Resource SS UU Crown Tundra Viability Ranking Thread

[Insou]

Slowbro G B+ = B+
Slowbro G surely hates ground type and is undeniably outclassed by its normal counterpart; However, Galar bro still forms a solid core with either tapu bulu, tangrowth or mandibuzz as they are both able to tank zygarde, zarude, although with the exception of mandibuzz for band tapu bulu. I don't know why people are complaining about the necessity of predictions when it's literally a part of the game. Regardless, bold shuca berry cm set is still great, underperforms due to Zygarde's, swampert and aegislash's usage, but still manages to provide a stopgap to hatareene, primarina, and nihilegio's set up depending on the set. Meanwhile, AV on the other hand singlehandedly takes on meteor beam nihilegio and celesteela which ultimately forces it out due to its inability to break past it. Yes, slowking is overall a better wall but I don't think there shouldn't be a need to drop it from B+ or below B. If paired with tapu bulu, grassy terrain essentially enables it to tank a hit from its ground type threats with the exception of zydog while enabling it to pressure its offensive checks with the help of future sight, which forces a switch to a dark type like zarude, mandibuzz, krookodile or a defensive wall that can effectively take a hit.

Defensive Calcs

252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 240 SpD Assault Vest Slowbro-Galar: 129-153 (32.7 - 38.8%) -- 99.1% chance to 3HKO
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Power Gem vs. 252 HP / 240 SpD Assault Vest Slowbro-Galar: 129-153 (32.7 - 38.8%) -- 99.1% chance to 3HKO
252+ SpA Celesteela Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 240 SpD Assault Vest Slowbro-Galar: 84-99 (21.3 - 25.1%) -- 0% chance to 4HKO

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

-> UR

Scizor dropping would hurt as now it would give free turns to a very good mon in the tier. Giving free turns to it especially SD sets is not smth every team appreciates especially since most of its counters can get worn down and celebi being forced to click u-turn every time otherwise leaving itself vs scizor is just not what they want especially since hippo popped up as another rocker that beats most ground types in the tier especially excadrill which I believe phys def celebi counters and gets rocks up on them every time. I just do not believe with scizor in the picture that defensive celebi has a niche especially since counters that can always come in are basically limited to helmet SD coba, ID skarm, and yeah that is all i think

 

[Aqua Jet]

I may or may not add some noms in here later

-> UR

I disagree with this for a few reasons.

Scizor dropping would hurt as now it would give free turns to a very good mon in the tier. Giving free turns to it especially SD sets is not smth every team appreciates especially since most of its counters can get worn down and celebi being forced to click u-turn every time otherwise leaving itself vs scizor is just not what they want

You mention Scizor dropping as a reason to drop Celebi, but I think that Scizor dropping won't affect Celebi's overall viability. It won't affect Celebi's viability for the same reason that it won't affect Zarude's viability - while it is true that now Celebi is forced to run U-turn, Celebi can now lure in Scizor for teammates such as Salazzle, Rotom-Heat, and especially Moltres.

especially since hippo popped up as another rocker that beats most ground types in the tier especially excadrill which I believe phys def celebi counters and gets rocks up on them every time.

