OP adapted from DrumstickGaming's Black and White list
Previous Thread
Approved by DHR
Pokemon Black 2 / White 2
In-game Tier List Discussion
Hello, and welcome to the Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 in-game tier list! In this thread we will be testing, discussing, and ranking the Pokemon available to use in the main game of Pokemon Black 2 and White 2. Pokemon are ranked based on their efficiency and usefulness throughout a typical run of the game.
How do you rank Pokemon?
Pokemon are ranked according to the following 5 factors:
Availability: This is how early a Pokemon arrives in the game and how hard it is to find (read: encounter rate). Factors such as requiring backtracking or a hard-to-obtain evolution item will weigh negatively against a Pokemon's rank. This factor generally weighs in favor of mons that are available early-game, as they are present for more fights and will be at a higher level and have more friendship points than a mon you capture late-game by the time you reach that point. Pokemon that come late but at higher levels, such as legendary Pokemon, suffer less. Availability does not include version exclusivity.
Typing - A Pokemon's typing can be of great importance for an efficient playthrough. Typings that better match up versus the game's major battles will generally result in higher ranks.
Stats - A Pokemon's stat distribution is crucial for a Pokemon's success. If a Pokemon has a stat distribution that favors its both typing and movepool, it will often be higher on the tier list. In general, a Pokemon that is often slower than it is faster will often be ranked lower on a tier list.
Movepool - A Pokemon's movepool (both level-up and TM/HM) are crucial for a Pokemon. Unlike with past games, TMs are of infinite use, and thus have no opportunity cost. However, moves taught by the Move Tutors in exchange for Shards will generally come with opportunity cost, with the exception of moves taught in exchange for Red Shards (more on that below).
Major Battles - Major battles consist of Gym Leaders, Colress, Ghetsis, the Elite 4, and Iris. A Pokemon that is capable of sweeping or heavily contributing to most, if not all, of the major battles will rank higher than a Pokemon that can not, or a Pokemon that can sweep certain battles but struggles heavily vs others. Note that an overlevel limit of +2 is in effect when testing for this list. A Pokemon may only be two levels above the battle's highest-leveled Pokemon in order for the test to be legitimate (i.e. 35 at Clay or 62 at Iris).
What are the tiers?
In this tier list we currently have seven tiers. Tiers are based off of the following:
S Tier
A Tier
B Tier
C Tier
D Tier
E Tier
F Tier
The tier list is alphabetized for convenience. The higher tier a Pokemon is in, the more it contributes within an efficient playthrough. Pokemon in S tier are the best of the best, borderline (or literally) overpowered in terms of performance. On the other hand, Pokemon in F tier are practically unusable. Pokemon in C tier are average; they might contribute decently across the board or specialize really well against certain battles while falling flat against others. Pokemon within tiers are ranked alphabetically, not based on their specific viability compared to one another.
Which Pokemon are available for the player to use in Pokemon Black 2 and White 2?
Here is a link to the Black and White 2 Pokedex, which includes the Pokemons' availabilities. Most of the Pokemon listed there are available to test, although some are exceptions due to only being obtainable in the postgame or via event. These will be listed in the "untiered" section below.
What tools are allowed for the player to use?
The player is allowed to use any legitimate means within the cartridge for completing the game efficiently. The player is only allowed to trade to evolve Pokemon and not to receive outside help otherwise. Use of healing / stat boosting items, such as potions, X items, and status healing items, can negatively affect a Pokemon's rank, especially if it can be concluded that item usage is necessary for a Pokemon to perform in a battle. Held items, such as Eviolite or berries, are not penalized. On harder battles, such as Colress or Iris, item usage is not as penalizing due to the difficult nature of these fights (and particularly with Colress' tendency to paralyze everything in front of him), however excessive item usage will still be penalized.
