Project The Top 10 Titans of SM PU [Complete]

[yogi]

The top 10 Pokemon of SM PU



PU got a load of new, meta defining Pokemon this generation and had a massive shift in meta pacing, so let's have a look at what the most defining ones were!

From October 8th - October 15th, you will nominate Pokemon that will be voted on for the top 10 most influential Pokemon throughout Gen 7. After that, you will all evaluate all the nominations and individually rank the Pokemon from 1-10 by vote. Of course, all the nominations will count as long as they're reasonable and fit the criteria. Please keep in mind that we're not ranking Pokemon based on how good they are, but we're ranking Pokemon based on how influential they've been.

YOU HAVE THREE DAYS TO WRITE THEM UP AFTER RESERVING

Here's an example format of what your nomination can look like:

Nominating Pokemon

Enter sprite here.

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Explain how the Pokemon effected the metagame as whole, and how the metagame adapted around it. A brief description of which Pokemon it countered and which Pokemon it did well against would be good here as well.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Explain why this Pokemon was used on a team more often then most other Pokemon, and what was it particularly used for? What made it so good at this role?

What caused it to have a significant impact?

What exactly made this Pokemon have such a large impact on the metagame? Was it its stats, ability, useful resistances, amazing synergy, or the ability to sweep most of the metagame very easily? Did a certain Pokemon cause it to become that much better when it was partnered with it?

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

What are the best checks/counters to this Pokemon? How does the metagame adapt to this Pokemon?

Make sure they look EXACTLY like this, or else I wont count them. Make sure they are also very informative, factual, accurate, and detailed.

Current Nominees



Current list
1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8)9)10)
stole this from Espeonage. get bopped

 

[yogi]

Reserving Mespirt ofc LOL



What effect did it have on the meta?

There's really not too much that I can say about Mesprit that isn't already common knowledge. Since the start of Gen 7 PU, bar beta, Mesprit has been the most defining Pokemon. Nothing can even come close to the sheer utility, splashability, and customability that Mesprit gives. Across the Generation it's been the number one most used Pokemon in both tours and on the ladder. With several equally viable sets, that have all seen highs across the gen, ranging from Defensive SR to CM 3 Attacks, its unpredicatability also solidify itself as a top tier threat. There was never any cost to running this Pokemon.

What were its main roles?

Mesprit was able to cover practically any role a team needed, be it a defensive pivot, choice scarf user, choice specs breaker, calm mind sweeper. There were almost no roles the right Mesprit set couldn't cover.

Why did it have a significant impact?

Great all-round stats coupled with a fantastic support and offensive movepool were the reasons, along with an immunity to both spikes and toxic spikes. Healing Wish was probably the biggest asset it brought to teams next to stealth rock support, as hjad said quite correctly "it's like playing with 7 pokemon". The also previously mentioned splashability as it could be slotted in to just about any role also propelled it to be the PU Pokemon to use.

What were its checks / counters?

Well, this depended on the set. Some sets were quite easy to spot from team preview, like choice scarf or sometimes defensive stealth rock. But the main issue was if it was running something like choice specs, calm mind 3 attacks, or offensive stealth rock; as all three were impossible to tell apart at preview. General offensive pressure and using dark-types like Skuntank was usually the go to way of dealing with mesprit, or even checks like ferroseed and specially defensive alolan sandslash (though these folded to the boom in usage that cm 3 attacks and offensive stealth rock mesprit that were used just before it left the tier).

 

[PH]

Nominating Pyroar

(female pyroar ftw)

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Pyroar was an enormous threat in the time it was in PU, reaching S rank before it was eventually banned. Pyroar's tremendous offensive stats, coverage and versatility meant it was extremely hard to find a hard check/counter to all sets. Pokemon like Lanturn, specifically the AV set, and Hitmonchan dealt with Pyroar somewhat but werent reliable until you came across the Z-Solar Beam set which just blew Lanturn right out of the water (pun intended), while Hitmonchan was not able to switch in more than 2 times. Offensive checks consisted of strong, very fast wallbreakers. Primeape and Lycanroc were able to revenge kill Specs and Z sets but could not revenge kill Scarfed sets which were common. Kingler could also check Pyroar after an Agility but could not set up in the face of any Pyroar set due to Hyper Voice. The meta began drifting to Pyroar+Kingler BO/offense teams and Lanturn Voltturn.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Pyroar was insanely versatile and had several viable amount of sets, making it extremely hard to counter. Z sets were fairly common, more specifically Firium Z and the less common option in Grassium Z. Fire Z sets ran either Z-Fire Blast for an extremely powerful nuke or Z-Sunny Day to set sun for sun teams and break easily. Choiced sets were also extremely common. Scarf, while being the less common of the two, was still an amazing set that outsped all relevant scarfers and Jynx after a Z-Lovely Kiss, while also being able to bluff Specs or Z vs Lycanroc, allowing you to win the 1v1. Specs was the most common Pyroar set as it was able to maintain an amazing speed tier while also being able to fire off (ha) extremely powerful nukes every turn. Not much in the tier could safely switch into Specs Pyroar without taking enormous chip, letting it getting chip everytime it was sent out and eventually, clean.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Pyroar's amazing stat distribution allowed it to maintain a blistering speed tier whilst also having a great offensive presence. 106 Speed gave Pyroar the tools to outspeed Scyther, the Simis and base 95's such as Primeape and Jynx. 109 SpA gave Pyroar the potential to fire off (pun intended) extremely powerful Fire Blasts with close to 0 drawback. Choice Specs magnified this power and made it extremely hard to reliably counter. It's Fire/Normal typing gave it close to no resistances with its stab, and the mons that did resist it's amazing STABS were blown away by hp grass or z-solar beam. Pyroar synergised with huge meta threats such as Mesprit, Kingler and Lilligant. This gave it amazing team options which could make use of all the pokemon it could chip with its great STAB coverage. Kingler in particular was an amazing partner due to the type synergy these two possessed. Pyroar chipped pokemon such as Lanturn and Regirock which allowed to Kingler to completely sweep and vice versa.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