The rise of Hippowdon is another target for Celebi. While I will concede that Celebi does face competition as a Stealth Rocker from Hippowdon, unlike Hippowdon, Celebi has access to the coveted U-turn making it less of a momentum drain when trying to set Stealth Rock. It's also a bulky Grass-type that can counter Keldeo, which Hippowdon cannot do.


~~~
/ B+ -> Higher: The cycle continues! Keldeo benefits immensely from the shifts. Lower Slowking and Celebi usage means that Keldeo often has better mus, and it can threaten both of the new drops with its Water-type STAB. In addition, the good Keldeo set (Toxic / Flip Turn | Icy Wind / Surf | Hydro Pump / Secret Sword) can punish common switchins to it such as Assault Vest Tangrowth and Slowking. Coupled with the fact that Scizor threatens almost all of Keldeo's answers with Bullet Punch and U-turn, it is no wonder that Keldeo has been seeing a sharp rise in tournament usage.

B+ -> Lower: I know KM disagrees with me here, but Krookodile doesn't benefit at all from the shifts. Not only is Scizor back to threaten it with a super effective U-turn, but Hippowdon also takes away any real reason to use it as a bulky Stealth Rock setter. Krookodile still has a niche if you need a last Pokémon that is a Knock absorber and has access to Knock Off and Stealth Rock, but I do not feel that this justifies a B+ ranking. Choice Band is pretty bad as well since it sorta has 4MSS with Earthquake, Assurance, Knock Off, Close Combat, and Stone Edge. That, combined with the fact that Krookodile's speed tier isn't amazing doesn't really make it worth running in my opinion.

NEW -> S: The king has returned! I'd like to preface this by saying I acknowledge I have a heavy bias as a VoltTurn user. Seeing 63.33% usage in the most recent UUPL usage stats, Scizor is a force to be reckoned with and cannot be ignored in the builder. We have seen it warp the metagame around it with techs such as Incinerate Thundurus-Therian, who's only target is Scizor. Many teams have also started using Rocky Helmet Pokémon such as Amoonguss and Hippowdon because they can punish Swords Dance / Bullet Punch / U-turn / Roost Scizor. However, I think that the best set (and the one that we should rank) is Bullet Punch / U-turn / Knock Off / Roost. Being able to Knock Off Rocky Helmets allows it to simply U-turn out of answers without being punished. The best answer in the tier (Moltres) is extremely vulnerable to Knock Off, as losing its Heavy-Duty Boots means that its taking 50% damage from Stealth Rock upon switchin. It's extremely customizable, and can be EV'd to beat most whatever it needs to.

 

[Monky25]

With UUPL reaching its playoffs stage and several weeks passing since shifts, I felt now would be good enough to give some nominations based on the new metagame.

to A+: The king of SM UU has returned to Gen 8 UU for some mixed perspectives. You either think it’s broken or overhyped, or maybe you just think it's good. I find scizor amazing and versatile for building, but not excessively broken. Regardless of my POV, Scizor fills a lot of holes in building that lends to its splashability; steel type with recovery and priority means it checks plenty of staples like chansey, Azelf, mamoswine, zydog, and Nihilego. It can use SD variants to clean up, 3 attacks + roost sets for utility, or band for sheer wallbreaking, and it can mix it up a lot with both its item and EV spreads. Its splashability has led to some solid results already in UUPL despite being legal for only 2 weeks. It has flaws like a Steel being unable to check mons like Salamence or Hatterene and wants investment in both attack and bulk, plus SD sets can't fit knock and u-turn at once. Still, Scizor has cemented itself as a top Pokemon in the tier and should definitely be at least A+.

to A+: Hippowdon has grown to already become one of the best Pokemon in UU. A ground-type with recovery is a rare sight and a blessing for UU, being able to reliably check Thundurus-T (or at least force grass knot on it), Moltres, and Salamence. Beyond this, it takes on many physical threats reliably too with minimal investment, including Excadrill, Zygarde-10%, Lycanroc-D, and Swords Dance + King’s Shield Aegislash. It’s our best rocker or damn well near it, beating all forms of removal barring defog skarmory and the uncommon utility Starmie, through toxic and outlasting them. The chip from Sand Stream is rarely hindersome as well, and it pairs well with other defensive staples like Amoonguss to cover each other's weaknesses. A very splashable Pokemon and easily one of our best.

to A+: Both Amoonguss and Tangrowth have been insane this meta, reflecting high levels of consistency that should land them in A+. The former is a solid check to certain scizor variants and is a switch-in to the likes of Zarude, Keldeo, and Primarina. With the ability to spread spore, a disrespected status, and neuter enemy tangrowth amoonguss has landed itself on countless teams. Tangrowth is much more offensive oriented, always making progress with Knock off even with scizor in the tier. A study check to Thundurus-T as well, tang acts as great glue for teams against the likes of zydog and excadrill. It can’t be said anymore how good these two are, and it would be insane to keep them in A based on the levels of usage and dominance they’ve been seeing in UUPL.

to A: Throughout these last few weeks of UUPL Slowking has suffered a huge drop-off in usage and consistency. It doesn’t seem to wall too much anymore. Zarude beats it, so does Aegislash, Galarian Moltres, Hydreigon, Primarina, Scizor, and Thundurus. It feels reliant on being at full all the time to check the mons it wants to, and with entry hazards being more prevalent it’s quite hard to be a reliable check to zydog or energy ball azelf. Absolutely despises status as well. Slowking has fallen off from S tier status and isn’t close to A+ even, A is far better suited for it.

to A: Excadrill isn’t bad at all, it’s still very good, but doesn’t have that A+ consistency like my others do. Common threats like Zarude, Salamence, Tangrowth, and Hippowdon all hinder it, and it’s defensively lacking as a Steel which can strain teambuilding. It hasn’t been doing the best during UUPL lately, it’s currently #18 in usage which is most definitely not very indicative of an A+ Pokemon. Still amazing and probably the closest to A+ out of my A ranks, but I think it fits better here.

to A: Galarian Moltres is literally the most broken Pokemon in the tier and constrains building the most. Very few Pokemon that aren’t niche can reliably handle Goltres like Chansey, Primarina, Nihilego, and Celesteela, and even then the latter two can be flinched down. Dark + Flying is extremely potent offensive, and oftentimes Galarian Moltes needs just one Agility and Berserk boost to sweep through teams. It gets many setup opportunities against mons like Aegislash, Amoonguss, Tangrowth, Slowking, Zarude, Mandibuzz, even Salamence and Azelf. It’s quite high or miss though, relying on hurricanes at times, meaning a sweep can be cut short, but one of the scariest threats in the metagame should definitely be recognized at A rank.

to A: Aegislash and Slowking usage drop-off=profit. Very splashable right now as a rocker and offensive check to Scizor. Great counter to Zarude and Mandibuzz and excellent pivot, plus some variations can make Amoonguss setup fodder like SD safety goggles. Gets insane amounts of usage this UUPL, even during Aegislash’s peak, showing how splashable and useful it is to many teams. I really think this should rise.

to A-: Keldeo is actually really really potent right now. Slowking is on a decline, and a new partner in scizor is great for taking on hindersome Grass-types. Both Specs and Pivot Toxic sets are very potent, being a deadly wallbreaker or pivot to outlast checks live AV Tangrowth. It’s ability to be a potent offensive threat that resists bullet punch is great, and it’s increased usage these last 2 weeks of UUPL attest to that. It still has flaws but Keldeo is deserving to be in the A ranks.

to A-: I think Washer has really come around as of late. Great counter to Moltres, Skarmory, and Celesteela plus great check to scizor, mamoswine, gyarados, and hippo has made washer stand out as an offensive pivot on BO teams. Its defensive utility gives it a good niche over thundurus and it pairs excellently with its own scizor teammate for strong momentum cores. Def good enough to rejoin the A ranks.

to A-: Choice Scarf Diggersby is very strong right now. It’s one of two not garbage scarfers, so it finds itself on many teams as speed control. It hits like a truck and is a great pivot to bring in teammates against steels and flying types. Not much to say really, anyone who has been keeping up with the tier knows how good Diggersby is and why it should go to A-.

to A-: Still a great mon but giving Galarian Moltres free setup and having to watch its health around scizor makes Azelf a tad bit worse than before, warranting a slight drop. I wouldn’t be surprised to bump it backup if Goltres gets banned though, still one of our fastest and between psychic, flamethrower, energy ball, and U-turn it can make insane progress.

to B-: I’m tired of the Krookodile talk in all honesty but I’ll explain why I’m dropping it since it’s going down two whole subranks. I haven’t found a good reason to use Krookodile at all, I find other rockers like Nihilego, chansey, swampert, cobalion, excadrill, and Hippowdon all better because of traits like momentum, checking zarude, beating thundurus, or extra utility with rapid spin. As a dark it’s mainly outclassed by zarude because of its bulk and typing and utility. Scarf sets are mainly inferior to hydra because of a lack of pivoting, and Band sets are outclassed by Zygarde-10% because of the spammability thousand arrows have. It has a niche as a ghost resist with rocks + Knock off and taunt, but it hasn’t been shown in practice, getting little usage in UUPL lately. It most definitely should not be on par with great B+ mons like Gyarados, Rotom-W, or Galarian Slowbro, and even worse than lower tiered mons like Hatterene and Nidoking.

to B+ and B: Both the Nidos have been surging in UU for quite some time. We all forgot they basically have no switch-ins apart from Chansey which has been declining for some time. Nidoking’s best set is Substitute + 3 attacks, prediction gets eased so much better as now you can take a hit and fire back. Meanwhile, Nidoqueen should jump straight from UR all the way to B as it has become a potent rocker on teams that need offensive firepower lately. I used to be a hater but she’s good, you get to run a fair bit of bulk since you only want to creep aegi or scizor now. It has its pros over other rockers like Nihilego with the better scizor MU. They’re both not insane, hippo dropping adds a new wall and they have to consider fire coverage a lot more for scizor, but still solid and fit well in the B ranks.

to B: Raikou is good! Despite being a weaker thundurus it makes it up with speed for a fast volt switch. Resists Bullet Punch too, and can form potent cores of it + keldeo + scizor. SubCm has merits too with more Amoonguss and less AV tang. Not a bad Pokemon at all, B is a nice fit for it.

to C: Unfortunately this poor rose has wilted. Despite proving the rare spikes, roserade struggles at checking threats the other grasses would like thundurus, scizor, and keldeo. Those holes it leaves are very huge to ignore, and it hasn’t been meaningfully used outside of a sample team. It still should be ranked, though barely clings on to a niche.