Shard Tutors
Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 introduced the existence of several move tutors throughout the game which will teach your pokemon powerful moves in exchange for certain shards. Three of these are available in the main game; their location, the moves they teach, and their price are all listed here. In the case of the first tutor in Driftveil, there is actually an npc in the Nimbasa City Pokemon Center who will give you ten free Red Shards, meaning you can get one move (or multiple, if you choose the lower cost moves) with no opportunity cost. Pokemon that benefit from or require a move obtained from this tutor will not be penalized; Pokemon that require multiple, however, will. In the case of the other two, while there are a certain amount of Blue and Yellow Shards available throughout the overworld, these are generally spaced out, being as late as Victory Road or requiring a backtrack, and can also be inconsistent between versions. Even if you collected them all, you'll still need to grind extra Shards to afford the most expensive moves. As a general rule, any Pokemon that requires a move(s) from these tutors will be penalized.
Current Tier List Rankings
S-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon who possess the highest levels of efficiency of the available options in Pokémon Black 2 & White 2. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO an overwhelming majority of opponents, limiting the amount of attacks used against them, and possess minimal reliance on items to help assist them defeat opponents at like levels. These Pokémon typically show up before the late-game and any flaws they have are absolutely made up by their advantages.
A-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be very high. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a lot of opponents and are not very reliant on items to succeed, but either have some visible flaws that hurt their efficiency or have their usefulness counterbalanced by a late arrival.
B-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be moderately high. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a fair chunk of opponents and may have a bit of item reliance to assist in sweeping opponents. These Pokémon are still very useful but either have several visible flaws holding them back or come fairly late.
C-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be average. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a reasonable portion of opponents but are matchup-based enough to need some item reliance to assist in sweeping some opponents. These Pokémon are useful but either have several visible flaws holding them back or barely make up for their late arrivals.
D-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be moderately low. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a small amount of opponents and tend to be matchup-based enough to need item reliance to assist in sweeping a few opponents. The usefulness of these Pokémon are typically counterbalanced by many visible flaws or are useful Pokémon that come very late.
E-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be very low. Pokémon in this tier are generally only able to OHKO or 2HKO specific opponents and suffer from being matchup-based, generally relying on items to assist in sweeping several opponents. These Pokémon either have flaws that outshine its strengths or are otherwise decent Pokémon that come too late to be of any major use.
F-Tier: Reserved for Pokemon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be extremely low. Pokemon in this tier are generally incapable of OHKOing or 2HKOing opponents, or come so late in the game that they are practically worthless against what major battles remain. Gimmick Pokemon may also reside here.
Untiered: Reserved for Pokemon whom, while listed in the Black and White 2 Pokedex, are not available for testing due to only being available either in the postgame or as part of an event.
Previous Thread
Approved by DHR
Pokemon Black 2 / White 2
In-game Tier List Discussion
Hello, and welcome to the Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 in-game tier list! In this thread we will be testing, discussing, and ranking the Pokemon available to use in the main game of Pokemon Black 2 and White 2. Pokemon are ranked based on their efficiency and usefulness throughout a typical run of the game.
How do you rank Pokemon?
Pokemon are ranked according to the following 5 factors:
Availability: This is how early a Pokemon arrives in the game and how hard it is to find (read: encounter rate). Factors such as requiring backtracking or a hard-to-obtain evolution item will weigh negatively against a Pokemon's rank. This factor generally weighs in favor of mons that are available early-game, as they are present for more fights and will be at a higher level and have more friendship points than a mon you capture late-game by the time you reach that point. Pokemon that come late but at higher levels, such as legendary Pokemon, suffer less. Availability does not include version exclusivity.
Typing - A Pokemon's typing can be of great importance for an efficient playthrough. Typings that better match up versus the game's major battles will generally result in higher ranks.
Stats - A Pokemon's stat distribution is crucial for a Pokemon's success. If a Pokemon has a stat distribution that favors its both typing and movepool, it will often be higher on the tier list. In general, a Pokemon that is often slower than it is faster will often be ranked lower on a tier list.
Movepool - A Pokemon's movepool (both level-up and TM/HM) are crucial for a Pokemon. Unlike with past games, TMs are of infinite use, and thus have no opportunity cost. However, moves taught by the Move Tutors in exchange for Shards will generally come with opportunity cost, with the exception of moves taught in exchange for Red Shards (more on that below).
