CAP Sets Viability Rankings

[sparktrain]

Art by Sunfished
Idea from OU Sets Viability Rankings
Pokemon rankings from CAP Viability Rankings
Special thanks to cbrevan and Exclaimer for helping create the initial list

The goal of this thread is to individually rank the viable sets of each Pokemon that has a niche in the ORAS CAP metagame as a community. We will try to rank every viable set, so if you think a specific set should be added, please say so. Of course, you are also welcome to comment on the rankings of the individual sets that are already posted in the thread. Please discuss things freely!

Current Sets VR Council: cbrevan, Exclaimer, sparktrain

Before you post, please keep in mind these few rules:

1. Only Pokemon that are ranked on the current viability ranking thread will be ranked here. This is not the place for new nominations; however, all Pokemon in the main thread will be ranked here, no matter how small their niche.

2. A Pokemon's sets cannot be ranked higher than the Pokemon is on the main viability thread - i.e. Assault Vest Tornadus-T cannot be S rank here because Tornadus-T is only A+ rank there.

3. Same rules from the main VR also apply here; post intelligently and try to provide justification for any nominations you make. One-liners will be ignored.

ORAS CAP Sets Viability Rankings​

​

S Rank:

S Rank

Aurumoth
Illusion Quiver Dance: S
Tail Glow: S
No Guard Quiver Dance: A+
All-out Attaker: A
Dragon Dance: A-
Choice Scarf: B
Defensive: B-

Clefable
Calm Mind + Magic Guard: S
Magic Guard Support: A+
Unaware Cleric: A
Life Orb: B+
Calm Mind + Unaware: B-

Tomohawk
Physically Defensive: S
Offensive: S
Rain Dance: A
Baton Pass: B+
Sunny Day: C

A Rank:

A+ Rank

Azumarill
Choice Band: A+
Belly Drum: A
Assault Vest: A-

Cawmodore
Captain Belly Drum: A+
SubSalac: B

Charizard (Mega X)
Dragon Dance: A+
Bulky Will-O-Wisp: A-

Colossoil
Assault Vest: A+
Offensive LO/BlackGlasses: A-
Choice Scarf: B-

Crucibelle (Mega)
Coil: A+
All-out Attacker: A+

Cyclohm
Physically Defensive: A+
Offensive: A-
Choice Scarf: B

Diancie (Mega)
All-out Attacker: A+
Rock Polish: A-

Gardevoir (Mega)
Wallbreaker: A+

Keldeo
Offensive: A+
Scarf: A
Calm Mind: B+

Manaphy
Tail Glow + 3 Attacks: A+
Tail Glow + Rain Dance: A-
Calm Mind: C

Metagross (Mega)
All-out Attacker: A+
Rock Polish: B+

Scizor (Mega)
Offensive Swords Dance: A+
Bulky Swords Dance: A+
Defog: B+

Syclant
Life Orb Mixed Attacker: A+
Focus Sash Mixed Attacker: A+
Tail Glow: A
Swords Dance: B-

Tornadus-T
Assault Vest: A+
Life Orb: A+

A Rank

Altaria (Mega)
Offensive Dragon Dance: A
Specially-Based Attacker: B+
Defensive Dragon Dance: B

Charizard (Mega Y)
Wallbreaker: A

Ferrothorn
Utility: A

Garchomp
Rocky Helmet: A
Swords Dance: A-
Choice Scarf: B

Heatran
Specially Defensive: A
Offensive Trapper: A-
Choice Scarf: B

Jirachi
Choice Scarf: A
Specially Defensive: A
SubToxic: A-
Expert Belt: B-

Kyurem-B
Life Orb Wallbreaker: A
Choice Scarf: A-
Choice Band: B

Landorus-T
Offensive Stealth Rock: A
Defensive: A
Choice Scarf: A-
Double Dance: B+

Latios
Life Orb: A
Calm Mind: A-

Mollux
Choice Scarf: A
Specially Defensive: A
Life Orb: B
Calm Mind: B-

Pyroak
Utility: A
Swords Dance: D

Rotom-W
Physically Defensive: A
Choiced Attacker: C

Serperior
SubSeed: A
All-out Attacker: A

Skarmory
Physically Defensive: A
Specially Defensive: A-

Slowbro
Defensive Pivot: A

Stratagem
All-out Attacker: A
Calm Mind: B-

Talonflame
Swords Dance: A
Stallbreaker: A-
Stallbreaker (Bulk Up): B
Revenge Killer: B-