As mentioned previously, Lanturn and other specially bulky pokemon could switchin to Pyroar semi-decently and could knock it out, however, most were only able to switch in a maximum of 2 times and some just dropped to specific sets. The main way to deal w Pyroar was offensive counterplay. Pokemon such as Primeape and Lycanroc were able to revenge kill Pyroar or force it out and gain momentum. Pyroar's ok at best defensive distrubtion left it fairly weak to revenge killers such as the aforementioned mons and other fast and powerful breakers.

 

[gum]

reserving froslass

 

[tondas]

Nominating Archeops

What effect did this Pokemon have on the metagame?

Archeops was a significant player in SM PU for most of the early metagame and eventually getting suspect tested after Magmortar in May 2018. It was an offensive threat that could wallbreak, stallbreak, and revenge kill all at once, especially when considering that most of its defensive counterplay lacked reliable recovery and thus made it potent in multiple stages of a battle, whether that's picking off a slower threat, removing a passive wall, or sweeping late-game with its phenomenal attacking power.


In what main roles was this Pokemon used?

Archeops
Ability: Defeatist
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Acrobatics
- Earthquake
- Roost
- Taunt / Stone Edge / U-turn

Archeops spammed the hell out of Acrobatics, clicked coverage when it needed to, and had Taunt and Roost as backup options depending on if it wanted to beat Pokemon like , , and more reliably or stay out of Defeatist. This set was great offensively in many different aspects which made it a threat to most archetypes present at the time.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Archeops' combination of absurd attacking power, Speed, and coverage options made it insanely difficult to dispatch without a healthy defensive wall or a faster revenge killer. Like most wallbreakers in this tier that have been suspect tested and banned, many of Archeops' checks were slow and passive defensive behemoths which could be handled by another teammate. , , and fell victim to common special setup sweepers and wallbreakers like , , and , which formed an incredible offensive core since Archeops could also utilise momentum to bring these into play. The former also had Healing Wish to grant Archeops a second chance if it wasn't played optimally. and also relieved some of Archeops' offensive counterplay through removing entry hazards and using priority to pick off faster foes. was also an incredible Archeops check that got moved up to NU which resulted in other Pokemon mentioned filling in its shoes, which lacked the sustainability that it had. Overall, Archeops encompassed a low-mid risk/high reward Pokemon that could power through teams with minimal clearance.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Archeops lacked a good number of switch-ins, but Pokemon like and were the most consistent, only getting 3HKOed or 4HKOed by Acrobatics or Earthquake, and had reasonable means to retaliate against it. The latter two were also able to pressure it with Stealth Rock in order to knock it into Defeatist, but the former struggled against Taunt sets. and could also check sets lacking Stone Edge but were easy to pressure with Stealth Rock up otherwise. and Also get special mentions since they boasted reliable recovery options, the former was never 2HKOed by Acrobatics alone, and the latter could outpace Archeops and cripple it with Will-O-Wisp. A good handful of the listed Pokemon also ran to punish the use of Acrobatics and get it into an unfavorable position. served as decent revenge killers that could easily take it out or at the very least force it to switch out, which could be utilised with Stealth Rock to force it to use Roost more quickly. Offensive pressure and chip damage in general also served as hindrances to Archeops, as its downright abysmal bulk and necessity of staying healthy to remain a potent offensive threat could be taken advantage of to get it into a bad position and pick it off. Regardless, Archeops was an absolute nightmare for multiple playstyles since it could wreak havoc with its insane Speed tier and combination of moves like Acrobatics, Stone Edge, Earthquake, and even Taunt and Roost to shut down recovery options or keep it out of Defeatist if it can manage to force a switch.

 

[EviGaro]

Reserving broken ass Lilligant

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Lilligant was for a long while THE premier setup sweeper of SM PU. As fire types became less and less common and bulkier checks became far less diverse, Lilligant was more and more able to build its niche around being arguable the deadliest and easiest mon to setup, often requiring very specific counter play at hand, whether it was in terms of faster scarfers, sleep immunes with strong offensive potential, or just banking on its coverage being unable to hit through your dedicated Lilligant slot.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Quiver Dance sweeper was really the only main role it had, due to how easy it was to make threatening in a game and cause your opponent to think twice about the kind of openings they would give it. Other sets were somewhat used, Specs was a decent wallbreaker at times, Scarf was a faster Healing Wish than Mesprit but both sets had their own set of issues... Especially cause they gave QD Lilligant potential setup lol

What caused it to have a significant impact?