to UR: With the additions of Scizor and Hippowdon, lots of niche Pokemon have been pushed out. Moreover, with UUPL going on some Pokemon have just not been used. I think it’s a great chance for a VR cleanup. Charizard was a niche option on sun but it just wasn’t even used lol, too much support needed against rockers. With sun teams declining because of hippo dropping, I think this already niche option should get the boot. Gardevior hates Sczior and is just a worse azelf, the only real reason it stuck on is because it can revenge kill venusaur in sun who was trending, but with sun declining its already miniscule niche is gone. Polteageist faces huge competition on Hyper offense teams already and is a pretty inconsistent fish. Lots of darks like mandibuzz, hydreigon, zarude, and goltres stop sweeps and a chip vulnerability means it struggles to safely set up. Hasn’t been used relevantly either. Nobody uses Mantine, it has its niches but you’d think out of 200+ SS UUPL games it’d be used once, but nope nobody uses Mantine. Galarian Weezing faces heavy competition on stall teams to stay ranked. Too many offensive threats means so much to cover in 6 slots, and it’s already been overshadowed by skarmory and salamence as defoggers on stall. Scizor dropping was the final nail in the coffin, as its vulnerability makes it less preferred over other conk answer + defoggers like Salamence. Diancie struggles to distinguish itself from all the other rockers, gets worn down too easily and doesn’t check much of note that others cannot barring Galarian Moltres, but then again you’re using Diancie. I’d rather just run Nihilego and take the worse MU. Centiskorch was used, but now it isn’t. Slow wallbreakers with limited defensive utility don’t add much in this offensive meta, even nukes like conkeldurr and azumarill struggle to break out. It has a limited niche and doesn’t reflect that in practice at all.

 

[Totomon]

With some weeks passed since we got our shiny new drops I think that now I can give some nominations of both old and new.

to S: Starting off strong w this one, I was a bit hesitant at first but I genuinely believe that Scizor is THE best pokemon in the tier at the moment. Scizor can literally do anything you want a mon to do, the role compression it brings in the threats it checks (immense progress maker tang, chansey, nihilego, etc), being a pseudo-speed control and immense sweeping capabilities there isn't a mu where sciz cant do something (with some easy ev'ng you can easily beat some of your fariler switching in Excadrill and Cobalion btw), all of makes this mon so incredibly splashable. And all of this can be achieved with literally only one set, bulky SD + Knock that is (which IMO is the best set and potentially broken), The mon just has so many room for experimentation to accommodate itself in any kind of team, 3 atks for teams that just want its utility, SD max atk for HO and even some things like Defog or Curse can be potentially crazy. The utility it brings is miles above what aegislash did and it can enable or be enabled by so many threats, this mon immediately shifts the viability of many others due to its specific set of exploitable weaknesses.

Because we now have scizgod in uu I think the current S ranks need to accommodate.

and to A+: Dont get me wrong these two are still top 6 mons in my mind, but scizor is so incredibly good that its gotta be in its own league, even so these two specifically have to compete against sciz in various aspects which is why I am not putting them in S-. Mainly as a offensive-defensive bulky steel and offensive pivot, because of this overlap they cant fit very well in the same teams as the king which does lower their viability for me, don't be fooled as this comparisons arent 1 to 1 and they got their clear cut advantages making them still top threats.

to A: Slowking on the other hand has been getting worse for a while thanks to various other reasons, I am pretty much seconding what Monky said above me but increased usage of Hydreigon and Goltres and other threats really puts it down a peg. Not to mention it is a bulky water that cannot check sciz and doesn't particularly enjoy hippo's presence which forces so much chip into it as it alr lives hits by the skin of its teeth.

to A: The hippo is a good mon that's for sure, but I am not sure it should be in A+ when the mon really restricts the way you can build with it thanks to the chip it forces unto a lot of mons with its sand and the fact that it cant really deviate from standard rocks + toxic due to it having so much value over temporarily screwing with sciz or some other coverage. Your best set being bait for so many good mons like rude, sciz, skarm etc is a bit annoying but just being a ground with reliable recovery that isnt extremely passive is enough to be one of the better A ranks imo.

to A-: The dog warrants a slight drop as completely hates these new drops, a complete stonewall and a priority user which isn't vulnerable to any of your coverage moves should be very self explanatory, not to mention Tangrowth has been completely dominating usage charts for a while, SD + KS Aegislash is pretty much shit right now which isn't very good as this mon just loved it as a partner, not dropping further as hippo needs significant defense evs to tank and is big Toxic bait while sciz can be a good partner and is 2hko by arrows unless its almost max def.

to B+: Honestly this mon is kinda cracked, it has been getting some decent usage in UUPL for a mon so low in the rankings and its potential as a wincon I feel is better than ever right now, SD Aegislash has died down, You can abuse the very common SD scizor and non whirlwind hippo and an incredibly high nihilego usage. Moltres getting a bit better is defo annoying but regi can pull thru that one.(rocks sets also have some nice utility and bulk as a pure steel type).

to B: This has been a long time coming tbh, for a while Ive felt that Lycan is pretty much just a worse Zydog but this shifts cement that harder than ever. yada yada hippo and scizor own yada yada, the drawbacks of killing yourself and the awkward speed tier below the 115's is very bad atm IMO. The only real reason to use this dog is the superior HO matchup, which in its favor is trending a bit, which makes me think that just a drop to B+ is fine enough but this dog also dislikes the mons which will be more common thanks to the drops (see skarmory, washer, nidoking)

to B: Cloyster should definitely be ranked, it has shown itself in both UUPL and UUFPL as a potent sweeper in HO teams. The ability to easily setup in the face of otherwise incredibly big threats to the style in Zygarde, Mamoswine and Hippowdon is a niche very hard to replace. Not to mention its good matchup against opposing leads of HO. It makes very good pairings with Sciz and Celesteela due to the damage it forces on their counters.

to C: Reuni kinda sucks very hard right now in this new scizeity that we live in, standard CM sets are absolutely trash right now (me when I cant win) and the niche of AV sets to fulfill just isn't there when we have so many other superior special walls. However I don't think the mon is UR worthy as trick sticky barb sets and 3atk + LO reuni have some tricks up their sleeves. Personally Ive been using 3atk lorb the most and the mon does in fact have 0 switchins, its just a slow alakazam. Even scizor can get overwhelmed from high health with some spikes + rocks + a meaty fblast. The fact that it isn't just a generic frail wallbreaker and it actually has defensive utility makes it have a unique niche, magic guard makes it pair rly well with Hippo and while you are forced to click terrible fblast to break thru mandi/sciz and are forced into a lot of recovers cus u are not THAT bulky the mon has a fine niche.

Edit: I forgot one nom I really wanted to make oops
to UR: The C ranks at the moment are so incredibly bloated and many should be UR IMO. But to lass itself, its role as a spikes lead in HO is completely outclassed by Scolipede with its better offensive presence, endeavor and especially speed boost. The theoretical niches that lass has over scoli (see taunt, icy wind and DBond) are not only negligible but its trying to fit so much role compression into a mediocre mon to the point you cant even do your main job properly. There isn't a realistic way to negate hazards, ease setup, get spikes and take a mon with you.

Other mons I don't really wanna elaborate much is that we should raise Crobat and lower sun (Tork, Venu). Crobats just a good pivot thas it, having a new steel that doesn't resist flying is hype. Sun gets much more volatile with Hippo in the tier and the big sand mon really kills the momentum this kinda teams want to have
Thats all of the new noms I wanna propose but I want to say that I wanna second the nominations of Keldeo, Rotom-Wash, Excadrill, Krookodile, Nidoking, Polteageist, Diggersby and Diancie that were made above me.

 

[dingbat]

watched quite a few uupl/open/uufpl/etc. games to know what the hell is going on here, so here we go.

should stay in S. its offensive sets have certainly been less popular lately, but if there's one thing that it arguably does best in this meta, it's adjust to current meta trends, as shit like subtoxic has become super potent again with fat teams on the uprise. still a broken pkmn
to B- rank S-. sdbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbpknockbp
to A+. it can afford to run a lot more spdef this gen since the physical breakers aren't nearly as strong as they were.
to A+. it's on par with the stuff there now
to A+. broken pkmn
to A. regen is still broken but it gets taken advantage of more these days
to A. specs go brrrr
to B+/A-. this mon is so unbelievably out of place lol get that shit outta B-.
to B+. good fast doge
to B. got absolutely assfucked by the shift, and its lack of usage reflects that.
to B-/B. still does its job pretty well despite fatmons plotting a takeover.

 

[haunted paper]

Scizor to S- or S rank makes a lot of sense. The fact that hidden powers aren't a thing really helped this mon A LOT this gen. No HP fire means mons like Starmie, Roserade, Amoonguss and many other special attackers can't OHKO it with pure ease. In fact, it's hard to OHKO this mon period. Fire mons or any mons with fire coverage get a pretty big boon in viability on teams because of this. Even more so, this mon needs only a decent amount of EVs in bulk to get away with living random big hits, which comes in clutch for revenge killing or stalling. What's also really good on this mon, aside from knock +u-turn, is quick attack. It really helps nab some kills against faster threats like Rotom-W, Raikou, Darm, and Moltres (some need chip but whatever). The fact that it can't be toxic'd is also really clutch when coming up against Hippo and Aegi. This mon alone has gotten so many people thinking about a lot of mons needing deranks. It's actually kind of insane how powerful Scizor is this gen. I seriously think it got better thanks to no hidden powers and heavy-duty boots.

Agree w/Krookodile to B- - Yeah, this mon is getting outclassed heavily in the ground typing department thanks to Hippowdon and Excadrill. Choice Scarf ground type with knock is decent and will always be decent, so Krook certainly isn't bad by any means. Krook always had problems and mons that do its jobs better have slowly trickled down to UU. Now, it's safe to say this mon is decent.