Volcanion
All-out Attacker: A
Assault Vest: B

Volkraken
Choice Scarf: A
Special Wallbreaker: A-

A- Rank

Bisharp
Swords Dance: A-
Pursuit: B

Fidgit
Persistent: A-
Utility: B+

Gliscor
SD Stallbreaker: A-
Taunt Stallbreaker: A-

Gyarados (Mega)
Dragon Dance: A-

Latias (Mega)
Calm Mind: A-
Tank: A-

Lopunny (Mega)
All-out Attacker: A-
Substitute: A-

Medicham (Mega)
Wallbreaker: A-

Necturna
Sticky Web: A-
Choice Band: B+
Physical Setup Sweeper: B+
Double Status: B
King's Shield: B-
Soak: D

Pinsir (Mega)
Swords Dance: A-

Slowbro (Mega)
Calm Mind: A-
Double Dance (Iron Defense + Calm Mind): B

Starmie
Offensive Spinner: A-
Defensive Spinner: B
Tanga Berry: S+

Thundurus
Nasty Plot: A-
Thunder Wave + 3 Attacks: A-
Defiant: C

Venusaur (Mega)
Defensive: A-
Offensive: A-

Weavile
All-out Attacker: A-
Swords Dance: A-
Choice Band: B

B Rank:

B+ Rank

Alakazam (Mega)
Special Attacker: B+

Breloom
Technician: B+
Poison Heal: C

Chansey
Chirpsy: B+

Crucibelle
Choice Scarf: B+
Choice Band: B+
Coil: B
Defensive Pivot: B-
Mold Breaker Lead: B-

Excadrill
Sand Rush: B+
Mold Breaker: B
Choice Scarf: B-

Gallade (Mega)
Swords Dance: B+

Gengar
Life Orb: B+
Stallbreaker: B
SubDisable: C

Heracross (Mega)
Swords Dance: B+

Hippowdon
Mixed Wall: B+

Klefki
Spikes: B+
Dual Screens: B-

Krilowatt
Specially Based All-out Attacker: B+
Physically Based All-out Attacker: B-
CounterCoat: C
Heart Swap: C

Manectric (Mega)
All-out Attacker: B+

Mew
Stallbreaker: B+
Defog: B-

Naviathan
Stallbreaker: B+
Offensive Calm Mind: B
Dragon Dance: C

Plasmanta
Offensive: B+
Defensive: C

Politoed
Drizzle: B+

Swampert (Mega)
Swift Swim Sweeper: B+

Terrakion
Choice Band: E (for Exclaimer), jk B+
Swords Dance: B-

Togekiss
Stallbreaker: B+

B Rank

Alakazam
Life Orb: B
Focus Sash: B-

Arghonaut
Bulk Up: B

Celebi
Baton Pass: B
Support: B
Offensive: B-

Crawdaunt
Swords Dance: B

Dragonite
Dragon Dance: B
Choice Band: B-

Gyarados
Bulky Dragon Dance: B

Kabutops
Swift Swim + Swords Dance: B

Kingdra
Swift Swim: B

Kitsunoh
Choice Scarf: B
Choice Band: B-
Defog: B-

Latias
Offensive Defog: B

Magnezone
Choice Scarf: B
Choice Specs: B-

Mamoswine
Wallbreaker: B

Omastar
Choice Specs: B
Shell Smash: B-

Scizor
Offensive Swords Dance: B
Choice Band: B-
Defog: C

Sharpedo (Mega)
Late-game Sweeper: B

Victini
Choice Band: B
Mixed Attacker: B-
Choice Scarf: C

Zapdos
Defog: B

B- Rank

Aerodactyl (Mega)
Physical Attacker: B-

Alomomola
Physically Defensive: B-
Specially Defensive: C

Amoonguss
Pivot: B-

Dragalge
Toxic Spikes: B-

Diggersby
Swords Dance: B-

Feraligatr
Swords Dance: B-
Dragon Dance: C

Malaconda
Specially Defensive Pivot (Sitrus Berry): B-
Lum Berry + Rest: C
Pursuit: C