Major Battles - Major battles consist of Gym Leaders, Colress, Ghetsis, the Elite 4, and Iris. A Pokemon that is capable of sweeping or heavily contributing to most, if not all, of the major battles will rank higher than a Pokemon that can not, or a Pokemon that can sweep certain battles but struggles heavily vs others. Note that an overlevel limit of +2 is in effect when testing for this list. A Pokemon may only be two levels above the battle's highest-leveled Pokemon in order for the test to be legitimate (i.e. 35 at Clay or 62 at Iris).
What are the tiers?
In this tier list we currently have seven tiers. Tiers are based off of the following:
S Tier
A Tier
B Tier
C Tier
D Tier
E Tier
F Tier
The tier list is alphabetized for convenience. The higher tier a Pokemon is in, the more it contributes within an efficient playthrough. Pokemon in S tier are the best of the best, borderline (or literally) overpowered in terms of performance. On the other hand, Pokemon in F tier are practically unusable. Pokemon in C tier are average; they might contribute decently across the board or specialize really well against certain battles while falling flat against others. Pokemon within tiers are ranked alphabetically, not based on their specific viability compared to one another.
Which Pokemon are available for the player to use in Pokemon Black 2 and White 2?
Here is a link to the Black and White 2 Pokedex, which includes the Pokemons' availabilities. Most of the Pokemon listed there are available to test, although some are exceptions due to only being obtainable in the postgame or via event. These will be listed in the "untiered" section below.
What tools are allowed for the player to use?
The player is allowed to use any legitimate means within the cartridge for completing the game efficiently. The player is only allowed to trade to evolve Pokemon and not to receive outside help otherwise. Use of healing / stat boosting items, such as potions, X items, and status healing items, can negatively affect a Pokemon's rank, especially if it can be concluded that item usage is necessary for a Pokemon to perform in a battle. Held items, such as Eviolite or berries, are not penalized. On harder battles, such as Colress or Iris, item usage is not as penalizing due to the difficult nature of these fights (and particularly with Colress' tendency to paralyze everything in front of him), however excessive item usage will still be penalized.
Shard Tutors
Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 introduced the existence of several move tutors throughout the game which will teach your pokemon powerful moves in exchange for certain shards. Three of these are available in the main game; their location, the moves they teach, and their price are all listed here. In the case of the first tutor in Driftveil, there is actually an npc in the Nimbasa City Pokemon Center who will give you ten free Red Shards, meaning you can get one move (or multiple, if you choose the lower cost moves) with no opportunity cost. Pokemon that benefit from or require a move obtained from this tutor will not be penalized; Pokemon that require multiple, however, will. In the case of the other two, while there are a certain amount of Blue and Yellow Shards available throughout the overworld, these are generally spaced out, being as late as Victory Road or requiring a backtrack, and can also be inconsistent between versions. Even if you collected them all, you'll still need to grind extra Shards to afford the most expensive moves. As a general rule, any Pokemon that requires a move(s) from these tutors will be penalized.
Current Tier List Rankings
S-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon who possess the highest levels of efficiency of the available options in Pokémon Black 2 & White 2. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO an overwhelming majority of opponents, limiting the amount of attacks used against them, and possess minimal reliance on items to help assist them defeat opponents at like levels. These Pokémon typically show up before the late-game and any flaws they have are absolutely made up by their advantages.
- Braviary
- Darumaka
- Drilbur
- Heracross
- Magnemite
- Minccino
A-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be very high. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a lot of opponents and are not very reliant on items to succeed, but either have some visible flaws that hurt their efficiency or have their usefulness counterbalanced by a late arrival.
- Axew
- Cobalion
- Conkeldurr
- Espeon
- Jolteon
- Vaporeon
- Elekid
- Lillipup
- Litwick
- Oshawott
- Petilil
- Pinsir
- Riolu
- Roselia
- Sandile
- Scraggy
- Sigilyph
- Tepig
- Terrakion
- Virizion
- Zorua
B-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be moderately high. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a fair chunk of opponents and may have a bit of item reliance to assist in sweeping opponents. These Pokémon are still very useful but either have several visible flaws holding them back or come fairly late.