The nature of the tier helped it a ton. Good dragons were very rare, and even stuff like Drampa had to consider taking a +1 z-move to the face which was uh tricky. Fire types were annoying for it, but at the same time demanded answers that Lilligant could exploit and use to threaten those fires after setup. The other main thing was its move flexibility. Sleep Powder was very popular but far from the only option: other coverage like hp fire could make answers like Ferroseed or Snowslash a non-issue, or even Psychium in Weezing meta. Aromatherapy became a thing when people starting banking on toxic hoping to eventually win out. Therefore, there was always a way for Lilligant to be one step ahead, which really favoured it being at the top of the tier.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

The most obvious one was that because clear cut 100% answers were a dubious ask, the best way to limit Lilligant's impact was to limit it to one QD and have a faster scarfer to revenge it. Togedemaru's massive usage wasn't only predicated on Lilligant, but it being one of the best checks due to typing and having a better speed tier definitely limited Lilligant's overall impact when Toge was in the tier. However, the latter's departure made Primeape a sort of replacement... But Primeape's inability to switch in confidently was certainly a problem. As noted before, one of the main issues with dealing with Lilligant is that while you had quite a few diverse counters at some point, a significant number of them left PU at some point, which definitely put a big strain on the remaining mons and made it far easier for Lilli to confidently pick its coverage for consistent results, so relying on one mon instead of a consistent strategy was ill-advised.

 

[TTK]

Nominating Kingler

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Kingler was one of PU's scariest wallbreakers in time of old due to the fact it just 2hko mostly everything at the time and when it started to gain in prominence, things like Quagsire were not PU at the time and the fact we had both Pyroar and Kingler in the same tier just meant Pyroar would kill physdef mons and Kingler would just kill everything.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Kingler @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Agility
- Liquidation
- Knock Off
- Superpower / Swords Dance

Agility + 3 attacks Kingler was by far the most common Kingler set where it could act as both a really strong wallbreaker and a sweeper if needed be. Thanks to USUM tutors starting from November 2017, Kingler got access to a physical Water-STAB that was boosted by its hidden ability Sheer Force, Liquidation. Now before this, Kingler was quite an average wallbreaker mon but after it got Liquidation, it became one of PU's top wallbreakers and could easily spam it, dealing heavy amounts of damage.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Now I believe Kingler had a big enough impact to be considered for the top 10. Firstly, Sheer Force + STAB Liquidation coming off 130 base Atk is pretty absurd and Kingler was one of the main pokemon to account for on teambuilding. Kingler slowly and slowly got very harder to deal with when Gastrodon and Ferroseed left the tier and we were left with Poliwrath as the main water immunity. Even if those mons could stop Kingler spamming Liquidation, Kingler was perfectly able to run SD and just break through its checks, which really made it a problem. The meta back then was much more offensive and Kingler and Pyroar were running it. I can actually thank Pyroar because Pyroar broke past Gourgeist-XL and Tangela, stuff that stopped Kingler and that made Kingler quite potent, making people rely on niche picks like Silvally-Water and Servine to check it efficiently, really restricting teambuilding.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

I've been around a bit believe it or not and I was here when Kingler was here so I remember what went on. Essentially, you had to abuse Kingler's decent speed tier and outspeed it to kill it. Anything from Adamant stout (if running ada kingler), Pyroar and Lilligant could check Kingler thanks to them being special attackers (stout isnt a special attacker ik) and Kingler's spdef doesn't exist. Furthermore, we had good bulky grasses to really hinder Kingler like Gourgeist-XL (that used to be better than now despite the fact we had broken Pyroar and Mag at the same time), Tangela and Torterra (before it rose in August 2018). Personally, i more used the checking it offensively with faster special attackers with a combination of stuff like Gourgeist.

 

[UberSkitty]

Nominating barbaracle Magmortar

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Magmortar was during a period of time in which PU was crawling with broken mons, such as Archeops and Pyroar, but it was considered the most broken of them all. Magmortar was a massive threat when it came to wallbreaking during its time in PU. It had a high Special Attack and even a decent Attack, which went great alongside its coverage. Speaking of coverage, it was able to bop most of the tier with it, unless you wanted to use Grumpig. It had STAB Fire Blast, Focus Miss, Thunderbolt, ect. This gave it a good matchup against so much of the tier, being able to take out its supposed checks with the right moveset. This made it a large problem for balanced and bulky offensive teams.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Magmortar started off as a great wallbreaker, but used a different set than the one it has been infamous for. This set was Assault Vest, which gave it extra bulk in order to better take on mons like Z-Hyper Beam Lilligant and Aurorus. However, we were then enlightened to its Z-move+Taunt set. This set allowed it to wallbreak even more effectively without Pokemon like Regirock and Audino getting in its way. It could also be used as a wallbreaker through items such as Life Orb or Choice Specs. Did I mention it was a great wallbreaker?

