop up more it could be a standout attacker. Heracross and Slither Wing have a lot of common weaknesses at the moment and not great Speed, and while Tera could patch up the former problem, there are a lot better Tera options in most games.

I am not conviced this Pokemon is good yet, although Sharpness Leaf Blade and Night Slash adding some "STABs" is definitely intriguing. I feel like Tera Normal with Slash is a hot meme, but adding a Ghost immunity for Gengar and Mimikyu has potential. It also has access to Shadow Sneak, so Tera Ghost with Swords Dance/Shadow Claw/Shadow Sneak/Sacred Sword doesn't look unreasonable to me. I will have to experiment more with it or see more than just Scarf on the ladder to form a better opinion of Gallade.

I am mentioning this as it is the fastest Defog option and Tera Normal Boomburst will sauce some teams up at preview. I don't have a lot respect for this Pokemon, but I'm being opened to that changing!

I haven't seen stall yet, but if it exists, Blissey (or Chansey) will probably be there. We will see what the stallheads cook up for UU.

Prankster TWave is a great resource and Spikes are good. It is probably the best Screener in the format. Klefki should see more use as the metagame is further developed since Screens are lookin mighty good.

Quiver Dance Tinted Lens Tera-Boosted Bug Buzz is funny. It also dies to most priority users sneezing on it. I always miss Sleep Powder, so I unfortunately cannot test this Pokemon to its full potential.

I lost to this so I am going to mention it as a coping mechanism. Shift Gear is a good move. This mon is probably terrible for the environment, Tera it into an Electric-type to be more sustainable.

Take THAT rain!!!

I am sure I missed some mons but I have to go to work so that's all for now.

 

[TheDuckChris]

This guy is kinda sick, checks a lot of physical guys, has roar, good wish support, fire immunity. And he's a good boy!!!

 

[Kizaco]

Celetitan OP
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1728733524

The set

Cetitan @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Body Slam
- Earthquake
- Icicle Crash
- Belly Drum

 

[Miyami~~~]

Presenting the secret spice for rain:

Golduck @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Swift Swim
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Grass Knot

Trades Tatsugiri's rain immunity and access to spin for Swift Swim and the ability to drop Gastrodon and Slowbro at +2. You can even set up in front of Gastrodon because that mon doesn't get Toxic anymore. You can run Timid but then the roll on slowbro isn't in your favor, and you hit ~538 speed even with Modest. I shouldn't have to sell you on how strong +2 Rain Boosted Hydro Pump is, even off of base 95 special attack. I like Tera Fairy on things like this because it gives you a First Impression and Sucker Punch resist, allowing you to just keep trucking. Legit think it's one of the best rain sweepers in the tier, which is supremely funny. Pelipper's gotta go.


+2 252 SpA Tatsugiri Dragon Pulse vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gastrodon: 307-363 (72 - 85.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252+ SpA Golduck Grass Knot (60 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gastrodon: 544-640 (127.6 - 150.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO

+2 252 SpA Tatsugiri Dragon Pulse vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Slowbro: 315-372 (80.1 - 94.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252+ SpA Golduck Grass Knot (80 BP) vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Slowbro: 372-438 (94.6 - 111.4%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO

Here's a replay for proof of concept. It's kinda scuffed but it's day 2 so everything's kinda scuffed right now.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1728839249-h6h34adxgwjncfdxekn039elukx7838pw

Quick other thoughts:

This mon is hilarious, HDB/Scarf Tera sets 2hko Tinkaton (Either STAB) or Iron Thorns (if Tera Normal) through the resist if you want an idea of how absurdly strong this thing is. Like, the last thing Staraptor needed was the ability to stack scarf and band sets in one slot, but that's where we are now. It's not hard at all to turn this into a garaunteed kill every game, often even two. I'm not sure this would go in the first wave, but it still feels a little too strong for the tier. Use it while you can!

I'd love to show you some raptor calcs, but I can't figure out how to get the tera boost and reckless on the calc at the same time, so try it for yourself.

The other murder bird. I don't feel like I need to elaborate on why this mon is busted as hell but I've been running Lum Berry to get a free extra calm mind on quag or other status spreaders. Hopefully OU steals this before beta week 1.