- Aron
- Azurill
- Baltoy
- Basculin
- Buizel
- Cottonee
- Cubchoo
- Deerling
- Ducklett
- Dwebble
- Ferroseed
- Frillish
- Gligar
- Gothita
- Gigalith
- Growlithe
- Joltik
- Gurdurr
- Escavalier
- Klink
- Koffing
- Magby
- Mandibuzz
- Maractus
- Mareep
- Metang
Mienfoo - Numel
- Steelix
- Pansage
- Pansear
- Pawniard
- Pelipper
- Pidove
- Piloswine
- Psyduck
- Sawk
- Sewaddle
- Skarmory
- Skorupi
- Snivy
- Solosis
- Spheal
- Tangela
- Trapinch
- Venipede
- Volcarona
- Zangoose
- Zebstrika
- Zubat
C-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be average. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a reasonable portion of opponents but are matchup-based enough to need some item reliance to assist in sweeping some opponents. These Pokémon are useful but either have several visible flaws holding them back or barely make up for their late arrivals.
- Absol
- Audino
- Banette
- Bouffalant
- Buneary
- Clefairy
- Drifblim
- Druddigon
- Flareon
- Elgyem
- Emolga
- Foongus
- Golurk
- Grimer
- Lapras
- Lunatone
- Nosepass
- Panpour
- Patrat
- Rattata
- Remoraid
- Boldore
- Sandshrew
- Seel
- Seviper
- Accelgor
- Sneasel
- Solrock
- Spoink
- Staryu
- Swablu
- Throh
- Trubbish
- Tynamo
- Woobat
- Yamask
- Zweilous
D-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be moderately low. Pokémon in this tier are able to OHKO or 2HKO a small amount of opponents and tend to be matchup-based enough to need item reliance to assist in sweeping a few opponents. The usefulness of these Pokémon are typically counterbalanced by many visible flaws or are useful Pokémon that come very late.
- Alomamola
- Castform
- Combee
- Corsola
- Dunsparce
- Umbreon
- Onix
- Purrloin
- Skitty
- Sunkern
- Vanillish
- Vulpix
E-Tier: Reserved for Pokémon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be very low. Pokémon in this tier are generally only able to OHKO or 2HKO specific opponents and suffer from being matchup-based, generally relying on items to assist in sweeping several opponents. These Pokémon either have flaws that outshine its strengths or are otherwise decent Pokémon that come too late to be of any major use.
...
F-Tier: Reserved for Pokemon whose efficiency in terms of completing the game is considered to be extremely low. Pokemon in this tier are generally incapable of OHKOing or 2HKOing opponents, or come so late in the game that they are practically worthless against what major battles remain. Gimmick Pokemon may also reside here.
- Bronzor
- Delibird
- Ditto
- Karrablast (no trade)
- Shelmet (no trade)
- Shuckle
Untiered: Reserved for Pokemon whom, while listed in the Black and White 2 Pokedex, are not available for testing due to only being available either in the postgame or as part of an event.
Munna
Glaceon
Leafon
Archen
Tirtouga
Heatmor
Durant
Cryogonal
Tornadus
Thundurus
Landorus
Tympole
Stunfisk
Vigoroth
Corphish
Jigglytuff
Lickitung
Yanma
Tropius
Carnivine
Croagunk
Pupitar
Reshiram
Zekrom
Kyurem
Keldeo
Meloetta
Genesect
Glaceon
Leafon
Archen
Tirtouga
Heatmor
Durant
Cryogonal
Tornadus
Thundurus
Landorus
Tympole
Stunfisk
Vigoroth
Corphish
Jigglytuff
Lickitung
Yanma
Tropius
Carnivine
Croagunk
Pupitar
Reshiram
Zekrom
Kyurem
Keldeo
Meloetta
Genesect
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