What caused it to have a significant impact?

As I said before, Magmortar had excellent offensive stats and coverage, making it very difficult to counter, or even check defensively. Honestly, all of its stats were pretty decent bar its physical defense. Honestly though, the Special Defense was just a bonus as its decent Speed meant it didn't always have to take a hit before hitting, being able to outspeed mons like Aurorus, Stoutland, and Mesprit. It was one of many ferocious wallbreakers at the time, meaning it was hard to check all within one team, giving Magmortar even more edge. These other wallbreakers include Aurorus, Kingler, Pyroar, and Archeops. It could be paired with pretty much any of these mons for mass destruction.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Well Altaria was initially the go-to counter for Magmortar, but that left to visit NU and started quite a havoc. Because of this, the best defensive answer for Magmortar ended up being Carbink. Other Pokemon like Gastrodon and Lanturn could be used, but they'd have to pray Magmortar wasn't carrying coverage for them. Otherwise, your best bet for defeating Magmortar was offensively. This could be difficult due to its decent Speed and bulk, but faster Pokemon such as Archeops and Lycanroc could OHKO it. This was made especially easy with how easily worn down Magmortar down with its Stealth Rock weakness, not to mention if it was running Life Orb.

 

[yogi]

Am I allowed to do Barbaracle?

i'd like to not include any beta mons as it was a very chaotic time for pu

 

[ishtar]

Nominating Exeggutor-Alola

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

While Exeggutor-Alola was initially used, for the most part, as a powerful wallbreaker thanks to its powerful Choice Specs set, the utilization of a second and even more threatening Trick Room set started making the Pokemon a huge hassle to deal with for many teams, ultimately ending in its ban from PU.

The drop in usage of Pokemon like Clefairy thanks to other strong physical breakers meant that Eggy was easily able to nuke most of the meta with little to no repercussion thanks to its little amount of checks and counters, but Trick Room also allowed function better vs. offensive teams since it was incredibly hard not to allow it to setup at times and it would easily OHKO most Pokemon with the use of its Z-move, effectively removing at least one threat off the field.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Exeggutor-Alola @ Dragonium Z
Ability: Frisk
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Draco Meteor
- Leaf Storm
- Flamethrower
- Trick Room

While Choice Specs was its initial set, its OTR set is what turned Eggy into one of the most difficult wallbreakers to deal with. While it was easy to keep it off the field with the amount of great Ice-, or Flying-types (as well as Fairy/Ice coverage from Pokemon such as Mesprit), once Eggy was able to find a setup opportunity it was almost guaranteed to take a kill or two. Positioning yourself to not allow Eggy to TR was an incredibly tedious task + worrying about other 5 mons was not something many players liked dealing with, and for a very good reason.

Its Z-move was way too powerful, offensive builds had no place countering it after it had set up and even defensive builds had a hard time dealing with its threatening moveset.

During the final weeks of Eggy in the meta youd sometimes see lvl. 99 and 98 Eggys on ladder, used as a desperate attempt to have the slower Eggy, and the one who would be able to take the other one out in an epic palm tree battle that no one asked for.

Exeggutor-Alola @ Choice Specs
Ability: Frisk
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Draco Meteor
- Giga Drain
- Flamethrower

Choice Specs, despite it being a lot less threatening than its other set, turned Eggy into even more of a nuke vs. defensive teams. Even Pokemon like Clefairy had a hard time switching into it, only functioning as a check (not counting the meme counter which was…Marril). Despite this, its low speed and bad defensive typing meant that this Eggy set was often more easily manageable offensively, but if you were trying to deal with this set via fast teams with great offensive presence, there was a big chance you were gonna be a victim to its OTR one.


What caused it to have a significant impact?

In a meta that was getting increasingly more offensive, with the rise in usage of wallbreakers such as Stoutland and Aggron, bulkier Pokemon such as the aforementioned Clefairy and others were slowly being pushed to the side. This focus on offense is a big part of why its OTR set ended up giving teams so much trouble. Even counting defensive teams, the counterplay vs. it was far from formidable.

Its ability to mow down both offense and bulkier teams made Eggy way too volatile in the tier. It was subsequently suspect tested, banned, and finally ended up rising in usage to NU.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Eggy was incredibly difficult to deal with while building. During the final weeks I had utilized Ice Shard LO Abomasnow (which actually didn’t OHKO Eggy). Apart from this, Pokemon such as offensive (scarf/specs) Mesprit, Pom Pom, Slash-A would often do the trick prior to TR. Then theres Clef and Pokemon like Silvally-Fairy which would barely function as a check, thanks to Eggys power

Finally there was the absurdity that was leveling down Eggy in order to outspeed opposing Eggys under TR. Don’t even wanna think about it.