Pidgeot (Mega)
Work Up Stallbreaker: B-
Special Attacker: C

Revenankh
Bulk Up: B-
Choice Band: C
Physically Defensive: C

Sylveon
Choice Specs: B-
Cleric: B-
Calm Mind + Baton Pass: C

Tyranitar
Support: B-
Choice Scarf: C
Choice Band: C

C Rank

C Rank:

C Rank

Azelf
Lead: C
Dual Screens: D

Blastoise (Mega)
Spinner: C

Camerupt (Mega)
All-out Attacker: C

Conkeldurr
Assault Vest: C
Life Orb: C

Cresselia
Defensive: C

Empoleon
Defog: C

Glalie (Mega)
Physical Attacker: C

Goodra
Special Attacker: C

Houndoom (Mega)
Nasty Plot: C

Infernape
Mixed Attacker: C
Lead: D

Kyurem
Exclaimer: C

Mandibuzz
Utility: C

Quagsire
Physically Defensive: C
Curse: D

Porygon2
Mixed Wall: C

Raikou
Choice Specs: C
Assault Vest: C
Calm Mind: C

Reuniclus
Choice Specs: C
Calm Mind: C

Sceptile (Mega)
All-out Attacker: C

Staraptor
Choice Band: C
Choice Scarf: D

Suicune
Calm Mind: C
Defensive: C

D Rank

D Rank:

D Rank

Abomasnow (Mega)
Obamasnow: D

Aggron (Mega)
Tank: D

Banette (Mega)
Prankster: D

Blissey
Use Chirpsy instead: D

Cloyster
Shell Smash: D

Entei
Choice Band: D

Hoopa
Nasty Plot: D

Rotom-H
Pivot: D

Sableye
Prankster: D

Voodoom
lol: D

 

[sparktrain]

Alright, we're open for discussion! Feel free to nominate sets to be shifted up or down in rank, or for new sets to be added. Nominations for an entire Pokemon to move up or down should be made in the main thread.

 

[Take Azelfie]

Gonna do a quick run down

Suicune - Defensive to C/D, really nice for fat balance that needs a phazer or bulky water NOT Weavile weak

Raikou's AV set is pretty terrible so I would drop it to D, the only use it has over Cychlohm is not having the dragon weaknesses, volt switch, and faster speed. Not to mention it doesn't have a strong offensive presence w/o specs or LO.

Azelf has a nice dual screens set, obviously screens isn't the best archetype but still useful, D rank.

Kril gets Heart Swap?

Choice Band Weavile should be added to B+/B, traps Lati@s much more reliably and avoids LO recoil which can be used if your hazard control isn't extremely reliable. Also CB Ice Shard is neat for picking off stuff like Auru and Talonflame.

Swords Dance isn't consistent enough like AoA to stay A- IMO but I have limited experience with it so.

SpDef Jirachi is really good in the current meta since it doesn't drag momentum and has a better match up versus Mag unlike other Steels. I find it to be something I go b@ck to often and it should be bumped to A

SubToxic is also a good set that I can use in a variety of builds like stall and balance and could probably fit into A/A-

Mega Gardevoir has a stall breaker set if I'm not mistaken that utilizes WoW or Taunt right? Not directly stating a placement here but maybe bringing it up for discussion

 

[snake]

Regarding Mega Gardevoir, I find Taunt and Thunder Wave to be its best fourth move options. Will-o-Wisp helps against physical attackers, but slowing them down cripples them worse. Taunt makes it a better stallbreaker as well as a great wallbreaker.

 

[cbrevan]

I hope you guys do realize that the wallbreaking set is Hyper Voice / Psyshock / Focus Blast / Taunt, WoW, Calm Mind,and whatever else, and that the stallbreaking set you're all talking about is literally that set.