Azelf to A+- This mon has everything it needs to be near the top place as an attacker: a colorful movepool that hits all top tanks/walls, solid speed tier, really good stats, has access to U-Turn, and a decent enough bulk to not get OHKO'd by priority hits. This mon is crazy good.

Lycanroc-Dusk stay in A- - This mon is the best cleaner thanks to a very good priority move, colorful movepool, and a great ability that makes it all better. True, it doesn't outspeed base 115s but it doesn't need to when it has accelrock. If this suspect test has proven anything, it's that Lycanroc-D still has a solid niche. Plus, accelrock comes in clutch against Salamence, fast sun abusers, gyarados, marowak-a under trick room, and scarf Rotom-Heat and Togekiss. It may not have much usage in tours, but it certainly does on ladder for these reasons and more.

Venusaur to B+ or higher - In or out of the sun, this mon is crazy good (also keep it on drought teams, I just meant that even if Hippo comes in with sand, it can still wreak havoc thanks to giga drain and weather ball). It's hard to revenge kill and super annoying to keep in check.

Stakataka to Unranked - I've tried to use this mon a lot and it just doesn't work most of the time. Choice band, trick room, air balloon, meh... It's too bad because it certainly looks good on paper. Too bad the meta is not kind to it. Hippo keeps it in check, mach punch conk, the rotoms can pivot around its moves, tangrowth and cobalion can check it pretty well, and skarm can keep it in check if its not running heat crash. It's just hard to net a KO with this mon.

 

[hariyana grande]

S its insane. best mon in the tier. quit wasting ur time with 3 attacks, bulky sd is nuts. ho teams with life orb sets and quick attack+bp are terrifying too

S also insane. SO many teams are disrespecting it right now bc everyone is on the scizor train. u can literally just lead with sub tox and 6-0 like 80% of teams rn. its usage is lower so it doesnt feel that oppressive, but when people start abusing it again idk, gl

A+/S-(?) prob the 3rd best mon imo right now, its just able to sit on so much shit and sand chip can be incredibly value in wearing down stuff like thunderus/azelf/other shit with no recovery, it obviously doesnt have too much variety but its just an insane rocker with some defensive utility that we desperately needed

A+ its still a great mon rn, but not on the level of scizor/aegi. tbh, choice band is prob something that people should try more, as most teams' zarude answer is amoong/mence/skarm, which darkest lariat can all 2hko after some chip. HDB is ofc still fine as well

A/A- yeah idk im pretty low on drill, it resists nihilegos stabs but dies to knock off, and really doesnt appreciate any of the stuff thats getting an uptick in usage. its best set is prob some toxic utility stuff since hippo is another of the plenty mons that can blank its moves, but it's still the best spinner with all this being said. (plz dont waste ur time with sand rush its ass)

A- dont think celesteela is as obnoxious right now as it was before. knock off is everywhere, and while it can sit on some stuff, it doesnt really beat them, like hippo/physdef rest talk prim

to B/B- worst steel type we have in uu. comes in on so little with so much knock off being around and just being weak to a ton of common attacks. idk i think this mon sucks LOL

ill just echo some other stuff:

to A-: gmolt being as popular as ever not really helping it, prob goes back to A when it leaves, but taking like 55 from scizor bp doesn't help it tbh

keep both and at A: there's a trade off when using these for sure right now, amoong annoys scizor a bit more, tang checks zygarde better, av tang and amoong are basically checking the same things though, so ur basically trading off spore for knock. amoong is a better knock absorber though

to A: ngl i thought it was in A already, although i do think sd sets are way better than volt switch so u can actually threaten scizor when u switch into it

Lycanroc, Zydog, Slowking: drop them all (slowking still a good mon though)

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

-> A+

It also has nothing to do with sand... since I do not prefer to use sand stream to wear down my teammates and instead use sand force. THis pokemon has an insane defensive profile and with RH it punishes rachi, scizor, mandibuzz, and more u-turning on it and chipping themselves into range of other teammates... As a result of hippo as well I have seen a surge in GK thundy-t which means pokemon that are otherwise weak to focus blast thundy-t like zarude, hydreigon, and exca are the biggest 3 who benefit from the drop in FB. Setting up stealth rocks and threatening every fogger with toxic is smth big as it means teammates who can abuse that such as scizor abusing a toxic'ed salamence, zygarde-10% abusing a poisoned mandibuzz, and CB azu appreciating rotom-w being weakened by toxic. It just does so much for every team and with recovery it is a great defensive wall to have. Any higher would also be unrealistic as while its not that passive it is still abusable by setups sweepers such as BD azu, Lum dd gyara, moltres-g, air balloon sD aegi, bulky SD sciz, NP thundy-t which makes it so you have to support hippo a lot to make sure that is not going to happen

-> A

Gains a great partner in hippo and is a valuable pokemon who can counter scizor and abuse it to get free spikes up. Thundy-t is less of a threat considering how much more splashable amoonguss and tangrowth are and they can pressure thundy-t. Why rise it to A now? cuz i feel like how valuable spikes are now esp with scizor in the tier and skarmory is a full counter who can abuse it and provide momentum for its team unlike celesteela who gets chipped slowly

 

[justdrew]

The SS UU VR (S, S-, A+, A & A-)
According to Drew
I highlighted the Pokemon I picked to rise and drop in green and red.

S Rank

Aegislash

Scizor

To be brief these are meta defining Pokemon that have crazy strength and set variation that make them busted. Not broken or ban worthy, but definitely very good.

S- Rank

Amoonguss

Tangrowth

So with Scizor in the tier and Aegislash running Close Combat so much I'm not backing Zarude and Slowking in S- but either Amoonguss or Tangrowth is on 90% of bulky offense teams and provide necessary checks to the scary meta threats like Primarina, Thundurus, Keldeo, Zygarde, and Aegislash (Amoonguss explicitly for Scizor). I just think they're so common and essential to the meta that they deserve S-, however I know plenty of people with disagree.

A+ Rank

Zygarde-10%

Excadrill

Salamence

Thundurus-T

Primarina

Slowking

Zarude

Hippowdon

Mandibuzz

There's too many Pokemon to talk about here but Thundurus is still amazing and Slowking and Zarude aren't as good with Scizor around frankly and Amoonguss and Tangrowth are better as Grass-types/Regenerator Pokemon. Primarina is still very good and Hippo is the best Ground-type but it's not good enough for S-, sorry people. Also Mandibuzz is amazing and honestly I wouldn't mind Skarmory being up here now. Zygarde is also pivotal as a Ground-type and as speed control and breaking power in the meta. Maybe it's a little broken because it is easily able to wear down walls overtime but it definitely should sit in A+, or maybe even S-, because it's a monster.

A Rank

Azelf

Celesteela

Chansey

Mamoswine

Moltres

Nihilego

Cobalion

Skarmory

Cobalion and Skarmory deserve the rise as Steel-types and checks to Scizor. Cobalion is so good with Swords Dance and Stealth Rock right now and Skarmory is in my opinion the most consistent Spike setter/Defogger.

A- Rank

Keldeo

Conkeldurr

Hydreigon

Tentacruel

Swampert

Entei

Raikou

Suicune

Keldeo and legendary cats are all insane. Suicune is so easily able to set up on teams if it is VinCune. Raikou is so amazing as additional speed in the tier and an amazing pivot. And Entei has no switch ins especially with a little less Slowking usage; however a burn + Rocks + Crunch is a way of breaking through. Also resisting Bullet Punch and being fast is just nice tbh. While these Pokemon likely aren't actually A-, I just wanted to comment that they are very good and deserve to rise.

C Rank

Lycanroc-D

I'd rather eat a rug than use this Pokemon. Just wanted to toss this out here. It breaks nothing, it now dies to Scizor, and it has an ugly sprite. This is a joke, but Lycanroc does need to drop.

I Could Be Banned

Moltres-Galar

Please ban it.

And that's the VR according to Drew. Thank you!

 

[Boooo_Yah]

With some weeks passed since we got our shiny new drops I think that now I can give some nominations of both old and new.

to S: Starting off strong w this one, I was a bit hesitant at first but I genuinely believe that Scizor is THE best pokemon in the tier at the moment. Scizor can literally do anything you want a mon to do, the role compression it brings in the threats it checks (immense progress maker tang, chansey, nihilego, etc), being a pseudo-speed control and immense sweeping capabilities there isn't a mu where sciz cant do something (with some easy ev'ng you can easily beat some of your fariler switching in Excadrill and Cobalion btw), all of makes this mon so incredibly splashable. And all of this can be achieved with literally only one set, bulky SD + Knock that is (which IMO is the best set and potentially broken), The mon just has so many room for experimentation to accommodate itself in any kind of team, 3 atks for teams that just want its utility, SD max atk for HO and even some things like Defog or Curse can be potentially crazy. The utility it brings is miles above what aegislash did and it can enable or be enabled by so many threats, this mon immediately shifts the viability of many others due to its specific set of exploitable weaknesses.

Because we now have scizgod in uu I think the current S ranks need to accommodate.

and to A+: Dont get me wrong these two are still top 6 mons in my mind, but scizor is so incredibly good that its gotta be in its own league, even so these two specifically have to compete against sciz in various aspects which is why I am not putting them in S-. Mainly as a offensive-defensive bulky steel and offensive pivot, because of this overlap they cant fit very well in the same teams as the king which does lower their viability for me, don't be fooled as this comparisons arent 1 to 1 and they got their clear cut advantages making them still top threats.

to A: Slowking on the other hand has been getting worse for a while thanks to various other reasons, I am pretty much seconding what Monky said above me but increased usage of Hydreigon and Goltres and other threats really puts it down a peg. Not to mention it is a bulky water that cannot check sciz and doesn't particularly enjoy hippo's presence which forces so much chip into it as it alr lives hits by the skin of its teeth.

to A: The hippo is a good mon that's for sure, but I am not sure it should be in A+ when the mon really restricts the way you can build with it thanks to the chip it forces unto a lot of mons with its sand and the fact that it cant really deviate from standard rocks + toxic due to it having so much value over temporarily screwing with sciz or some other coverage. Your best set being bait for so many good mons like rude, sciz, skarm etc is a bit annoying but just being a ground with reliable recovery that isnt extremely passive is enough to be one of the better A ranks imo.

