Resource SV PU Viability Rankings - Pre DLC 1 Edition

[Morge]

B -> B-
I just struggle to see why you would run this over the other psychics in the tier, namely Indeedee-F. Thick fat is nice I guess, gives it a good matchup vs charizard and it has some colourful coverage options but it's both weaker and slower than Indeedee-F, and this is before considering psychic surge which makes Indeedee-F's psychic attacks even stronger and protects it from priority. Its not awful but feels very outclassed to me.

C -> UR
I know we're strapped for hazard removal but like come on. If you want grass type hazard removal you have dartrix which also gets knock off, can't be spin blocked, has actual physical bulk and is actually capable of doing something offensively. Even carkoal gets dual hazards at least, toescool has spore I guess but good luck doing anything with it before dying. I haven't seen anyone run this since like week 1 and I don't know why you would run it.

C -> B-
Banette is a very overlooked spin blocker in favor of misdreavus for obvious reasons, but I feel like knock off access is a big enough draw to justify itself on hazard stack. Very few mons in the tier get knock off and with how many mons carry boots being able to knock them off is hugely beneficial for hazard stack teams. Your other options for this are dartrix which isn't a great fit on hazard stack and tinkatuff which is great but pretty passive and therefore sometimes hard to fit. Its bulk isn't great but when invested in it's good enough for what it needs to do, and it can still be annoying with spreading burn or paralysis. Obviously misdreavus is generally far superior, but banette is good enough to justify itself on certain teams who really appreciate the knock off support. (It also doesn't need to run eviolite which frees up its item slot but its probably just gonna run boots anyway which misdreavus probably wouldn't even if it didn't need eviolite)

 

[rien]

quick update, council has decided to rank quilladin in B+ as an initial rank. despite only being usable for a few days, it has solidified itself as a great spikes setter with excellent physical bulk, useful typing that makes it an excellent switch-in to threats like choice band basculin, reliable recovery, and plenty of utility and coverage options like super fang, leech seed, stone edge, and poison jab that allow it to pressure would-be checks depending on its needs. look forward to a sample set in the near future!

 

[Theblobfishman9]

A-> A+
There is a reason this mon is all over the ladder at the moment. With access to the dreaded quiver dance and tera it can setup on many mons in the tier and wipe out entire teams. Additionally, its tera isn't predictable unlike the quiver dancers that terrorized the tier before it; ele, rock and fire teras are all viable in the current meta. It also can run sleep powder when running tera fire/rock to give it more opportunities to set up and then mop up the rest of your team. The mon is a bit tera reliant but that never stopped the ori's or pau from being S tier mons when usable. I don't think it's on the same level as those 3 but putting it A tier is a bit low.

B-> C
If mid was a pu mon it would be dragonair. With great tools like dragon dance, e speed, rest + shed skin it looks like this mon would be really good, but its meh stats and lack of good stab hold it back as a mon. Having to run outrage as its dragon stab allows tink, bread dog, and tera fairy mons like the common tera fairy missy to get a free switch in or to knock off dragonair's eviolite, phase it out, or remove it. While espeed is a nice move its not worth running dragonair. Additionally it just kinda gets mostly outclassed by both pupitar and fraxure as dragon dance eviolite mons.

 

[UberSkitty]

yes hello it's me

Rises:
B -> B+
I used this mon on a teambuilding competition team a while back, and it really put in work. It's our fastest Spikes setter by far, making it especially good for offensive teams. This is furthered by being able to pivot with U-turn, which alongside Spikes makes it a very decent Scarfer option over stuff like Basculin and Golduck. Protein is ofc also fun, giving you stab U-turn/Ice Beam, and even with the nerf you're choice-locked anyways so oh well.
C -> B-
The demand of having a Poison mon on ur team to remove TSpikes has risen, and with the options outside of Skuntank being slim, Swalot deserves a bump up. It's able to provide decent bulk and other unique attributes like Body Press and two solid abilities (Sticky Hold and Liquid Ooze). While the bulkier sets are better imo, its access to SD and crazy coverage deserves a s/o too.