 

[NitrousAcid]

I think the Choice Band Set on Crucibelle could get bumped up as its ability to take on Stall is really quite incredible. Almost nothing wants to switch in (Tomohawk needs to be at almost full health if it wants to check Banded Crucibelle properly). Of course Banded Belle doesn't matchup as well against Offense as Scarf does but with the recent bias towards more defensively oriented teams I think Band has a niche that not a lot of other Pokemon currently possess. On top of its incredible wall breaking abilities it can also soften up potential checks with U-Turn or simply Trick and cripple defense Pokemon, crippling them so severely they can no longer do their job effectively which can pave the way for other members of your team to break through. Crucibelle also has Regenerator which means that it can take on residual damage much better which is the way Stall teams generally get past wallbreakers.

TL;DR Bump Band Bell to B+. Matches up very well against Stall. Nothing likes switching into it, can U-Turn out, can Trick and doesn't care about residual damage as much due to Regenerator. Doesn't match-up as well against Offense, however.

calcs

252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Cyclohm: 222-262 (52.8 - 62.3%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Skarmory: 196-232 (58.6 - 69.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 232+ Def Mega Slowbro: 176-208 (44.6 - 52.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Jirachi: 174-204 (43 - 50.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle U-turn vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Jirachi: 108-128 (26.7 - 31.6%) -- 29.2% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
(Can weaken Jirachi first with U-Turn and either go into a Pursuit trapper or simply force it out with a Volkaken or something and then next time Head Smash 2HKOs)
252+ Atk Choice Band Crucibelle Head Smash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tomohawk: 268-316 (64.7 - 76.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

 

[snake]

Swords Dance: A
Specially Defensive: A-
Bulk Up: B
Revenge Killer: B-

Are Specially Defensive and Bulk Up two different sets? I'm under the impression that Specially Defensive utilizes Bulk Up. If it's a dispute between Taunt and Will-o-Wisp on the Specially Defensive set, I'm going to say that Taunt is better in the metagame at the present time.

And cbro yeah; I was just pointing out that Taunt makes it a better stallbreaker.

 

[Exclaimer]

For what they're used for, they're different sets. Specially Defensive Talonflame isn't a sweeper, it's more a utility check that can also revenge kill/taunt stall teams. Bulk Up is a late game sweeper/stallbreaker.

 

[snake]

Sorry, I'm just confused because the CAP Talonflame analysis has a Bulk Up set with a specially defensive spread that can utilize Taunt.

 

[sparktrain]

Updates

• Defensive Suicune added to C
• Dual Screens Azelf added to D
• Choice Band Weavile added to B
• Specially Defensive Jirachi A- to A
• SubToxic Jirachi added to A-
• Choice Band Crucibelle B to B+

I also had a brief talk with cbrevan regarding the nomenclature for Talonflame's specially defensive sets, just gonna paste the convo here:

Hide

[23:00] cbrevan: maybe just call them both stallbreaker maybe
[23:01] cbrevan: and just put (Bulk Up) w/ the bulk up set
[23:02] cbrevan: i think if a the changing of a single move is enough to change the use and execution of a set to differentiate it from the other set, we could accomodate it
[23:02] cbrevan: unlike something like garde
[23:02] cbrevan: where its the fourth moveslot doesn't actually change the function of the mon that much
[23:03] cbrevan: bulk up turns talon from a stallbreaker into a win con in its own right
[23:03] +sparktrain: ok
[23:03] +sparktrain: can i copy your last 6 messages as reasoning
[23:04] cbrevan: garde's fourth move doesn't really change the fact its primarily spamming attacks and click fourth move whenever appropiate
[23:04] cbrevan: sure

So we're renaming them both to Stallbreaker; the Bulk Up set will have (Bulk Up) next to it, while the non-Bulk Up set refers to the taunt/wisp/acro/roost variant.

There's some stuff I'm less sure about (Raikou in particular) so I'd like to see a bit more discussion before any changes are made.

 

[Arcade]

I don't find Coil Cruci worth of A+ rank tbh. Its extremely hard to pull off and has so many offensive and defensive checks and counters. It has its merits and can be deadly if used well, but I think it is really hard to put on a team and doesn't give much reward for the risk. i'd recommend A to A-

Raikou does a lot of things, but the prevalence of Colossoil forces it to not be run much. It faces competition from Clohm as a water check, although it has a niche in AV and CM. I think its best set overall is Calm Mind as it can check water, flying and opposing electric types but its generally hard to fit on a team. In short, Specs to C- rank as it gets ouclassed, but the other two I see as fine.