to A-: The dog warrants a slight drop as completely hates these new drops, a complete stonewall and a priority user which isn't vulnerable to any of your coverage moves should be very self explanatory, not to mention Tangrowth has been completely dominating usage charts for a while, SD + KS Aegislash is pretty much shit right now which isn't very good as this mon just loved it as a partner, not dropping further as hippo needs significant defense evs to tank and is big Toxic bait while sciz can be a good partner and is 2hko by arrows unless its almost max def.

to B+: Honestly this mon is kinda cracked, it has been getting some decent usage in UUPL for a mon so low in the rankings and its potential as a wincon I feel is better than ever right now, SD Aegislash has died down, You can abuse the very common SD scizor and non whirlwind hippo and an incredibly high nihilego usage. Moltres getting a bit better is defo annoying but regi can pull thru that one.(rocks sets also have some nice utility and bulk as a pure steel type).

to B: This has been a long time coming tbh, for a while Ive felt that Lycan is pretty much just a worse Zydog but this shifts cement that harder than ever. yada yada hippo and scizor own yada yada, the drawbacks of killing yourself and the awkward speed tier below the 115's is very bad atm IMO. The only real reason to use this dog is the superior HO matchup, which in its favor is trending a bit, which makes me think that just a drop to B+ is fine enough but this dog also dislikes the mons which will be more common thanks to the drops (see skarmory, washer, nidoking)

to B: Cloyster should definitely be ranked, it has shown itself in both UUPL and UUFPL as a potent sweeper in HO teams. The ability to easily setup in the face of otherwise incredibly big threats to the style in Zygarde, Mamoswine and Hippowdon is a niche very hard to replace. Not to mention its good matchup against opposing leads of HO. It makes very good pairings with Sciz and Celesteela due to the damage it forces on their counters.

to C: Reuni kinda sucks very hard right now in this new scizeity that we live in, standard CM sets are absolutely trash right now (me when I cant win) and the niche of AV sets to fulfill just isn't there when we have so many other superior special walls. However I don't think the mon is UR worthy as trick sticky barb sets and 3atk + LO reuni have some tricks up their sleeves. Personally Ive been using 3atk lorb the most and the mon does in fact have 0 switchins, its just a slow alakazam. Even scizor can get overwhelmed from high health with some spikes + rocks + a meaty fblast. The fact that it isn't just a generic frail wallbreaker and it actually has defensive utility makes it have a unique niche, magic guard makes it pair rly well with Hippo and while you are forced to click terrible fblast to break thru mandi/sciz and are forced into a lot of recovers cus u are not THAT bulky the mon has a fine niche.

Edit: I forgot one nom I really wanted to make oops
to UR: The C ranks at the moment are so incredibly bloated and many should be UR IMO. But to lass itself, its role as a spikes lead in HO is completely outclassed by Scolipede with its better offensive presence, endeavor and especially speed boost. The theoretical niches that lass has over scoli (see taunt, icy wind and DBond) are not only negligible but its trying to fit so much role compression into a mediocre mon to the point you cant even do your main job properly. There isn't a realistic way to negate hazards, ease setup, get spikes and take a mon with you.

Other mons I don't really wanna elaborate much is that we should raise Crobat and lower sun (Tork, Venu). Crobats just a good pivot thas it, having a new steel that doesn't resist flying is hype. Sun gets much more volatile with Hippo in the tier and the big sand mon really kills the momentum this kinda teams want to have
Thats all of the new noms I wanna propose but I want to say that I wanna second the nominations of Keldeo, Rotom-Wash, Excadrill, Krookodile, Nidoking, Polteageist, Diggersby and Diancie that were made above me.

I personally agree with these rankings but I moreso want to focus more on Cloyster.

Cloyster from UR -> B-/B

Cloyster is a pearl in this tier covered in rocks (pun intended), and it has proven to me how potent this Pokemon can be in teambuilding. First off, as Totomon said, Cloyster is very potent in HO teams, because unlike other Shell Smash sweepers or most sweepers in general, it has great offensive coverage. If you want to run it in HO, you can afford to run Icicle Spear, Rock Blast, and Hydro Pump, mainly since you don't need priority because you're already fast. It has good set-up opportunities vs some potent physical attackers in the tier due to its 180 Base Defense. Moreover, I've seen it used in Sun teams and it's a great sweeper in Sun, as you nearly have un-resistible coverage in Icicicle Spear, Rock Blast, and Weather Ball. Weather Ball is great for primarily Celesteela, Skarmory, Aegislash, and other Steel types in the tier that give Cloyster trouble.

Here's my team that Cloyster is featured in.: https://pokepast.es/40377a0338ecd41d

Calc for Celesteela:

Defensive Variant: +2 4 SpA Cloyster Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela in Sun: 272-320 (68.3 - 80.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

Autotomize Variant:

+2 4 SpA Cloyster Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Celesteela in Sun: 374-440 (111.6 - 131.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Calc for Aegislash:

+2 4 SpA Cloyster Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Aegislash-Shield in Sun: 284-336 (87.6 - 103.7%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock

The reason why I used Celesteela is that it's one of the tankiest relevant UU pokemon atm. It 2HKO's the defensive variant which shows how menacing this set can be. Of course, there is a problem with Cloyster in Sun, primarily when Sun dies down, it has nothing for the Steel types who'd normally give Cloyster a tough time and how niche it can be when other sun sweepers can do a better job than it. But again, this is not to say how good this Pokemon can be under sun, and as Totomon said, it's potent in HO teams.

In conclusion, this Pokemon deserves a ranking in the B-/B tier, as it happens to be one of the best Shell Smash sweepers in the tier, and one of the best sweepers to add in HO.

Edit: Forgot to include information regarding Aegislash, another top tier Steel mon in UU.

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

Registeel -> B+ / A-

I hate this pokemon on ladder.. its full of shit and can win on preview against many teams and that is exactly why its good ... it can ID and amnesia and esp on many pokemon that cant threaten it at all such as special mence, scarf drei, rest talk moltres-g, zarude and diggersby locked into bodyslam and passive pokemon such as slowking, rest talk prim, 3 attacks sciz, and many more. Once it gets going it is hard to stop without having smth that can hit it hard on the field right away and counterplay such as WW only work if its not the last mon out. Many pokemon do not carry taunt and haze has limited distribution and only pokemon such as quagsire and tenta if they even decide to use it. Trick is limited and can be baited out easily and considering that the person using the trick has to predict it several times since it can easily come in over the course of the match which means one wrong misprediction means you lose potential your sole counterplay against it . Many teams are weak to a 6-0 sweep from registeel after it gets up a ID or amnesia boost such as

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-622069 fakee having diggersby and coba as the sole thing that could hit it hard that cannot do much to a +2 registeel

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-621795 once smth is spored registeel gets free setup on keldeo and can pretty much win thegame considering a non-specs keldeo takes a ton from +2 body press and +1 hydro and +1 secret sword arent doing enough back to it. OPponent also has a sub toxic aegi which can easily be PP stalled and tangrowth and rotom-w give it setup opportunities for free

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-622131 opposing team does struggle to registeel and was able to clean late game

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-620704 udongirl loses to registeel late game especially as it can come in on sciz, zarude, raikou, or mence and just setup on them

I can find more replays but you get the point... it can come in late game and just clean house especially on pokemon that rely on PP stalling in order to stop it and sub toxic aegi usually wastes a lot of PP throught the game. And from the UUPL replays you can see that most pokemon who can stop it are pretty limited to potentially aegi, taunt crobat, or just having pokemon that never give it breathing room and force it to rest a lot....

Defensive sets do exist and they are potentially good i just do not believe them to be as threatening as demon registeel which can 6-0 teams when it comes in late game and make it a pain to play around as any bad play can potentially lead to a loss such as aegi got tricked a choice scarf by rachi and now cannot PP stall registeel or celesteela got weakened to the point u can +2 body press it and clean late game. I believe this pokemon to be worthy of at least B+

 

[658Greninja]

Registeel -> B+ / A-

I hate this pokemon on ladder.. its full of shit and can win on preview against many teams and that is exactly why its good ... it can ID and amnesia and esp on many pokemon that cant threaten it at all such as special mence, scarf drei, rest talk moltres-g, zarude and diggersby locked into bodyslam and passive pokemon such as slowking, rest talk prim, 3 attacks sciz, and many more. Once it gets going it is hard to stop without having smth that can hit it hard on the field right away and counterplay such as WW only work if its not the last mon out. Many pokemon do not carry taunt and haze has limited distribution and only pokemon such as quagsire and tenta if they even decide to use it. Trick is limited and can be baited out easily and considering that the person using the trick has to predict it several times since it can easily come in over the course of the match which means one wrong misprediction means you lose potential your sole counterplay against it . Many teams are weak to a 6-0 sweep from registeel after it gets up a ID or amnesia boost such as

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-622069 fakee having diggersby and coba as the sole thing that could hit it hard that cannot do much to a +2 registeel

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-621795 once smth is spored registeel gets free setup on keldeo and can pretty much win thegame considering a non-specs keldeo takes a ton from +2 body press and +1 hydro and +1 secret sword arent doing enough back to it. OPponent also has a sub toxic aegi which can easily be PP stalled and tangrowth and rotom-w give it setup opportunities for free

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-622131 opposing team does struggle to registeel and was able to clean late game

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-620704 udongirl loses to registeel late game especially as it can come in on sciz, zarude, raikou, or mence and just setup on them