 

[yogi]

after seeing hjad talk in discord he is banned from nomming and voting because he's dumb

 

[INSANE CARZY GUY]

Nominating Aloan Persain

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

If this pokemon when couldn't be Koed back turn 1 from a setter it caused a prick of panic for traditional set-up leads; taunt, parting shot, status, weather, fake out, {knock, foul play, tutor moves} U-turn, parting, immune to prankster with an often out of reach to punish speed tier and a dope mon? Kind of a scary turn one pivot. At the start regirock wasn't even really a check seeing how it's fighting coverage (drain punch/superpower) was a move tutor and risking a rock slide for a toxic was at best nice for set scouting. With a lack of speed counterplay outside of weather, Trick Room or scarfed pivots(mespite/ape/scythe/toge) You could quickly be at the mercy of their team's levers of control and have to wait for an impactful play or get blown up by their set up, pivot vortex, or breaker.

It created a lot of stress like mespite did with healing wish to KO the teams breaker/sweeper(Zangoose) or it'd unlease Nasty Plot Dark pulses to clean after having supported the rest of the game

Primeape would eventually fear knock off, but ape is the Goat counter

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

It had 2 sets done with personal choices for the support

Persian-Alola @ Darkinium Z / Psychicium Z
Ability: Fur Coat
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Dark Pulse
- Parting Shot
- Thunderbolt /Dream Eater / HP coverage

Unless You chipped Persian or team read them, there was no way of knowing if You need to just go ahead and set up or try to save someone to tank a +2 persian. Thunderbolt was sadly just the best choice in coverage, but it used to hit mons that mattered like wrath and when the meta was more water heavy. Dream Eater was an awesome anti gurdurr meme that wreaked. Using technician boosted HP was the same power of thunderbolt at cost of bulk, but hp flying would smack dark and fighting well enough

Persian-Alola @ Darkinium Z
Ability: Fur Coat
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Parting Shot
- Taunt
- Foul Play
- Toxic

Shuffle in whatever clean options You want, later meta foul play just wasn't as good, knock was just the better choice to hit fighting types You can't afford to not cripple

Spoiler

Then there's this meme team that caused a bump in Persian/Pu before it dropped, If You've seen it before, there's nothing to explain.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Persain offered many options to volt-turn in Pu, there's nothing just as annoying as trying to beat Eel just for it to volt out and just Z-parting shot back to it healthy and persain could free up a slot by using knock so Eel could use drain punch(maybe now HP ice?) to further it's not dieing non sense. Between it and other turners they could really squeeze stall and prevent choice users from coming in to break it.

The Pokemon that completely kill Persian was easily guzzlord, it simply was the bulkier, harder hitting pokemon way easier to support and abuse. When Guzzlord was banned it left a hole, persian also was still no longer needed as a counter to mesprite on it's rise and no new psychic spam to fill that void ever again and now it's speed as a sweeper it's needed to beat psychic mons

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Anything in the tier that didn't fear knock off would basically come in and beat face and spawn an animal abuse Ad somewhere on boardcast Tv.

Gurddur- yum toxic/bulk-up/drain punch, basically Gurddur is the bigger rock in a game of R/P/S
Urasing- without foul play persain possibly doomed a teammate from this monster's output of hate
Hitmonchan-spinning and punching is awesome
Eel- Slower turn, damage advantage
Silavlly-Fairy was notable for being able to defog, slower parting shot, sword dance, and always 1v1 it

It often got blanket checked, but rarely "countered", but it never was a mon to directly trade hits other than NPing

It's NP set was checked by Priory like kanga spikes, mach punch and reliable scarfers but only a handful of mons really wanted to eat a +2 dark pulse that could be used as a Z move nuke or as a Pivot(6 move mon basically). But Carbink, Clefairy and other fairys were a solid check to the NP cheese, but they were very uncommon at NPs peak.


My Summary

Persian was a cool support mon, a new to meta friendly pokemon for team building, and a Cat

I wouldn't be surprised if it ever spiked again being very click buttons heavy with many options and being able to be built to beat a lot of mons it should otherwise lose to. But till it gets love again I'm going to keep running Floatzel at 248 speed for better rolls on CC from Primeape

 

[SergioRules]

Nominating Pokemon

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Togedemaru for a long time was considered the premier Choice Scarf user in the PU metagame. With a decent offensive STAB combination, access to U-turn, and 3 useful abilities, Toge was able to fill the role of a fast pivot and revenge killer in the same slot. Togedemaru also had the ability to run Wish and Spiky Shield to act as a special tank, though this set was far less used. Its defensive typing forced some Pokemon like offensive Mesprit to run Hidden Power Ground (this also let it cover Skuntank too). While Lightning Rod was traditionally its ability of choice in the earlier parts of the metagame to check Electric-types even better, eventually most players switched to Iron Barbs to rack up more chip damage on things like Kangaskhan using Fake Out, Skuntank, Lycanroc and opposing Togedemaru.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Togedemaru @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Lightning Rod / Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Zing Zap
- Iron Head
- Toxic