The other other murder bird. It's kind of overshadowed by rain and Espathra but Indeedee-M is reasonably strong and Indeedee-F gets scarf healing wish. If you run Sub SD Acrobatics you 1v1 the standard Quagsire set, and pretty much everything else just dies.

tldr

 

[DaemonChop]

never thought I would have seen the day, but Floatzel is an absolute monster in the tier rn. Banded Wave Crash blows up almost everything.

 

[Slip]

Was able to get about 10 games in today and went 9-1 so I just wanted to give some quick opinions from what I've faced so far. I think looking back at this post in a week will give me some interesting answers as the meta progresses.

- Rain seems cool and can force a lot of options on your opponent, but bulky intimidate mons still cause the playstyle a lot of trouble.
- Mence is cool, but I think most people will be getting more out of a bulky set over dd. I've been running a bit more bulky 3 attacks roost and the mix of power and bulkyness makes you usually at least go 1 for 1.
- Tera types in UU seem to be even scarier as certain combinations can cause a lot of problems for most teams. I face a ghost type avalugg today that was a bit harder to kill than I anticipated and anything turning tera for damaging moves can be terrifying.
- Gengar can be good, but gets really prohibited by bliss/chansey twaves, prio, and better options to scarfers now. Hopefully we will be able to use it more as I think it can be goated in the tier without being busted.
- Pokemon with toxic or knock are a lot more valued to me since every mon doesnt get them now. With the lack of these 2 moves, more and more people ignore the issues these moves bring. But if you are able to fit them on, I highly recommend it as it will make your life incredibly easier.
- Brambleghast is the new dhelmise of UU but a bit worst as we dont get poltergeist or synthesis. Thankfully we have a lot of physical attackers so strength sap does wonders for your team along with being able to spin and threaten opposing ghost types with shadow sneak/phantom force. Realistically there are better options, but I don't think it's as bad as people will originally make it out to be.
- Mabostiff is terrifying if used correctly. I think the mon is worth taking a shot on if you can as dark can force out a lot of the ghost types and claim a soul.
- Chilling waters is a goated move to prevent sweeps, people should use it more.

Bonus:
- Dundunsparce coil can kinda be terrifying? I lost to it earlier today due to misplay, but if you disrespect it I think it will come for your throat LOL

 

[Mugenman88]

I'd love to show you some raptor calcs, but I can't figure out how to get the tera boost and reckless on the calc at the same time, so try it for yourself.

You can get around this by manually changing the BP of Double-Edge/Brave Bird so that it'll reach 240 BP just off STAB, in this case set it to 160 BP

252 Atk Reckless Staraptor Brave Bird (160 BP) vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Tinkaton: 183-216 (49 - 57.9%) -- 97.7% chance to 2HKO

 

[Fish Gaming]

what the fuck beats espathra right now? cuz it feels like the answer is really not much

cb bisharp, tinkaton, etc

 

[Kink]

hello,

I am using some sets and I would like to share them. They are all fairly self-explanatory and will likely be moot very soon, but might be fun for those exploring the tier.

Slither Wing @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- First Impression

Dudunsparce @ Leftovers
Ability: Rattled
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Coil
- Hyper Drill
- Earthquake
- Rest

Gengar @ Choice Specs
Ability: Cursed Body
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Trick

I might be more involved in this tier as it develops, hope all are doing well.

 

[viol and bass]

One thing that's kinda cool about Brambleghast is that I think in theory if you run a SpDef spin set on it, it can probably check Kilowattrel in rain, even specs. Wind Rider makes it immune to Hurricane, and it resists Weather Ball and Thunder. I've found that mon a little bit difficult to deal with so it's kinda cool. Being immune to Heat Wave and Blizzard (as well as Icy Wind) is also pretty hilarious.


Bombirdier @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Rocky Payload
Tera Type: Rock
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
- Stone Edge / Brave Bird
- U-turn / Stealth Rock

This mon's movepool is stacked so it's hard to know what to run on it. I've found some success with a tank set, since Dark/Flying has some nice resists and it has Sucker Punch. Tera Rock is cool because I think you get a 1.5x1.5= 2.25x boost instead of the standard tera STAB modifier of 2 since Rock is technically not STAB. I think you could feasibly run a fat set with knock / roost / rocks / parting shot too, but Sucker Punch feels really important in such an offensive metagame.