Drops:
S -> A+
I know this is a pretty big leap, but Misdreavus has fallen off the edge a little recently. With the decline in Quaxwell and other spinners, Ghost mons in general aren't as vital alongside Spikes, and even then you can just run Tera Ghost on something. This isn't to say the mon isn't still amazing, but I think it's lost enough relevance to not longer sit alongside Skuntank (who is the only S mon rn imo)
B+ -> B
I personally have not had much success with this mon. Spikes is nice, but this mon suffers from big 4mss. You're pretty much deciding what to use you as setup fodder whether it's Charizard, Lilligant, Gogoat, etc. And speaking of Gogoat, outside of Spikes it is just so much better than Quilladin, and ur not about to stick both onto one team.

(Red) A+ -> Remove
The way Basculin is listed in the VR rn is just ugly. Blue is obviously better than red with Rock Head vs Adaptability mind games.

Disagree with:
C -> UR
There are a handful of noms made that I agree/disagree with, but I don't have too much input. Toedscool, however, I think should def be kept ranked. There's no denying it's a very niche mon, offering a bunch of roles while being mediocre at all of them. But it's still decent enough to fulfill what a team may need, which is especially useful for someone who builds around alotta different mons/sets ;). Here's a list of some of what Legs has to offer: voltblocker, hazard removal, Knock Off, Spikes/TSpikes, Spore, and other random utility like Toxic and Leech Seed. And it can all be your's.

yes goodbye it's me

 

[zS]

from A- to A: i feel like this mon does not get enough recognition rn, it's at least as good as lilli is and has the ability to fold most teams without being forced to tera which is a huge +. intimidate and a decent bulk gives it a lot of set-up opportunities and from what i've seen in both open/ladder most people don't respect this thing enough in the builder. hpump ice beam and hurricane/bug buzz gives it perfect coverage into the tier and it actually hits quite hard with those high bp moves. def think it's better than all of the mons in A- and than some of the 1s in A (honch/crab mainly).
from B+ to A-: this mon is actually more versatile than it seems! sub seed / sd trailblaze / sub sd / scarf are all great sets and it's also really annoying to deal with in the builder, as headbutt can get you through most of your checks and its speedtier is a bit hard to punish at +1. scarf in particular is a set i've been enjoying a lot for the last few months and it's really consistent at revenge killing major threats like lilli/pyroar/raichu/houndoom. if it were my opinion and my opinion only i would advocate for a rise to A tbh, cuz being this versatile and consistent is what i think A mons should be, but since i haven't seen much of it in tours i'll just nom it to A- for now.
from C to B/B+: man this mons soo good rn, with everyone and their mother spamming mono boots having a spinblocker that can just knock/wow multiple targets a game is just sooo rewarding. it's one of the best early game progress makers we have and putting it in c feels like a major understatement to it's viability. try this set for yourself, it's rly good i swear.

set

Banette @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Cursed Body
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 248 HP / 60 Atk / 24 SpD / 176 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Knock Off
- Shadow Sneak
- Will-O-Wisp
- Encore

from A- to B+: yeah i'm not digging this mon. it's a sitting duck that has 4mss and isn't rly a reliable fire resist. being a fairy type is cool and all, but this feels hella inconsistent, hard to fit, not a particularly reliable wisher too and suffers lots from not being able to consistently run leftovers.
e: hard disagree with the missy nom above, this should stay where it is. taunt np sets are soo absurd and the whole meta is currently centered around missy, literally all the top ranked mons in the tier either hard lose to it or are checks.

 

[Theblobfishman9]

I probably should wait for tier shifts but I’ll just update this later.

UR -> A+/S
Obviously a great mon, as of right now I’m not sold that it’s broken and needs to be banned level of good tho.(there is a good chance NU steals it anyway).

UR->B+
I think this is the best defensive mon in the tier now. I’ve been running the sleeptalk acid spray dragon breath set with pretty good success.

A-> A+
Probably the biggest winner from the home release in PU was dug. With probably the best matchup against H-sneasel and eq being super effective against both h-qwil and h-sliggoo I think it deserves to be in A+ tier for at least as long as h-sneasel exists in pu

A->A+
Indeedee also benefited from homes release which made then best scarfer in the tier even better. H-sneasel has to run Tera dark almost exclusively for this mon and as long as you haven’t locked yourself into psychic you can kinda predict the opponents dark tera. This mon is also prob the best way to deal with h-sliggoo as it tricks its scarf onto it and locks it into a move/prevents it from healing.

, , ->A-
Being all slower than sneasel-h and either being weak to fighting or having the bulk of raichu makes these mons not as good for as long as h-sneasel exists in the tier.