I can find more replays but you get the point... it can come in late game and just clean house especially on pokemon that rely on PP stalling in order to stop it and sub toxic aegi usually wastes a lot of PP throught the game. And from the UUPL replays you can see that most pokemon who can stop it are pretty limited to potentially aegi, taunt crobat, or just having pokemon that never give it breathing room and force it to rest a lot....

Defensive sets do exist and they are potentially good i just do not believe them to be as threatening as demon registeel which can 6-0 teams when it comes in late game and make it a pain to play around as any bad play can potentially lead to a loss such as aegi got tricked a choice scarf by rachi and now cannot PP stall registeel or celesteela got weakened to the point u can +2 body press it and clean late game. I believe this pokemon to be worthy of at least B+

3/4 of the replays do not have Registeel. Just something to point out.

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

3/4 of the replays do not have Registeel. Just something to point out.

well its to show thaat there are teams out there that have an insta 6-0 MU vs registeel and registeel can clean late game... just cuz its not there doesnt mean if it was there it couldnt have dont anything. I mean the teams i pointed out either rely on aegi, or just flat out lose once it sets up in front of lets say amoonguss which is not that hard to achieve

 

[Mystras]

well its to show thaat there are teams out there that have an insta 6-0 MU vs registeel and registeel can clean late game... just cuz its not there doesnt mean if it was there it couldnt have dont anything. I mean the teams i pointed out either rely on aegi, or just flat out lose once it sets up in front of lets say amoonguss which is not that hard to achieve

This isn’t a good basis to make your post on is the thing. It’s basically a lot of theory crafting with not a lot of actual evidence to back it up.

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

This isn’t a good basis to make your post on is the thing. It’s basically a lot of theory crafting with not a lot of actual evidence to back it up.

how so? a lot of posts are theory crafting

"
C Rank

Lycanroc-D

I'd rather eat a rug than use this Pokemon. Just wanted to toss this out here. It breaks nothing, it now dies to Scizor, and it has an ugly sprite. "

I mean this just is theory crafting and just basing off an ugly sprite

or " Suicune is easily S tier but I'm not going to push my unviable opinions. "

most subs dont even base it off much.

I mean it is easy to see how registeel can just setup and 6-0 that is not hard... you can just look at the team and be like "if registeel sets up on x mon it wins pretty much and nothing can stop it"

 

[justdrew]

Well I wasn't going to touch this because this thread isn't a place for 1-line-response debates, but considering you called out my post I should make some things clear. Firstly that was a serious post of drops and rises with two jokes. The first being Suicune to S tier, I don't believe that mon is S tier, I was only joking. Secondly Lycanroc isn't C tier but it does deserve to drop. I was only exaggerating. I thought that was clear but if it wasn't, my apologies.

Registeel is pretty cool but I think it should stay where it is. I wouldn't recommend making a post about a Pokemon where you use replays that don't even include the Pokemon. You can't assume the circumstances of a game for a Pokemon that isn't on either players 6. That is because not all moves are revealed so there could easily be a tech to counter Registeel. Also as a sweeper most counterplay does rely on hax. For one of those replays, udongirl could've easily been Roar Swampert which is a way to force Registeel out and only allow it to set up if it's the only remaining Pokemon.

If you want to make an in depth post about one Pokemon, take more time to find replays that show what the Pokemon can do. Please don't rope my post in to this argument to defend your opinions. Lycanroc being bad isn't theory crafting. It genuinely struggles to break through defensive walls and with Scizor and Hippowdon in the tier I think it deserves to drop. Not to C obviously, but it deserves to drop.

To wrap up: if you're going to respond to this please make it a substantial post that's more than a line and honestly more than a paragraph. Thanks for reading!

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

Well I wasn't going to touch this because this thread isn't a place for 1-line-response debates, but considering you called out my post I should make some things clear. Firstly that was a serious post of drops and rises with two jokes. The first being Suicune to S tier, I don't believe that mon is S tier, I was only joking. Secondly Lycanroc isn't C tier but it does deserve to drop. I was only exaggerating. I thought that was clear but if it wasn't, my apologies.

Registeel is pretty cool but I think it should stay where it is. I wouldn't recommend making a post about a Pokemon where you use replays that don't even include the Pokemon. You can't assume the circumstances of a game for a Pokemon that isn't on either players 6. That is because not all moves are revealed so there could easily be a tech to counter Registeel. Also as a sweeper most counterplay does rely on hax. For one of those replays, udongirl could've easily been Roar Swampert which is a way to force Registeel out and only allow it to set up if it's the only remaining Pokemon.

If you want to make an in depth post about one Pokemon, take more time to find replays that show what the Pokemon can do. Please don't rope my post in to this argument to defend your opinions. Lycanroc being bad isn't theory crafting. It genuinely struggles to break through defensive walls and with Scizor and Hippowdon in the tier I think it deserves to drop. Not to C obviously, but it deserves to drop.

To wrap up: if you're going to respond to this please make it a substantial post that's more than a line and honestly more than a paragraph. Thanks for reading!

1) roar isnt even a recommended move. It is not even shown as an other potential move. IDK why trying to justify that with smth swampert a) doesnt even use and b) isnt even considered viable enough to be considered a potential option

| Moves |
| Flip Turn 97.624% |
| Stealth Rock 94.091% |
| Earthquake 86.207% |
| Toxic 68.885% |
| High Horsepower 10.534% |
| Yawn 10.134% |
| Ice Beam 8.193% |
| Scald 6.377% |
| Other 17.955% |

It is not even used at 1630 which is pretty high for SS UU ladder and if roar is even used 95% of pert's dont even have it

2) people already know what the pokemon can do. I may as well made 0 replays since you guys can base that off more instead off showing off teams that are weak to registeel which show how it can clean late game against most teams where it can setup against them. Registeel can be shown to clean late game against those teams as they are flat out unable to deal with it. This is not smth that is just all of a sudden, registeel has been able to 6-0 teams of preview. Idk its a pretty safe assumption doing so

3) Ignoring lycanroc-d then considering you consider those subs a joke all of a sudden.

4) I mean why cant you say "look at this team, its so weak to scizor look at everything they get SD + BP'ed all over the place.... idk seems unlogical to just claim "they couldve had roar" or "togekiss couldve been phys def flamethrower and stopped scizor in their track". I mean it isnt unlogical to assume that a teams best way to deal with it is to crit it with scarf'ed diggersby eq or coba cc to hit it as the strongest attack as registeel sets up all over the passive pokemon and makes the damage pitiful.

 

[Lily]

This has gone on long enough, we'll factor the Registeel nomination into this week's VR update when we get around to voting. Please cut the discussion here.

 

[Mystras]

Celesteela
Keep A or A+
We did see from Sage vs Moutemoute that it can sit long enough for it to outlast a lot with the right support. I wanna emphasize that I'm using this replay to give an example of hippo being worn down to the point where it had to waste all of its slack off pp and eventually died. Being one of the more reliable aegi answers, slowking being worse overall, Thundurus even getting slightly nerfed, and at least not give Scizor a free opportunity are all nice things in its favor.

Cobalion
To A
Just don't expect this to check Scizor late game and if you do intend to do that please make room for SD or Taunt. Aside from the known techs like SD Safety Goggles to fuck with the grass-types, I also think that + magnet rise for SD sets are worth to screw over Hippowdon. It is a damn shame aegislash is in the tier and even though its common but it can be manageable so long as you make a good effort to account for it.

Keldeo
A- or Keep B+
Honestly I don't know if it's gonna be the continued story with keldeo of being amazing during the first couple weeks of shifts only for eventual rises in trends it doesn't like to put it back down bad or if it will actually stay consistently strong throughout the coming weeks. Tangrowth and Amoonguss are rising again, neither of which keldeo particularly likes looking at, but I am not gonna ignore that it did put in results.

Thundurus
I don't think Thundurus should drop necessarily but I wanna bring up the effects that shifts had on it. Having to run Grass Knot to not get walled by hippo sucks since it either has to give up a coverage move that keeps it from being walled by Amoonguss, Zarude, etc is not ideal especially since it also wants Knock Off to at least cripple Tang and Chansey more effectively. Still great just not as stupid in what it can fit on its set.

 

[EeveeWillEatYou]

B- to B/B+

darm has one of the most powerful abilities in the game, an incredible attack stat a very usable speed for beating slower mons. I belive it does have a use out side of sun. scarf solves the 95 speed but you can also run life orb or choice band for even more damage. with the return of scizor it can come in and force a switch, and its powerful U-turn can deal big damage on whatever comes in. it also has another trick up its sleeve, quite literally. trick on scarf variants allows it to cripple the many water types of the tier that like coming on it. choice band can also be used together with trick. it does suffer from 4mss wanting to run flare blitz, earthquake, stone edge/rock slide, u-turn and trick but even the threat of these moves can be usefull early in the game. also flare blitz does wear it down over time, but it can 100% be used of normal offence teams. combine that with usage on sun and i think this red monke deserves at least B.

 

[OneSmogonCopyer]

B- to B/B+

darm has one of the most powerful abilities in the game, an incredible attack stat a very usable speed for beating slower mons. I belive it does have a use out side of sun. scarf solves the 95 speed but you can also run life orb or choice band for even more damage. with the return of scizor it can come in and force a switch, and its powerful U-turn can deal big damage on whatever comes in. it also has another trick up its sleeve, quite literally. trick on scarf variants allows it to cripple the many water types of the tier that like coming on it. choice band can also be used together with trick. it does suffer from 4mss wanting to run flare blitz, earthquake, stone edge/rock slide, u-turn and trick but even the threat of these moves can be usefull early in the game. also flare blitz does wear it down over time, but it can 100% be used of normal offence teams. combine that with usage on sun and i think this red monke deserves at least B.