 

[Melons-N-Soda]

Tauros-Paldea-Fire @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Raging Bull
- Bulk Up
- Close Combat
- Earthquake

I've had fun using this guy. Most people run Tauros as a Scarfer which is still a dang good set, but taking advantage of its surprisingly good bulk and decent movepool with a Bulk Up set can be quite nice. Fire/Fighting can actually be quite useful defensively against things like Slither Wing First Impressions and what not. Water is a stock good defensive type but ofc there are many others to utilize. EQ is mainly for the Tauros mirror match, the funny guys who try to run stuff like Dachsbun, and hitting Slowking/Slowbro neutrally.

People have also being trying Sub Bulk Up with both this and Water Tauros, sometimes with Cud Chew and a Salac Berry. I personally think Intimidate is the more consistent ability because Bisharp does not want to switch into this and Cud Chew is risky against the many priority users in the tier.

 

[plznostep]

Heya people of UU, I really like the way this tier is shaping up right now and so i wanted to post some sets i've been using in the past two days :)

Set

Altaria @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roost
- Defog

Altaria has really surprised me down here, not a lot of good defoggers left but Altaria has the ability to burn mons and is a great check to the new Tauros forms in the meta. It also can sponge status with Natural Cure which is a really nice trait since we don't seem to have any cleric support at all at the moment so Altaria not having to worry about it is a great boon. Otherwise, been useful at checking Bisharp by burning it and other physical attackers. It's been quite fun to use on ladder but otherwise I need more experience on the mon to see what else it can really offer you in this tier

Set

Dudunsparce-Three-Segment @ Throat Spray
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Boomburst
- Earth Power
- Air Slash
- Agility

This set is so fun i couldn't help but include it here. I've been using it on screens to compliment Dudunsparce's great natural bulk and giving Boomburst to this mon was one of the most funny things they could of done and im so glad for it. Dudunsparce's speed is actually okay at 55 so with an agility boost i find it outspeeds what it needs too. +1 Boombursts also hurt things a lot, especially with a tera normal. Very fun mon to use and if you are looking for a cool mon to use in this tier, this is someone i can recommend.

Set

Wo-Chien @ Leftovers
Ability: Tablets of Ruin
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Leech Seed
- Substitute

Well, we are lacking in grass types so here comes Wo Chien's moment to shine. Knock Off is great, mon is really tanky with investment into is bulk since it has the -atk ability which is nice, the typing leaves a lot to be despired but Tera is always an option to make it a pure grass type to shed off the bad dark typing on it, otherwise just really nice in general, get a leech seed off, remove items. I've noticed it has a nice MU vs rain as well but it also doesn't have reliable recovery so its not going to stay around or anything like that.

 

[Allidoishuynh]

Iron Thorns @ Loaded Dice
Ability: Quark Drive
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake
- Pin Missile

I just wanted to post this set because I think it's a pretty cool way to use iron thorns. Foregoing booster energy means you have multiple chances to go for your sweep and you can use it in the early/mid game to chip opposing mons while still preserving your effectiveness as a DD'er later on.

But what's interesting about the item is that booster energy makes the expected damage of stone edge: 104 = 100(bp) * 1.3(atk boost) * 0.8(accuracy). Whereas the expected damage of loaded dice rock blast is 101.25 = (100(4hits) * 0.5(odds of 4 hits) * 0.9(accuracy)) + (125(5hits) * 0.5(odds of 5 hits) * 0.9(accuracy)). So you're barely losing any damage on rock blast, you lose a pretty decent chunk on EQ which sucks, but you get a really nice coverage move that is otherwise pretty bad.

Rock/ground coverage is self explanatory, but pin missile is really nice for catching Slowbro, wo-chien, and the rare (but otherwise annoying) toedscruel. It kinda splits the difference between ice punch vs wild charge and doesn't have the low BP or recoil issues. Tera type bug gives you a ground and fighting resistance while also turning pin missile into a pin nuke while tera grass gives you a great option vs rain teams where you can stay in on a water attack and get another dance.

At +1 speed you outrun every viable non-scarfer in the tier unless u run into the unusual jolly barraskewda, while at +2 you outspeed all of the viable scarfers (Gengar hits 525 but thorns hits 534).