B+-> A
Rotom was a bit underrated in my opinion prior to home due to being overshadowed by raichu but now with sneasel-h and better bulk then raichu it can over take it as the best ele type in the tier.

Overall I like the new home additions and I really like the shakeup of the tier sneasel-h is currently doing.

 

[Morge]

C -> UR

I'm not quite ready to give my thoughts on the home mons but this one feels pretty self explanatory. I'm a sliggoo believer but when are you ever gonna use this over Sliggoo-H. Just entirely outclassed and I don't see it having any meaningful niche over it's cousin.

 

[Morge]

Well now that Sneasel-H is gone I think now's a good time to post this.

UR -> S
Its uhh, better skuntank. Well ok thats not entirely fair, skunk can run special sets and has sucker punch but like, Qwilfish-H does basically everything better. It really does it all, its bulky, has a good defensive typing, absorbs T-Spikes, is the tiers most consistent spiker, has a reasonably fast taunt to deny opposing hazards, is decently offensively threatening and can boost with swords dance and probably a bunch more. Any role your team needs filled this can probably do and its probably the best mon in the tier right now.

UR -> A
Rotom frost is an excellent offensive pivot with its high special attack and near perfect coverage, letting it deal with common ground types, particularly gabite, to volt switch to its hearts content, and with access to options like trick, thunder wave, willow-wisp to cripple potential switch ins and nast plot to boost its power even further switching into it is a complete nightmare. It even provides some surprisingly decent defensive utility with its electric resistance and ground immunity. Its not perfect however, choice sets are limited by their rocks weakness and while 86 speed is good its far from perfect.

UR -> A-
Zangoose feels very similar to squawk and probably deserves a similar placement. Its power is incredible, but it has no longevity whatsoever and is frail on top of that, making it kinda hard to position. In theory its basically impossible to switch into after a swords dance but its already hard enough to find a turn to proc the toxic orb let alone get a swords dance off. Its potentially very good but a hard fit on most teams.

UR- > B+
Sliggoo-H is pretty cool. Its typing is excellent and its bulk is immense, special attacks just bounce off this thing. Its not very immediately threatening and lacks the support moves you would want from this mon, but curse sets can get out of hand and be potentially very threatening late game. I do think its a bit worse than our other steels but definitely has its place.

UR -> C/B-
The only other new home NFE that I think deserves ranking thwackey sure exists. It has some appealing traits with knock off, U-Turn and grassy terrain, but I just don't think the stats are there. Grassy terrain boosted wood hammers do hit decently hard, but it basically can't do anything to grass resists beyond knock them off, and 80 speed just isn't quite there. It also wants to run several items at once I find, It wants boots for hazards eviolite so it can actually take hits and scarf to fix its speed, and it always just falls short in my experience. I could be convinced its better, grassy terrain has potential maybe and its our most proactive knock off user which I guess is cool? But I'm not really feeling this mon sadly.

A- -> A
This mon not being rated higher is a crime, its defensive profile is great and it brings so much utility for a team. Rocks, knock off, T-Wave and encore is just such good utility. Its not exactly an offensive mon but its still surprisingly annoying to switch into because of these. It at least deserves to be on the same level as perrserker (Even if I still like perrserker a bit more).

S -> A+/A
Like I said skunk has some redeeming traits over qwillfish like sucker punch and special sets but it's not quite the S rank mon it was before, qwillfish just does most of its roles better.

A+ -> S
I mean are we really a gen 9 tier without an S rank ground type? In all seriousness though, gabite goes on almost every team I make and the only reason it doesn't go on all of them is because sometimes I just don't feel like using it. Ground/Dragon just does so well against so much of the tier, its our most consistent rocker by a mile, it blocks volt switch, it phases, and it can even run swords dance which while more niche is a set that I'm a big fan of. Its perhaps a little worse now than it was pre shifts because of rotom frost but not enough to where I feel like it doesn't deserve this placement, its just so hard to justify not running it.

 

[third bonnie]

UR -> S
yeah absolutely agreed. Mon can do just about everything, it might even be too good because of how many different roles it can take and the coverage it possesses. It doesn't need to specifically run a set up move for good coverage (looking at Skuntank's special fire moves) and having intimidate is just an icing on the cake. Versatility through the roof. Won't be surprised if NU takes it next month.