Can confirm. I have a Darmanitan team and Darmanitan always finds to punch holes vs teams even with 2 water types. I believe in Band supremacy since it p much 2HKOes everything with the right prediction. Yes band has to work with 95 speed, but from my experience, thats more than enough. Pairing with a faster mon such as Zarude or Thundurus is more than enough. They also love being brought in by U-turn since it attracts the waters they love preying on. Of course the downside of using Darm is still there. But in my experience, its upsides is more than enough, which is punching through pretty much everything it sees so its teammates can take advantage of it. Also Band is better than scarf. Dont @ me. Also in my experience, 4MSS hasn't trouble me since flare blitz is a strong enough move that it doesn't even need coverage sometimes.

 

[HydreigonTheChild]

-> B

This meta is just unkind for it, scizor can threaten it if its not locked into anything but eq and SD sets get revenge killed by it, skarmory, keldeo, hippo, tangrowth, cobalion makes it less threatening as most of them just revenge kill it or outright stop it from making progress. its lackluster defences make sure that it cannot switch in more than once to most resisted moves. Scarf sets struggle and often are a u-turn bot and hitting helmet sucks for it as it wears it down even faster esp with spikes and rocks. SD sets struggle getting opportunities since many teams can punish it from setting one up and even then QA is not that powerful and its only useful late game in a good enough scenario where it can setup against a pokemon it forces out. It just does not fit in B+ where pokemon like starmie, bulu, rotom-w, gyara, and even pokemon such as raikou, rotmo-h getting much better.

 

[Monky25]

--> C
--> UR
shoutout og webs master vivalospride for this innovation
​

This is my first genuine UR nomination, and I find it almost fitting that it's going to be related to Sticky Web, the playstyle I'm known for using a lot this generation. Sticky Webs have been in a complicated place throughout SS UU in DLC 2. The prominence of fast Heavy-Duty Boots users like Zeraora and currently Zarude have impacted the style, mandating punishers to these threats. Moreover, Excadrill dropping in October 2021 has also been huge hinderance to the playstyle, with a super common Rapid Spin user being in the tier to remove webs makes the archetype seen as fringe in the eyes of many players. In spite of this, it's still shown to be viable with Ribombee being the premier setter. It's blistering Speed tier beating the likes of Zygarde-10%, Keldeo, and Zarude as well as pressuring some removal like Salamence and Mandibuzz has made Ribombee the go-to choice for months now. Even in the presence of Steel-types, it can still use Stun Spore to hinder them. Lastly, it's access to U-turn allows the player to preserve it so set webs up later once the Excadrill or other remover is gone. You might ask though, "What changed?" Why is Ribombee, the best setter in the archetype and the one Monky always hypes up, now wanting to be UR and replaced with Vikavolt. It's pretty clear we know the main reason why.



Scizor has always been an incredible Pokemon in UU's history, and with it dropping about a month ago it has already demonstrated potent dominance on the ladder and in UUPL. Scizor is a huge thorn in Ribombee's side; priority Bullet Punch limits the preservation of the Ribombee, and it isn't bothered by Stun Spore since it's a) slow and b) relies on SD + Bullet Punch anyway. It's still useful for pulling paralyzes on it, but in a fast paced playstyle like Hyper Offense giving a strong priority user like Scizor boosting opportunities isn't great. Webs could still work, but it was going to be a lot harder. In his return to Pokemon, I was playing vivalospride on the ladder and he caught my eye with a new webs setter, something very potent that is very tough to wall and a solid setter. That Pokemon is Vikavolt.


Vikavolt @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sticky Web
- Bug Buzz
- Thunderbolt
- Energy Ball

This was the set I used when testing out Vikavolt. Bug + Electric + Grass coverage is stupidly difficult to defensively answer. It's massive Special Attack means it easily wipes out most defensive staples, while it's not terrible 77/90/75 bulk means it can trade with some threats once you get up webs. As a setter, it beats or discourages Pokemon like Salamence, Mandibuzz, Rotom-W, Tentacruel, Skarmory, Hatterene, Moltres, Crobat, and even Excadrill from removing or blocking its webs. Some calcs to demonstrate Vikavolt's offensive potential are down below, doing huge damage to defensive Pokemon to at least keep them from switching in.

252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Slowking: 320-380 (81.4 - 96.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Assault Vest Tangrowth: 290-344 (71.7 - 85.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 124+ SpD Primarina: 254-300 (69.7 - 82.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Scizor: 210-247 (61 - 71.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Energy Ball vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Hippowdon: 236-278 (56.1 - 66.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 252-296 (63.3 - 74.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Mandibuzz: 366-432 (86.5 - 102.1%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Tentacruel: 300-354 (82.4 - 97.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Hatterene: 171-202 (53.7 - 63.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 36 SpD Amoonguss: 202-238 (46.7 - 55%) -- 68% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Energy Ball vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Excadrill: 165-195 (45.7 - 54%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Salamence: 210-247 (63.4 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Aegislash-Shield: 132-156 (40.7 - 48.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Now, to directly compare to Ribombee, what does each offer over the other?

Vikavolt most noticeable niche is the better Steel-type MU, as Thunderbolt is chunking Celesteela, Scizor, and Aegislash for big damage while Energy Ball puts that nice chip on Excadrill. Also, Vikavolt operates as a Suicide Lead more effectively that Ribombee does. Ribombee does have Speed, making it offensively potent as well, but Vikavolt matches that with the sheer offensive output it has. Vikavolt has better MUs against miscellaneous threats like Amoonguss, Moltres, Hippowdon, and Swampert, whereas Ribombee does better against Zygarde-10% and Galarian Moltres. They both have their pros, but Vikavolt's better matchup against Steel-types like Scizor in particular makes me believe it should be ranked over Ribombee. As much as I love webs it's not big enough to have multiple setters ranked like how screens did, so Ribombee should be UR to reflect how it is the worse setter. Enough rambling on my end though, I've collected various replays on the higher ladder showing Vikavolt's potential in the tier.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564277619-oz8r0myj98o9cjao77iyok2l9865fylpw -on preview Vikavolt is very scary, nothing really wants to take hits from it at all. It's able to quickly set up webs and chip Excadrill and do big damage to Amoonguss. Once it dies it lets in Celesteela to get free setup and sweep. My opponent didn't play this too optimally but shows the offensive potential of Vikavolt and it's ability to faint after trading with threats to let in something to sweep. Ribombee lets in Sand Rush Excadrill, Amoonguss, and Hippowdon easily, which could change the outcome of the game.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564361201-61pinyk0z56lqi3cepj36sovktmuey5pw -replay against prominent UU player Lyss. On preview Vikavolt has a great MU, it trades with everything and can limit Scizor a great deal. It absorbs spore and gives Celesteela a chance to set up on Amoonguss. Gyarados then breaks a lot and Celesteela cleans up. Even though Mandibuzz should've been sent on Gyarados it shows the ability of Vikavolt to get up webs and faint while being very tough to switch into for many UU teams.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564368341-u1c120t1z5usmh0r8vqqf4alwm55mr1pw -vs notable UU player Dunoks. Vikavolt sets up webs and dies to give Scizor entry, who then chips Salamence and kills Amoonguss to let Gyarados sweep. It's nothing specific to Vikavolt really, Ribombee could've done it too, but it shows that whatever Ribombee can do Vikavolt can do as well. A small comment but this replay also shows the power of Gyarados right now, it should easily be A- since it's a strong sweeper that can take advantage of Scizor.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564373499-7cfc7kx6oykrb34v8wp998368p31wlmpw -vs notable UU player udongirl. Same as last time it just sets up webs and dies, leading to Azelf, Celesteela, and Gyarados all making progress. Not all replays are going to be Vikavolt doing crazy shit, a fair bit is just setting up webs and dying... which is what a setter is supposed to do.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564384374-13x2yd7kt41f4typey750ysddtzu2wwpw -vs notable UU player Sirwings. Like the last two times Vikavolt sets up Sticky Web and dies. It also has a good MU against the entire team, having the ability to trade with or KO them, so I could've preserved Vikavolt if I really wanted to and it could put in work.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564426811-vi6v79iew9muwgdhhpwd8gb1zjr295hpw - Vikavolt sets up webs, absorbs spore for the team, and lures Excadrill in for Celesteela set up and sweep. Again just doing basic webs setter things. Ribombee theoretically could do the same but the opponent may choose to KO it since it dies to Sludge Bomb, whereas they have to spore against Vikavolt at risk of losing their Amoonguss to Bug Buzz breaking through. This is very huge in wanting to use Vikavolt over Ribombee.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564430269-3kv1gpfxoel64rwejwxkkoiqloa0nh1pw -vs UU community member Permission Slip. Here we see Vikavolt lure and OHKO Swampert with Energy Ball, immediately opening a path for both Celesteela and Entei to go in. It still gets up webs, keeping Darmanitan from revenge killing Celesteela, leading to a Celesteela sweep.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564691536-ac45agcr2a8pokn9j1gmcczai3bq0mqpw -here is a webs mirror matchup using a different team against a webs team featuring Ribombee. Here the flaws of Ribombee is recognized. It gives Celesteela free setup, and even though Stun Spore does prove useful as turn 6 I get paralyzed and die to Flare Blitz, the user now has to rely on hoping the para kicks in, aka fishing for luck. Vikavolt gets up webs with the help of Aegislash blocking spin and even helps kill the Gyarados with the Focus Sash it has. This game was less about what Vikavolt could do and more about what Ribombee fails to do. It gives Celesteela free setup and against Polteageist it would've done less damage or missing Stun Spore, leading to a Polteageist counter sweep. Moonblast into First Impression (which kills regardless of the crit at that health) isn't guaranteed, whereas Thunderbolt into First Impression is. Vikavolt also has the webs immunity thanks to Levitate, which proved useful here.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564718382-yis81f9i2oqqxty9f373ovp84vcf3s4pw -The last replay presented, here Vikavolt is super scary for this team, so much so that I wanted to preserve it to show it off. It easily gets webs off against their Cobalion lead and immediately removes their Tangrowth for Gyarados to have a better time. It heavily chips their Scizor as well, leading my own to revenge kill it. This is yet another example of Vikavolt taking on Scizor in a way Ribombee could not while also threatening Rapid Spin user Tentacruel and finding a way to trade with the entire team at full health.