 

[Fragmented]

Grafaiai @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 96 Def / 160 SpD
Impish Nature
- Encore
- Toxic
- Knock Off
- Parting Shot

This is a Grafaiai appreciation post. It's a faster Sableye with Toxic and several pivoting moves (Parting Shot, U-turn). Encore stops a lot of setup attempts before they can begin, and Toxic is always good to have to wear things down in a Heall Bell-less meta. Knock Off mainly to get rid of boots and make hazard stack that much more annoying. Shuca Berry cos it kept dying to Gyarados's EQ when I try to switch in, though the item slot and EV spread are up for customization. I'd say it's a pretty niche mon but is useful in getting you those extra turns to setup your own sweeper (SD E-killer Lucario or wtv) against their sweeper (BD Azu, DD Gyara, wtv).


Sandy Shocks @ Focus Sash
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Earth Power
- Volt Switch

Good hazard setter and suicide lead. It's decently bulky and can tank some super-effective hits, while also having usable SpAtk to dish back damage. Probably worth a try over other HO leads like Lycanroc. Tera type is whatever, though you could always run Ghost to spin block Donphans while you 2HKO non-SpDef sets with Earth Power.


Armarouge @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Weak Armor
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 248 HP / 76 Def / 184 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Armor Cannon
- Stored Power / Psychic
- Aura Sphere

1 more set, though this set is mainly theoretical. 248 HP/76 Def allows you to live Jolly Gyarados' Waterfall after Rocks damage, while surviving Mystic Water Adamant Gyarados' Waterfall from full. Weak Armor and Weakness Policy boosts allow you to OHKO Gyarados with Stored Power afterwards, while Psychic is a 2HKO since you outspeed. The speed EVs are enough to outspeed +1 Espathra after the Weak Armor, and you can Calm Mind up and blast it to UUBL with Armor Cannon.

 

[Morsel]

Hey!

I want to talk about Toedscruel! I've had a fun time using this guy, especially since hazard control is so much weaker this generation. Being able to Spike on Hippo and Rotom-W (and even setting spikes up on Hatterene due to its ability) is really nice, and the threat of Spore means that you force switches and are never really too passive. Its dual STABs also complement each other well, with Earth Power being really nice to snipe Gengar trying to spin-block you on the switch. Tera Ghost is a gimmick, but it's super funny to get into a hazard stack war against a Forretress or something and just block their spin once you set everything up. The EVs are similar to previous gen's Tentacruel EVs: enough speed to outrun maximum invested base 80s with the rest in bulk.

Here's a fun replay where the Tera Ghost came in clutch:

Replay!

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-1729364314

Give Toedscruel a try! You might like him.

Set!

Toedscruel @ Leftovers
Ability: Mycelium Might
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 Spe
Timid Nature
- Giga Drain
- Earth Power
- Spikes / Spore
- Rapid Spin / Spore

 

[PrincessGardevoir]

Hi, resident Chewtle enthusiast here to inform you of the funny.

Drednaw was gifted Shell Smash in Gen 9, perhaps one of the single greatest decisions GF has ever made (given their recent decisions, probably THE greatest recently...), and in a generation where an innately poor defensive or offensive typing can be fixed with a Terastalize, Drednaw finds itself as one of the funniest and most effective click-button-to-win. He's better off here than OU since lots of the best walls stayed up there.

Drednaw relies on Terastaliation and Crunch to one shot as many things as possible at +2, and appreciates any form of support and options to get around the problems of being a one button wonder. Earthquake deals with the Fairy/Steels, Ice Fang hits Iron Jugulis and Hydreigon, and Poison Jab bullies Fairy Terastalizaton. However, unlike his son in Little Cup, Drednaw REALLY wishes it had a fifth (and sixth) moveslot, as slotting Substitute for Will-o Arcanine or Thunder Wavers would be nice, and it wants all of its coverage moves on the same set.

Of course, is the meta new? yes! Drednaw really wants screens up so it can set up cleanly, and wants Fairies dealt with early. It's susceptible to early disruption (although Prankster T-Wave doesn't work on Dark tera), and without Terastalization it's just a good wincon and nothing more. Its defensive profile isn't great and offensively his coverage is fine but nothing special.

He also can probably function under rain if you got tired of using good swift swimmers lol



tldr: use chewtle senior before he approaches you and bites your leg off

yo gamefreak give this man psychic fangs please and fire fang an



also funny:

Exactly as funny as everyone was expecting, the ability to revive your wallbreakers just to make your opponent irrationally angry that the one thing that breaks their stall team got revived not just once but twice... god you love to see it. Leppa's my favorite variant, and I run bulk so he can survive one hit just fine. It doesn't do much more than just Mach Punch twice during a match offensively, but damn does it do that job well with max attack and Adamant.