UR -> A
i think it similarly has a lot of good things going for it, but it's a bit easier to punish and defensively... well, ice isn't the best typing lmao
still, scarf, np, bulky pivot (that conveniently has a 2nd move that dumpsters grouds) and probably even more if you're crafty enough. Easy to slot in. I think it's just a little bit short of being on par with Raichu in terms of electric types in the tier (once again 0 bias pinky promise)

UR -> B+
There's only really two sets that this thing can use that stand out from the rest. One is the most obvious Toxic Orb SD priority spam, which is honestly very strong, but also not that hard to play around knowing exactly what you're up against. The other one is Scarf. It's a naturally very strong mon that has just about the kind of speed that makes going with Scarf a very viable option, especially combined with its vast movepool that leaves your opponents guessing. However, every other thing it's outclassed at - Vigoroth, god bless the one person still using it, is a better bulky normal, Squawk is just a bit better priority user mostly thanks to its versatility and Luxray of all things is an ever so slightly stronger status-boosted agility mon. That said, still a very good mon that definitely can perform well and sometimes even be a perfect fit for one's team.

UR- > B+
mother of bulk. curse rest talk ironhead is enough to make this thing nigh unkillable, but with its typing and stupid good coverage you can even run it as a slower specs user. It would love to get Flamethrower or Earth Power instead of Thunderbolt, but you can't have them all. At the very least it's a very good mon against folks that did not get a good grasp of the tier yet.

UR -> B+
If it was up to me and me alone I'd give it an A. Its forte isn't really with scarf (though that Wood Hammer can probably hurt things all the same) nor band (not without Grassy Glide, F best move lived exactly 1 generation). No, this is an Eviolite mon through and through, with its best place being multiple HDB teams. Average natural bulk combined with Grassy Terrain and access to U-Turn makes it the safest pivot against Duggy and Gabite (ofc the latter can phase but at this point it pretty much means you got a free switch into something, so... yay!). And just in case that wasn't enough, there's also Knock Off. With 180 Speed EVs you get 1 speed advantage into Missy as well, letting you taunt it or pivot out of it into something that can take it out better. Its best natural synergy is with Hisuian Qwil which also helps it a metric ton. Honestly, you can probably pivot into any bulky ground weak mon, most certainly you can do this when that mon has grassy seed equipped, setting it off to a strong start.

lesser noms that I can't say come from my match experience, but just moreso a feeling they've improved with home and shifts, primarily here for my own curiosity on whether my hunch was right:
B- -> B
UR -> C
B -> B+
B -> B+

 

[rien]

(Red) A+ -> Remove
The way Basculin is listed in the VR rn is just ugly. Blue is obviously better than red with Rock Head vs Adaptability mind games.

fully agree with this, the vr will be updated with blue as the only forme listed. while red (and white) are of course fully viable as they're essentially almost the same thing, there's never a reason to not just use blue in any scenario.

now for my own noms, i was planning on making a lot more but y'all sniped me and i agree with a lot of your noms, so i'll mostly focus on new ones (incl. a much needed cleanup of the lower ranks):

NEW > A+
ranking it very high shouldn't surprise anyone, it's by far the best spiker in a tier without good/reliable removal and is really an excellent healthy mon with good set variety. i disagree with the previous noms in that it's not quite s tier for me, while it shines defensively i feel like it's still somewhat outclassed by skuntank offensively. barb barrage is a really cool move although it's far more potent on paper, in practice it feels rather balanced and not overwhelming at all (esp. with tspikes being somewhat unreliable in the presence of two really good poisons in the tier). i think the right move might be to rank both qwil and skunk in a+ until qwil inevitably rises to nu/ru in the next shift, at which point skunk will return to s.

NEW > UR
i've been extremely unimpressed with thwackey so far, its overall stats are way too low to justify running choiced sets (despite having access to the very valuable knock off+u-turn), it lost its most important move in grassy glide, and at the moment there really are no mons in the tier that can benefit from grassy terrain being set. if someone can convince me that eviolite+sd is viable i am willing to reconsider, but as of now i don't think this has any merit in the metagame.

A+ > S
zard just manages to stand out as a premier offensive threat which, despite losing much of its toolset from previous generations, manages to run several sets viably and puts in work in almost every game, above and beyond what the other (very capable in their own right) special fires in the tier can. there's extremely little drawback in running it and its ranking should absolutely reflect that.