Togedemaru was used as an offensive pivot and also a fast revenge killer with its Choice Scarf set. Its base 96 Speed tier notably put it a few points above Choice Scarf Primeape and other base 95 speed Pokemon and lower. This helped it check Pokemon like the aforementioned Primeape, +1 Lilligant, and both Omastar and Carracosta after a Shell Smash. It also forced Alolan Sandslash to run a Jolly nature or risk being flinched to death.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Choice Scarf Togedemaru didn't have a huge impact on the meta until the addition of move tutors in USUM, giving Togedemaru access to a second strong STAB move in Iron Head. U-turn is also a coveted move for a fast Pokemon like Togedemaru as it allows it to scout for an opponents initial reaction to it. Its typing made it a great offensive check to many Ice- and Psychic-types like Mesprit, Aurorus, Jynx, and Alolan Raichu. Having such a Spikes heavy meta also meant that it wasn't difficult to wear Pokemon down to be in range of Togedemaru's STAB moves.
Example KangaSpikes team with Toge

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Togedemaru didn't require a dedicated counter on teams, but rather could just be worn down or lured. Its lack of immediate power means that it can really only take on weakened Pokemon, so most things at full health could take a hit from it. I've always been a huge Mudsdale fan, even before it got access to Stealth Rock that made it much more viable, and Muds was always one of the best counters to Togedemaru though it did have to be wary of Toxic. Palossand and Quagsire also countered Togedemaru, being immune to one STAB and the latter resisting the other. As far as lures go, many Pokemon like Mesprit, as mentioned previously, would run Hidden Power Ground to let them handle Steel-types better, while mixed Skuntank could also lure Toge with Fire Blast. Mach Punch from Hitmonchan also did devastating damage to Togedemaru.

 

[PTF]

Gurdurr

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?


Gurdurr has been a staple from the very beginning of PU. It has had and continues to have an undeniable impact in the metagame. It has performed as the best and most formidable Bulk Up sweeper in the tier. For most of the metagame, defensive Mesprit was the primary counter to Gurdurr. In turn, Gurdurr was primarily paired with Pursuit users including Skuntank or Stoutland to trap Mesprit and facilitate Gurdurr’s sweep. Its great defensive bulk also allowed it to function as a reliable defensive check to most metagame staples that we have had including Stoutland, Lycanroc, Skuntank, Togedemaru, Regirock, Kangaskhan, Alolaslash and Kangaskhan. At its peak, teams featured the holy trinity of PU – Mesprit, Skuntank and Gurdurr. Following Mesprit’s departure, Fighting types became much stronger and has become a crucial consideration in teambuilding. Current teams now feature a minimum of two fighting checks usually consisting of a combination of either Silvally-F, Jellicent, Oricorio, Victreebel or Mudsdale to effectively prepare for Gurdurr and ensure it does not find the opportunity to sweep.


In what main roles was Pokemon used?


Gurdurr’s primary role in the PU metagame is functioning as a Bulk Up sweeper that can defensively check a lot of top-tier threats. What made it so good at this role was the excellent combination of Drain Punch and Knock Off, the excellent natural bulk and the access to priority in Mach Punch that allowed it to deal with faster threats.

Uncommonly, Gurdurr could act solely as a defensive tank and replaces Bulk Up for Toxic to cripple common fighting checks like Jellicent or Ice Punch to lure in threats including Oricorio and Victreebel.


What caused it to have a significant impact?

Gurdurr’s impact is primarily due to its excellent ability to find opportunities to Bulk Up and sweep entire teams. It also has had great synergy with the top threats of PU including Mesprit and Skuntank in the past and with Fighting spam currently.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

In the past, Gurdurr was reliably dealt with Mesprit. With the departure of Mesprit, teams now use a combination consisting of a Musharna, Silvally-F, Jellicent, Oricorio, Victreebel or Mudsdale.
​

 

[ManOfMany]

Eelektross

 

[Rubicon]

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?
Weather teams had their chance to run, even down here in PU. Aurorus had the distinction of being one of two fully-evolved Pokemon who could bring on weather in an instant. Weather, no matter the tier, always has the power to drastically change what happens in a game. Sun and rain had two Pranksters to set up either weather, and sand had a distinctive surface type advantage, but not many standard weather setters could stand up to it on their own

In what main roles was Pokemon used?
In setting up hail, what it had over Abomasnow was being able to withstand fire (as uncommon as it was), and better options for attacking & supporting moves (having a large HP stat helps, too). What it would do after that would be up to speculation: either setting up rocks, wall-breaking with choice specs, or outpacing the slightly slower threats with a scarf set. Whatever the set, Freeze-Dry was always something to look out for when using beefy water-types

What caused it to have a significant impact?
First, it should be mentioned that Aurora Veil's banned down here all the way up to RU because of how Pokemon like Sandslash-Alola would just run away with a lot of shenanigans. Speaking of which, Aurorus made up one half of the hail core. Its other half, Sandslash-Alola, would take the turns it had to rush down. And now I feel like if I go on any further, I'd be talking about the core I was supposed to avoid. As far as teams go, you could expect to see one or two other ice-types on the same team so they can take advantage of that sweet chip damage without being negatively impacted themselves

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?
Fighting-types were the big one. Gurdurr & Hitmonchan could stop either end of the core with one (mach) punch, man. Eelektross could stomach anything with Assault Vest, and suck back health with either Giga Drain or Drain Punch. Opposing Sandslash-Alola of either an offensive or defensive build would have the power to stop its shenanigans cold to the point that the published defensive build recommends Sandslash-Alola having JUST enough speed to specifically outpace Aurorus in the hail. Bulky or fast steel-types (Metang & Togedemaru respectively) also put a damper on teams without the right tech

 

[MZ]

I've been told I could talk about a core. Namely the hail core of Aurorus/Sandslash-Alola
If that's true, I'd like to hold on to that

Someone may have said cores are ok, possibly even yogi idk, but I'm vetoing that because it's silly

 

[A Quail's Query]

Nominating Cinccino

What effect did Cinccino have on the metagame?