Specs Gengar is my favorite wallbreaker, and especially with Pawmot who lets me play recklessly with it and to test what walls are specially defensive. Trick or Destiny Bond give you great utility outside of just wallbreaking, and in a pinch Electric Terastalize can make your resistances wack along with a stronger Thunderbolt. Losing to every Scarfer in the tier sucks (but being a Scarf Psychic magnet for Drednaw is GREAT)

I thought this thing would be way worse than it actually turned out to be; its defenses aren't stellar but are fine enough to handle non-Kilowattrel rain mons at least once, and Strength Sap is a pretty nice move (when you don't use it into a Bisharp like I do). I think its offensive coverage is what'll hold it back from doing more than just being a convenient rain check in the meantime, but hey, better than me not running an answer.

Some really funny replays

 

[Lyssa]

Between ladder and friendlies i've been playing the tier a bunch, and since i'm in the middle of yet another sleepless night, why not make a post about what impressed/disappointed me and my first impressions so far 1(in reality 2, as we pmuch had the correct stats in advance and played the tier before release) into gen9uu.

Let's get this instantly out of the way: I seem to be the one person that doesn't feel strongly about this mon. Infact, I only ever found it problematic under screens (banning light clay was easily the best tiering decision we had throughout gen8) and if it had the exact correct set that just owned me (as i found this thing to be wanting like 6 moves, in sub tect cm dgleam stored and roost). OU will eventually be stealing this anyways but also the set i've fought in pmuch all games was the fire/fairy setupper so i'm sure this perception of mines will change as it can definitely be way more flexible than that and that would require entirely different answers.

Honestly expected it to be way more annoying than it actually was even though I haven't touched it myself. There are just so many things that stop this thing, the pool of mons that can take +2 hits is quite large (hatt sylveon belli the slowtwins quag obviously and many more), it's incredibly hard to find free setup, especially because the terrain setters are just bad, but also it's going through some massive moves slots issues with it wanting sd stabs and all of sub/taunt/roost/tera blast, and at the same time the tier is full of prios. Will it eventually be top tier? probably, but as of now I don't see how it would become broken.

Now this thing scares me way more than the 2 things above. Specs has pretty much no defensive counterplay, only chans/blissey can realiably take hits and gastrodon ig until you inevitably get forced to tera dark, Scarf also felt really good as it rarely lacks the extra damage when trying to revenge kill stuff, and you're still a massive threat even without the damage boost. Both tera ghost to pick on the poor spdef gastrodons/tinkatons trying to not get 2hko'd, and tera fight to both having a better typing to lure scarf drei/bisharp sucker punch with or to have a fighting type coverage that doesn't let you down 2 out of 3 times (although lack of power and being it the tera wall is quite massive) are valid, and with more options being explored I just can't see this not being the most problematic mon once meta settles.

It do be time to talk about our favourite UUBL jailed mon. Staraptor was honestly much better than I thought it would be, it traded 1x2 pretty consistently without always requiring the tera commitment which at the end of the day is what you want from your raptor, oh and i'm talking about scarf fwiw. I think it will be getting slightly worse with meta settling and being less offensive oriented but I still wouldn't be surprised if it ended up in BL another time.

Haven't really seen many (if not anyone) talking about the belly but I found it to be pgood. Charged hits go super hard, it's surprising hard to switch into in combination with grass tera blast and checks a good amount of stuff. Sadly it really relies a lot on tera which is definitely not a good thing at all, alongside it being a bit lacking when it comes to moves options, but it's a pretty cool and fun mon that deserves more love.

Seems to be a pretty common take already that rain is by no means problematic nor is close to it, and i just agree with that. The playstyle faces so many hardstops, Drednaw was definitely the highlight as it's pretty much unwallable once it gets a shell smash off but finding free setup is unrealistic and even then, it's still a Drednaw. Skewda losing flip turn means a huge punish if wrong move is clicked, less flexibility with items and pretty much huge reliance on tera as it needs all the possible turns it gets to break, and with things such as gastro, quag, the slowtwins, and even water being the best tera on hatt who's a mon that singlehandedly demolishes rain with one or two CMs, it just doesn't feel that good. Floatzel is pretty much the same as skewda and kilowattrel, while being pretty nice on the offensive, alone is not enough to carry the playstyle.