A- > A
might be an unpopular opinion but it really feels like such an integral backbone of bulky offense and perhaps its best enabler. yes it is somewhat passive but it's by far our most effective wishpasser and it blanket checks so much stuff and it's just really easy to fit on teams.

B- > B
i'm absolutely not an electrode person but the more i see it, the more i get its merit. although very tera reliant, it has just enough power to be able to make meaningful progress in games.

A > A-
good mon absolutely, just not quite on the same level as other a rank mons while it would fit in a- very nicely. tinkatuff is often just better as a steel-type rocker although the reliable slow u-turn is very nice indeed

A- > B
metagame trends really haven't been kind to vespiquen, it struggles to make progress in the ever-increasing presence of threats like charizard (and every other threat that runs rock coverage mainly for charizard) and even with tera it's just not that effective at walling stuff anymore. with just how easy it is to slap qwilfish on every spikestack team it's just hard to justify using it.

B+ > B
gonna gradually nom it down every slate until it disappears (might expedite that if we get an actual defogger soon). stop using this pls

B > B-
another possibly controversial opinion but frog is super underwhelming to me everytime i try to use it, while the role compression is nice it really doesn't perform any of its roles particularly well - as a hazard setter it's too frail, and as a scarfer it's not strong enough to ko almost anything that isn't 4x weak to hydro pump/ice beam.

B > B-
while it's still usable, it's just hard to justify over better psychics or fire resists. what sucks the most for it though is that it really wants to run earth power as coverage to accompany a psychic stab, and that unfortunately leaves it unable to touch honchkrow; it also can't give up on running two non-attacking moves, as leaving nasty plot out makes it extremely passive and boosting sets without thunder wave or whirlwind just pale in comparison to more potent setup breakers like indeedee and missy.

B > B-
while i don't like ranking down mons purely on usage %, i literally never see this and i can't argue in good faith to keep it in a relatively high rank as the metagame constantly evolves. please do try to change my mind though

B- > C
stop using this plssss this mon never does anything other than click no retreat and die on the following turn. i get that we're desperate for fighting-types but this just ain't it

B- > C
i too love being useless against any team with a charizard

C > UR
no redeeming qualities whatsoever, this mon can't run a single set effectively. sad!

C > UR
miserably outclassed in everything it tries to do. if you want a wishpasser use dachsbun or even flareon, if you want a grass wallbreaker with more than two usable physical attacks use sawsbuck, if you want a grass physical wall that doesn't suck use quilladin.

 

[UberSkitty]

New -> B- (emphasis on New and not UR so I don't even need those replays ;^))
This mon can be run with Eviolite, giving it an actual niche over Blue (and Red). It's kinda an odd midpoint between regular Basculin and Lumineon, being bulkier than the former but stronger than the latter (albeit without the utility). Also decrease in Quaxwell stocks helps, especially since they have almost identical defensive stats. Been using this set:

set

Basculin-White-Striped @ Eviolite
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 248 HP / 20 Atk / 240 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Liquidation
- Crunch
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Actually nvm here's a replay: Replays - Pokémon Showdown (pokemonshowdown.com)
Also this one: Replays - Pokémon Showdown (pokemonshowdown.com)
B -> B+
Speaking of Lumineon, it's gained a lotta attention. While maybe not amazing, it can be a solid mon to slap on the back of a team, with stuff like Encore+slow U-turn letting you bring in frailer teammates, and soft checking a bunch of large meta threats. Storm Drain is especially nice for stopping choiced mons like Basculin from spamming their water moves. Also the Quaxwell stocks thing again.
B- -> B
Does the same the same thing as before, bulky volt absorber with Spikes/TSpikes. But Frostom returning has warranted more use, especially with Puncurchin being one of the few volt absorbers that can actually switch into its Blizzard.
UR -> C
Simply shoulda been ranked sooner. Even with Honchkrow now existing, it hasn't changed Murkrow being a solid weather setter thanks to Prankster.
UR -> C
Similar to Murkrow, Snover is a mediocre mon on its own, but being the only auto-Hail setter makes it a must on Hail teams. And I assure you Hail teams are a thing, with Slush Rush Beartic, Blizzard Glaceon, and Tera Ice Blizzard Masquerain. That last set got me in a four-way tie for first place in a recent teambuiling competition. Additional reminder that Frostom has returned and that Hail (or "Snow") now boosts Ice mons' Def.