Cinccino was a centralizing revenge killer that made people use more passive, defensive Pokémon in an attempt to beat it. Cinccino did well against Pokémon that were weak defensively and slower than it. Cinccino was quick banned to PUBL in order to prevent it from being too centralizing as it encouraged unreliable checks that had only pure defensive strength that easily could be taken advantage of.

In what main roles was Cinccino used?

Cinccino’s main use was as a revenge killer, Cinccino excelled at doing this because it outsped the majority of the tier with a deadly 115 speed stat, and with skill link Cinccino could output large amounts of damage after getting in. Most Pokémon couldn't outspeed Cinccino, so it could be really powerful.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

It was able to outspeed its offensive checks and use U-Turn on its mostly passive, defensive counters, making it hard to check. Cinccino could easily beat many things if it could safely switch in, so it made a team so much better just by having it. Cinccino could even run King’s Rock since each independent strike of its multi-hit moves had a chance to flinch, making it frustrating to fight against for Pokémon that couldn't deal with its speed.

How did people deal with Cinccino in PU?

To deal with Cinccino, people ran Rocky Helmet users such as Mudsdale and Regirock, Rocky Helmet could do a lot of damage to Cinccino if it were to use Tail Slap since Cinccino would be losing 1/6th its health for each of Tail Slap's 5 hits with Skill Link. People used many defensive, but passive Pokémon, however these could be abused easily and Cinccino could use U-Turn in order to bring in a Pokémon that was better against them. People also utilized priority moves, with Pokémon like Gurdurr and its Mach Punch, to avoid the problem of outspeeding Cinccino.

 

[MZ]

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Skuntank was central to every playstyle since, no matter which of its many sets you chose to use, its solid typing, bulk, and other attributes allowed it to check a massive portion of the tier. It was the defining check for multiple top tier Pokemon, contributed to a long phase of PU where Pursuit trapping and Rocky Helmet+Aftermath chipping were absolutely key components to racking up chip damage, and didn't manage to fall out of supreme favor until very late into the generation. Skuntank defined what you did and didn't use, every team and individual Pokemon needed to consider how it would fare against Skuntank.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Skuntank was used as a Defogger, revenge killer, pursuit trapper, chip damage racker-upper, priority user, Grass/Psychic type check, but more importantly a Mesprit check. Physically and specially offensive with or without Defog were the norm for a very long time with a smattering of Choice Band and Choice Scarf sets, but when Skunk fell on hard times people turned to specially attacking Z-move, pinch berry, and Substitute+Toxic sets more frequently.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Skuntank just had every attribute a team might need. Mesprit was the most used and most diverse Pokemon in the tier for a very long time and Skuntank was by far its best counter. It could also compress priority, Defog, Pursuit, etc. etc. into one slot, we've been over this before. There simply became very little reason to not use Skuntank, as it could provide a million different little things for teams. Having a Skuntank meant you could now reliably chip a Stoutland for 50% just by sacking something or not need to consider building around random threats like Haunter or Absol, it could do whatever you wanted it to. There was no way Skuntank couldn't end up being top tier and one of the most influential Pokemon in the meta just given how many times you'd need to slap it on to check Mesprit. And again, Skuntank defined the massively important trends of Pursuit trapping, frequent Rocky Helmet usage, and the overall importance of chip damage in quickly wearing down teams that defined PU for most of 2017.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Skuntank had plenty of checks from Mudsdale to Gurdurr, they just didn't especially matter. In its heyday nothing really stopped Skuntank from doing what it wanted to. It wasn't an oppressive offensive force like Magmortar or Archeops, it didn't just run over teams when it got going, it was simply guaranteed to be able to Pursuit/Defog/chip things/whatever else it wanted to do because its utility roles were just that reliable. So while you could be perfectly fine vs. Skuntank and few teams really struggled from being significantly weak to it, that simply didn't diminish its presence.