Disappointing? The pivot set for sure is, specs feels worse than other stuff and using up the booster energy into switching out feels really bad. It does hit pretty hard, but hasn't really convinced me.

Way better than I thought it would be. Well for once, I did not realize that it had the one typing in the game that perfectly answers gengar, but also access to knock and strong utility in parting shot(or uturn if you don't wanna run into hatt scenarios) and encore make it really solid and annoying to face.

Also better than I thought. Scarf is solid speed control and stuff like LO or band pick. Revival Blessing is also bugged and currently revives mons with their tera type active (it's not supposed to be like this or am i wrong) which is like the one annoying thing about it, it's a cool tool other than that and it didn't seem to be game breaking nor anything (yet).

Insanely good utility but lacking on the offensive, sd sets are really easy to answer. Probably one of the best ups the tier has

quag is probably slightly better but both of them are insanely good while also probably being the mons you feel the recovery nerf the most onto.

Really difficult to switch into but with stuff like Talonflame trending makes Scarf have a much harder time than otherwise would. Didn't really try nor faced any other set, Scarf was fine but nothing too amazing. Probably expected more but I think it's good enough to stay around here.

Too many Gengars for Ekiller to really do the job but pretty cool that it's around and an option, finding a free sd is really hard though.

Specs is really cool but has issues finding spaces to click moves for free from without support from stuff that burns or paras. Defensive seemed decent, CM is also probably usable.

The meta is, somehow, super talonflame friendly. Combination of how many fighting types there are and how little mons got to keep knock made talon feel like an actual mon for once, both pivot and SD are usable and feel great.

Best removal probably? Tsareena felt great thanks to finally being able to switch into water types among other stuff, but talon trend definitely hurts her.

Re: Tera - It has been fun to play with and honestly haven't found it particularly game breaking in uu in it's current state (outside of screens) but Its very much too early to have a solid view on the thing. I definitely appreciated getting to try it before any change (if any) will be done.

Sorry for any typos/if my english flopped somewhere but i'm very tired, will probably be writing more once the meta settles a bit but wanted my very first thoughts out somewhere. The tier has been very fun for me and I hope everyone else gets to enjoy it as much as I currently am

 

[Freeroamer]

Like most of the ladder seemingly, I’ve only really messed around with HO stuff so far to try and learn about (read: get dicked by) the new mons and abilities so I don’t have too many hard reads on the metagame yet. Haven’t really seen anyone talking about Azu in this thread yet altho I think it’s obscenely good, I’ve been using the below:


Azumarill @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Huge Power
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough
- Aqua Jet
- Liquidation / Tera Blast
- Belly Drum

(Water tera if not using Tera Blast)

Obviously nothing too surprising about the set, but man is this thing efficient. I’ve tried Hawlucha, Bisharp, Lucario, Iron Thorns, Cetitan, Gyarados, Salamence, Espathra et al and nothing cleans nearly as well as Azu with screens support. Setup opportunities really aren’t too hard to find either with all the fighting types people are using. Grass tera with Tera blast is a wacky set I messed around with to invalidate Quagsire and circumvent Tsareena, probably the most common stops I’ve run into with this, as well as getting you past Rotoms altho you can take a burn in the process. You also can generate setup opportunities as you now have Grass and Electric resistances instead of weaknesses. Not sure it’s worth giving up the consistency of the boosted jets from water tera though. I actually think tera is a bit wasted on Azu unless you really need the boost/coverage, it’s initial typing is so good that often changing leaves you more susceptible to revenge killing, for example going pure water suddenly means Hydreigon can drop a Draco on you while munching one if they’re healthy enough.

Less coherent thoughts:
Toxtricity is also a bit of a sleeper, tera normal boombursts are ridiculous and it’s a mon that can really give you a leg up if you do run into people attempting bulkier playstyles with Quag/Bliss and the gang.

MMQ also great as always on HO to get you out of trouble if you fuck up and let a Hawlucha or Espathra or teapot on psy terrain get going, definitely something that doesn’t appreciate Pokémon being able to change their typing to something completely different though, been screwed by that more than once.