Agree with:
New -> A+
Despite seemingly so Spike-centralized, PU didn't have any amazing setters before Qwilfish-H arrived. I'd hold off on S-rank for now, seems a little too soon to deem Qwilfish-H "meta-defining".
New -> A
It's just the frostom we know and love, with the great STAB typing and moves like VSwitch, Trick, and recent NP.
New -> A-
Could see this mon in A tbh, and I think it's better than Squawk, but A- is fine for now.
A+ -> S
I got swept by Belly Drum Flame Charge. Bring priority mons.
A- -> A
Thought I'd mention that I like to run webs in its last slot on QD. The lack of hazard removal makes webs amazing without need to actively build around it. Even with all the HDB and flying/levitating mons, you still punish non-HDB mones like Dugtrio/Golduck/Zangoose and cancel out Scarf users like Lycanroc/Indeedee-F. Even considered nomming Spidops to B just for webs.

also ik my last VR noms are outdated cuz of the tier shift/home release but don't you dare lower Frogadier.

 

[rien]

hi everyone, we'll be voting on the this month's vr slate over the weekend so please make sure to post any remaining noms in the next 24 hours.

 

[Melt Gibson]

new drops new drops new drops!!!!! papa it's christmas!!!


NEW > A-
Just as good as, if not better than, Squawkabilly. Facade/Close Combat/Night Slash/Quick Attack covers all of your bases in terms of coverage and allows you to just let loose with nuclear firepower. Thank god this thing lost Knock. The only thing you lose out on is two points of Speed and the ability to pivot, and while the latter is a tough loss, it's a lot better when you're tossing out base 210 Facades at everything that isn't Misdreavus. Random Tera Ghost bullshit is a lot better now that this thing is a very real threat. You also can't burn or paralyze it as a means of stopping it since it's already self-poisoned, unless you somehow get lucky enough to fire off a status more before Toxic Orb procs (and honestly, if you do, skill issue on the Zangoose player's part lol). You are, by the way this thing works, inherently on a timer, which admittedly sucks, but by the time it's appropriate to bring Zangoose out, there's either A. only one or two things it really needs to kill, or B. not about to be that many turns left anyway. Terrifying to see at preview, even scarier with Webs, excellent mon overall.


NEW > B+/A-
Another Electric that's just not as good as Raichu. However, this one is definitely the best out of that crowd, STAB BoltBeam is fucking stupid and literally always will be, the only reason this is even down here to begin with is because the only Ice move it gets is Blizzard. Scarf has the issue of having some really nasty predictions you have to make though, and usually an Ice resist and an Electric immunity is enough to keep the fridge from running away with games too quickly. Also, the inability to run Boots in a meta with zero good removal and a weakness to rocks is tough, especially for an offensive mon whose strongest STAB option only hits 70% of the time. SubNP is awesome, but certain stuff does either require you to use your Tera or have very decent chip beforehand. AV Perrserker is this thing's worst nightmare regardless of set, and Perrserker is just good anyway. Good, but not quite great.


NEW > B+
FAT STEEL LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO. It's just regular Sliggoo but better in every regard, Body Press Curse can run away with games if you're not careful, it's just really fat and annoying and good at shrugging off hits, and the typing is wonderful. Lack of recovery outside of Rest definitely hurts it a lot, but bulkier team comps are gonna love this little dude for a few months until we get something better.


C > UR
The meta is finally starting to become large enough that stupid cheese is losing its footing and imo this should be one of the first to go. It's too slow and frail to actually do anything, that 117 base Attack chalks up to jack shit when you're not hitting anything with it. Dachsbun exists, Hisui Sliggoo exists, and we have much more in the way of strong priority and physical setup sweepers now. Send him straight to hell.


A > A+
He's still good and is getting better! Scarf Lycanroc is like, a top 5 mon in the tier right now and has been since April. It comes in and requires your opponent to respond immediately thanks to a very glaring lack of Rock resists, and most of what we do have is either physically weak (Tinkatuff) or can easily get read and smacked by Lycanroc's strong and ample coverage (Perrserker, Gabite). Stone Edge being consistent makes this thing an absolute monster that can completely run through teams not equipped with their own Scarfer or ample priority. Close Combat and Play Rough snuff most of your defensive checks, and the last slot can be filled with just about anything you want that isn't redundant. After it's clicked a move it's much easier to respond to, but by that point, Lycanroc has done its job. It is extremely difficult to prevent this from getting a kill just about any time it comes in and it is more than capable of running away with games after just a few bad predictions.