 

[m3po]

Nominating Passimian

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

At its peak, Passimian was undeniably one of the most centralizing Pokemon in PU, given its ability to hit hard and force a lot of 50-50s with U-turn and Close Combat. Consequently, using Passimian was largely just a matter of clicking buttons, as one wrong prediction on the defending team's side could mean their demise. Passimian was a go-to Scarfer but its wallbreaking prowess with Choice Band could catch many people off-guard, allowing Passimian to tear through the rest of the team. It excelled against offensive teams, as many lacked a good switch-in to it. As such, Passimian fulfilled the role of a prominent revenge killer, offensive pivot, and wallbreaker.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Passimian @ Choice Band
Ability: Receiver
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Gunk Shot / Rock Slide

Passimian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Receiver
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant / Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Gunk Shot / Rock Slide

Passimian was an excellent user of both Choice Scarf and Choice Band, serving either as an effective pivot or wallbreaker. As a Scarfer, Passimian was able to outspeed and OHKO many primary offensive threats such as Pyroar, Lilligant, and Archeops, while simultaneously being able to pivot out with U-turn on often predictable switch-ins. As a CB user, it could effectively tear apart defensive cores with its STAB Close Combat and coverage options. Passimian was easily one of the, if not the best Fighting-type in PU during its reign, outclassing Primeape due to its greater bulk and access to Knock Off. Furthermore, since Passimian was usually capable of forcing switches, it could viably run Bulk Up + Z-Move to lure in its checks and nuke them.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Despite not sounding too impressive, Passimian's base 80 Speed was well above-average for wallbreakers in the tier, which consisted of slower threats like Drampa, Aggron, and Aurorus. That coupled with its outstanding base 120 Attack enabled Passimian to hit hard and fast. Choice Band Close Combat simply destroyed anything that didn't resist or wasn't immune to it, and coverage moves like Knock Off and Gunk Shot were able to take care of things that could deal with Close Combat. Moreover, Passimian's bulk was quite good for a Choice Scarf user as at -1, it was even able to take Choice Scarf Primeape's Close Combat. Since Passimian was equally proficient as a Scarfer and CB user, it was incredibly hard to predict which one it was when you saw it in team preview. This made playing around it fairly difficult. Most players had to run at least two Fighting checks/counters just in case, which made teambuilding exceptionally restrictive.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

The best answers to Choice Band Passimian were generally Weezing, defensive Altaria, and Ghost-types such as Spiritomb, Gourgeist-XL, or Palossand. Oftentimes, players were forced to run more than one Fighting check, due to the habit of Passimian being able to wear them down. Rocky Helmet damage and entry hazards was able to chip Passimian, given that it often switched out with U-turn. More offensive checks included Oricorio-Sensu, Mesprit, and Swanna, who were able to take on the Choice Scarf set to some degree. Other than that, faster threats such as Archeops and Specs Pyroar could comfortably handle the Choice Band set but clearly struggled against the Choice Scarf set.

 

[ShuckleDeath]

Nominating Alolan Sandslash



What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Alolan Sandslash by far is the most versatile Steel-type Pokemon in PU and arguably the best. Viably being able to preform multiple roles and having several different sets it is a Pokemon that should be both considered for and prepared for during team building. It's typing gives it several key resistances making it pretty splashable, most notably its resistance to Ice-type Pokemon gave teams an easy way of checking Aurorus. It's abilty to role compress Stealth Rock setting and Rapid Spin gave teams a way of easily controlling hazards against the very common Mesprit and in turn made Hidden Power Ground and Fighting very common coverage moves. The main way Alolan Sandslash has and continues to effect the metagame is by making Hail teams very strong really pushing that team archetype to a top style of competitive play.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Alolan Sandslah can preform many different roles all depending on what the team needs it to achieve. It can be used as a Normal-type check as well as resisting Grass-types and Flying-types, but defensively it acts as a solid Ice-type check most notably hard checking Aurorus. It has nice utility with access to both Stealth Rock and Rapid spin, both of which are commonly used on Alolan Sandslash. It is also a devastating cleaner under hail with excellent Ice and Ground-type coverage hitting the majority of the tier, and the combination of its coverage and high speed tier via Slush Rush absolutely tear unprepared teams apart.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Stat wise Alolan Sandslash is nothing special only sporting an above average defense. It's biggest impact would defiantly come from it's ability Slush Rush and the tier having access to two solid Snow Warning Pokemon in Aurorus and Abomasnow. Aurorus and Abomasnow both make excellent wallbreakers for Alolan Sandslash as well as setting hail for it, so that combination really made Hail core based teams very common and effective. To a lighter extent it's Steel typing gave the tier a very versatile Steel-type which made team building a bit easier at the time of its inception.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in PU?

Alolan Sandslash under Hail has a few common counters such as Jellicent and Gurdurr. It's typing leaves it very vulnerable to both Fighting-type priority moves so Pokemon like Hitmonchan and Poliwrath make nice checks to it as well. There are some fast Choice Scarf users that can outpace Alolan Sandslash under Hail like Scyther and Manectric, but those are kinda rare. Most teams use Fighting-type priority and/or Jellicent to counter Alolan Sandslash.

 

[yogi]

PhantomHurious gum KellyKafka PTF Many you have 12 hours to do yours please!

 

[N_Mareanie]

why's cinccino having an analysis even tho it was here for a week?

 

[yogi]

Ok so I originally wanted to give both Gum and Many a bit more time to finish their noms but they didn't. I added them anyways because Eelektross and Froslass 100% to be on this list. Ok so voting for round 1 now starts and will end on the 21st.

Number one has to of course be;

 

[tondas]

mesprit