Overall Vikavolt is the best webs setter in the tier right now and should be ranked over Ribombee, as it's ability to reliably set webs and faint as well as better handle top threats in the tier like Aegislash, Scizor, Amoonguss, Hippowdon, Primarina, and Assault Vest Tangrowth makes it the superior option.

 

[EeveeWillEatYou]

--> C
--> UR
shoutout og webs master vivalospride for this innovation
​

This is my first genuine UR nomination, and I find it almost fitting that it's going to be related to Sticky Web, the playstyle I'm known for using a lot this generation. Sticky Webs have been in a complicated place throughout SS UU in DLC 2. The prominence of fast Heavy-Duty Boots users like Zeraora and currently Zarude have impacted the style, mandating punishers to these threats. Moreover, Excadrill dropping in October 2021 has also been huge hinderance to the playstyle, with a super common Rapid Spin user being in the tier to remove webs makes the archetype seen as fringe in the eyes of many players. In spite of this, it's still shown to be viable with Ribombee being the premier setter. It's blistering Speed tier beating the likes of Zygarde-10%, Keldeo, and Zarude as well as pressuring some removal like Salamence and Mandibuzz has made Ribombee the go-to choice for months now. Even in the presence of Steel-types, it can still use Stun Spore to hinder them. Lastly, it's access to U-turn allows the player to preserve it so set webs up later once the Excadrill or other remover is gone. You might ask though, "What changed?" Why is Ribombee, the best setter in the archetype and the one Monky always hypes up, now wanting to be UR and replaced with Vikavolt. It's pretty clear we know the main reason why.



Scizor has always been an incredible Pokemon in UU's history, and with it dropping about a month ago it has already demonstrated potent dominance on the ladder and in UUPL. Scizor is a huge thorn in Ribombee's side; priority Bullet Punch limits the preservation of the Ribombee, and it isn't bothered by Stun Spore since it's a) slow and b) relies on SD + Bullet Punch anyway. It's still useful for pulling paralyzes on it, but in a fast paced playstyle like Hyper Offense giving a strong priority user like Scizor boosting opportunities isn't great. Webs could still work, but it was going to be a lot harder. In his return to Pokemon, I was playing vivalospride on the ladder and he caught my eye with a new webs setter, something very potent that is very tough to wall and a solid setter. That Pokemon is Vikavolt.


Vikavolt @ Focus Sash
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sticky Web
- Bug Buzz
- Thunderbolt
- Energy Ball

This was the set I used when testing out Vikavolt. Bug + Electric + Grass coverage is stupidly difficult to defensively answer. It's massive Special Attack means it easily wipes out most defensive staples, while it's not terrible 77/90/75 bulk means it can trade with some threats once you get up webs. As a setter, it beats or discourages Pokemon like Salamence, Mandibuzz, Rotom-W, Tentacruel, Skarmory, Hatterene, Moltres, Crobat, and even Excadrill from removing or blocking its webs. Some calcs to demonstrate Vikavolt's offensive potential are down below, doing huge damage to defensive Pokemon to at least keep them from switching in.

252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Slowking: 320-380 (81.4 - 96.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Assault Vest Tangrowth: 290-344 (71.7 - 85.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 124+ SpD Primarina: 254-300 (69.7 - 82.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Scizor: 210-247 (61 - 71.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Energy Ball vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Hippowdon: 236-278 (56.1 - 66.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 252-296 (63.3 - 74.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Mandibuzz: 366-432 (86.5 - 102.1%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Tentacruel: 300-354 (82.4 - 97.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Hatterene: 171-202 (53.7 - 63.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Bug Buzz vs. 252 HP / 36 SpD Amoonguss: 202-238 (46.7 - 55%) -- 68% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Energy Ball vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Excadrill: 165-195 (45.7 - 54%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Salamence: 210-247 (63.4 - 74.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Vikavolt Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Aegislash-Shield: 132-156 (40.7 - 48.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Now, to directly compare to Ribombee, what does each offer over the other?

Vikavolt most noticeable niche is the better Steel-type MU, as Thunderbolt is chunking Celesteela, Scizor, and Aegislash for big damage while Energy Ball puts that nice chip on Excadrill. Also, Vikavolt operates as a Suicide Lead more effectively that Ribombee does. Ribombee does have Speed, making it offensively potent as well, but Vikavolt matches that with the sheer offensive output it has. Vikavolt has better MUs against miscellaneous threats like Amoonguss, Moltres, Hippowdon, and Swampert, whereas Ribombee does better against Zygarde-10% and Galarian Moltres. They both have their pros, but Vikavolt's better matchup against Steel-types like Scizor in particular makes me believe it should be ranked over Ribombee. As much as I love webs it's not big enough to have multiple setters ranked like how screens did, so Ribombee should be UR to reflect how it is the worse setter. Enough rambling on my end though, I've collected various replays on the higher ladder showing Vikavolt's potential in the tier.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564277619-oz8r0myj98o9cjao77iyok2l9865fylpw -on preview Vikavolt is very scary, nothing really wants to take hits from it at all. It's able to quickly set up webs and chip Excadrill and do big damage to Amoonguss. Once it dies it lets in Celesteela to get free setup and sweep. My opponent didn't play this too optimally but shows the offensive potential of Vikavolt and it's ability to faint after trading with threats to let in something to sweep. Ribombee lets in Sand Rush Excadrill, Amoonguss, and Hippowdon easily, which could change the outcome of the game.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564361201-61pinyk0z56lqi3cepj36sovktmuey5pw- replay against prominent UU player Lyss. On preview Vikavolt has a great MU, it trades with everything and can limit Scizor a great deal. It absorbs spore and gives Celesteela a chance to set up on Amoonguss. Gyarados then breaks a lot and Celesteela cleans up. Even though Mandibuzz should've been sent on Gyarados it shows the ability of Vikavolt to get up webs and faint while being very tough to switch into for many UU teams.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564368341-u1c120t1z5usmh0r8vqqf4alwm55mr1pw- vs notable UU player Dunoks. Vikavolt sets up webs and dies to give Scizor entry, who then chips Salamence and kills Amoonguss to let Gyarados sweep. It's nothing specific to Vikavolt really, Ribombee could've done it too, but it shows that whatever Ribombee can do Vikavolt can do as well. A small comment but this replay also shows the power of Gyarados right now, it should easily be A- since it's a strong sweeper that can take advantage of Scizor.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564373499-7cfc7kx6oykrb34v8wp998368p31wlmpw- vs notable UU player udongirl. Same as last time it just sets up webs and dies, leading to Azelf, Celesteela, and Gyarados all making progress. Not all replays are going to be Vikavolt doing crazy shit, a fair bit is just setting up webs and dying... which is what a setter is supposed to do.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564384374-13x2yd7kt41f4typey750ysddtzu2wwpw-vs notable UU player Sirwings. Like the last two times Vikavolt sets up Sticky Web and dies. It also has a good MU against the entire team, having the ability to trade with or KO them, so I could've preserved Vikavolt if I really wanted to and it could put in work.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564426811-vi6v79iew9muwgdhhpwd8gb1zjr295hpw- Vikavolt sets up webs, absorbs spore for the team, and lures Excadrill in for Celesteela set up and sweep. Again just doing basic webs setter things. Ribombee theoretically could do the same but the opponent may choose to KO it since it dies to Sludge Bomb, whereas they have to spore against Vikavolt at risk of losing their Amoonguss to Bug Buzz breaking through. This is very huge in wanting to use Vikavolt over Ribombee.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564430269-3kv1gpfxoel64rwejwxkkoiqloa0nh1pw- vs UU community member Permission Slip. Here we see Vikavolt lure and OHKO Swampert with Energy Ball, immediately opening a path for both Celesteela and Entei to go in. It still gets up webs, keeping Darmanitan from revenge killing Celesteela, leading to a Celesteela sweep.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564691536-ac45agcr2a8pokn9j1gmcczai3bq0mqpw- here is a webs mirror matchup using a different team against a webs team featuring Ribombee. Here the flaws of Ribombee is recognized. It gives Celesteela free setup, and even though Stun Spore does prove useful as turn 6 I get paralyzed and die to Flare Blitz, the user now has to rely on hoping the para kicks in, aka fishing for luck. Vikavolt gets up webs with the help of Aegislash blocking spin and even helps kill the Gyarados with the Focus Sash it has. This game was less about what Vikavolt could do and more about what Ribombee fails to do. It gives Celesteela free setup and against Polteageist it would've done less damage or missing Stun Spore, leading to a Polteageist counter sweep. Moonblast into First Impression (which kills regardless of the crit at that health) isn't guaranteed, whereas Thunderbolt into First Impression is. Vikavolt also has the webs immunity thanks to Levitate, which proved useful here.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8uu-1564718382-yis81f9i2oqqxty9f373ovp84vcf3s4pw- The last replay presented, here Vikavolt is super scary for this team, so much so that I wanted to preserve it to show it off. It easily gets webs off against their Cobalion lead and immediately removes their Tangrowth for Gyarados to have a better time. It heavily chips their Scizor as well, leading my own to revenge kill it. This is yet another example of Vikavolt taking on Scizor in a way Ribombee could not while also threatening Rapid Spin user Tentacruel and finding a way to trade with the entire team at full health.

Overall Vikavolt is the best webs setter in the tier right now and should be ranked over Ribombee, as it's ability to reliably set webs and faint as well as better handle top threats in the tier like Aegislash, Scizor, Amoonguss, Hippowdon, Primarina, and Assault Vest Tangrowth makes it the superior option.

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