Might just be my boomer ass but I don’t think many of the new mons are that impressive, Scream Tail can be annoying as hell, and I think Pawmot and Slither Wing are pretty cool but the rest I’ve used I’ve found wanting for one reason or another. Only a couple of days in though, I’m sure opinions will change very quickly.

 

[Estarossa]

Thought i'd share a couple of teams i've been laddering with now its been a couple of days. I'll probably make a post later today / tomorrow about general thoughts on mons but wanted to share these for now!


https://pokepast.es/d58e687e7f4929fa

Like most people I did play around with screens a fair bit to play with el broken ostritch. Tbh like Lyss ive actually been expressing a feeling of not being so strongly against it compared to most people, in practice ive found myself usually beating it while playing against it with various teams especially due to its heavy 4mss, i'd definitely appreciate it going when OU steals it though.

Unlike people playing with stuff like Klefki i was more interested by Morgrem at first, the taunt + parting shot combo is pretty cool in reality to support a lot of stuff. Double Dance Gallade is a fun one for screens tbh, solves some of its slower speed issues while its still insanely powerful to the point that just agilitying into LO sharpness attacks can often clean anyway even if you don't SD too. Indeedee generally useful for the psyterrain + trick scarfing something annoying + healing wish, lets stuff like espathra really have two goes at it but actually compresses the hawlucha utility into it at same time unlike say pawmot who also only brings it back to 50% which might not be enough a lot of the time. Tbh ive not found weavile that great after playing with it on this sorta stuff, its in theory mildly threatening but hasn't actually done that great in practice and doesnt really seem like it'll be good in UU at all.


https://pokepast.es/4b25db6278e480c5

Wanted to mess with Specs espathra a bit since before it even dropped cause of just how fun specs lumina crash could in theory be. Amount of dark types running around is a bit annoying for that but it can at least severely hurt them with a specs gleam to discourage it a bit. Killowattrel is god tier tbh, liked having the twave support as 4th move on it for this to support like SD tect tinkaton etc though. Revavroom is honestly kinda cool with parting shot + tspikes though iwish it got heat crash not overheat lmao, can support some of this team decently at least though. Double dance vap is GSC vibes that i really just had to try out and can be p fun if you dont get haxed Donphan neat for rocks + spin compression, knock off great for removing boots from some things too to help with the tspikes sticking etc.




https://pokepast.es/037eaeb23f344e8e

Semi Stall kinda heat rn tbh. Decent ways of getting around the complete lack of Heal Bell if you take a format like this where a lot of the team can immunise itself from it through Steel typings / abilities / Taunt or a tera steel. Quagsire is so cool for a lot of builds with that ground typing + recovery + SR + Toxic combo that nothing else really has anymore, water immunity is nice for a team like this too in practice really. Forretress has nice compression through spinning + id press and access to eq to not let gengar block it at all. Naclstack is so neat as a win con really with the exact same bulk as garganacl but just no passive recovery, salt cure is a dumb move and lets you play out a lot of things you couldn't beat anyway even in dire situations because of it lasting past switching out / fainting. SD tinkaton neat win con and breaker too that synergises so well with Umb, Umb lost toxic / heal bell but it does still have the only unnerfed recovery move and supports a lot of stuff here really well, Taunt lets it keep status off itself pretty decently anyway and tera steel is always an option if you really need it to block it too. Kilowattrel great speed control really. Discharge nice secondary electric move to spread para for the tinkaton / naclstack too, defo can twave as well though.



https://pokepast.es/dcb43fda7ebe9c6f

Another amusing fat team. Salazzle is so cool rn honestly, speed control + corrosion toxic so valuable especially since it can just ignore any tera typings to avoid toxics too. Toxic Spikes on it was a fantastic addition too honestly to help it support shit. Generally pairs nicely with the naclstackl honestly. Slowking is neat with chilling reception + water for general pivoting + weakening of stuff, great special pivot to get stuff around and alongside water absorb quag really just shits on rain LOL. Blissey lost Heal Bell but absorbs status with natural cure still decently, been enjoying running CM BoltBeam on it instead now its got the free movepool to help it reduce a lot of its passivity without toxic etc and actually be fairly threatening and check some special stuff better too. Pompom is cool fogger tbh and can sweep abit late game too, does have 4mss when its using defog unfort to the point that it has to tera to hit ground types but team pressures those pretty well anyway and it still walls ones like hippo.