 

[Morge]

Alright quick noms of mons nobody cares about because why not

C -> D
This is the forretress of PU. You know its bad, I know its bad, lets just send this to blacklist and be done with it.
C -> UR
There's a million fire types in the tier by now and they're all better than raboot. If you want a physical fire type run like sd/dd zard, and if you want a physical fire type scarfer uhh, why. There's just better options.
B+ -> B
Extremely mediocre mon. Being able to tank basculin with recovery is nice but its got pretty bad 4MSS and now that we have an actually good spiker in the tier I'm just not all that big on this mon.
B- -> C
Speaking of mediocre mons, I have no idea when you would run this over misdreavus and I would even rather run banette, I just don't see the appeal, U turn is nice but compared to what the other 2 offer? Nah.
B+ -> B
I like rotom fan but rotom frost gives it HEAVY competition. Rotom fan does have the superior defensive typing but the offensive power of bolt beam is a lot to compete with. Its a good mon (and I would have probably nommed it for A- pre shifts) just kinda outclassed.

 

[termi]

Body Press Curse can run away with games

?

 

[LettuceLeaf07]

Was not ready to make noms with the busy weekend I have, but here we go.

A -> A+
Indeedee just feels really solid in this meta with Psychic Surge, and can dispatch dark types with Tera Fairy. Being able to block priority is a huge bonus, especially since some mons like Honchkrow and Zangoose use priority to claim kills. Indeedee also is a good scarf user, which helps it revenge kill those threats. Even with the amount of dark types in the tier, I feel that Indeedee puts in so much work.

UR -> B-
I don’t have the time or skill to get replays (or even calcs) for this, but I think Meditite is the best fighting type in the tier. With scarf, it hits 360 speed and outspeeds everything but stuff like Sneasel, Dugtrio, Persian, and Electrode. Pure power makes its attack stat like 358, which is pretty high. It can also run coverage moves like poison jab to hit Dachsbun. Just a mon that has juuuust enough tools to hit hard and fast. Underpacing Dugtrio really sucks though, and Meditite has negative defensive abilities on top of that.

S -> S- or A+
I feel like Misdreavus isn’t S-rank. Quaxwell stocks are down, and Missy is still good with being ghost and with wisp and other cool moves, but it isn’t as omnipresent as Skuntank (or whoever is getting voted into S)

 

[BuilderBe]

why was rotom frost registered as new when it isn't. I haven't caught up yet so someone please tell me

 

[UberSkitty]

why was rotom frost registered as new when it isn't. I haven't caught up yet so someone please tell me

It's ranked new cuz it just dropped from NU, alongside Zangoose. Also these kinda questions are prob better for Discord/PS

 

[UberSkitty]

ok ik I just made some noms but after making a new personal VR (link), I have some more noms I wanna make.

New -> A-
IK I agreed with the nom to A, but the more I use/see frostom the more I think it's a little too easily worn out, not the hardest to fish for Blizzard misses, and has some 4mss going on depending on the set. Still could see it in A, but slowly slipping towards A-.
A -> A-
Honestly, I'm not sure what to say here. Crab has just kinda "fallen off the rails".
A -> A-
Has a lotta "fun" sets, but its most common one, Scarf, just kinda kills itself with Brave Bird+SR damage, or at least puts it in range for the plethora of faster scarfers and priority users to RK.
A- -> B+
It's just kinda a worse Zangoose. While Squawk has its niches, the lack of coverage makes it much easier to switch into. Its best coverage outside of Facade is p much just Brave Bird, and with the SR weakness, Squawk ends up in the same situation as Honchkrow.
C -> UR
We had so many hopes and dreams for this mon. However, even with that great utility movepool that makes it look solid on paper, I haven't seen it do anything in the few games I've faced it. If I wanted a bulky fire mon I'd rather go with Camerupt or even maybe some wacky Charizard set, neither of which have to worry about taking 25% from SR.
C -> B
But enough negativity, lets get to a rise! While this is kinda a large jump, Stonjourner has gained usage as a Zangoose switchin, while also having the good matchup against other physical attackers like Skuntank and Honchkrow (those were the first examples that came to mind). I've been running it as a bulk SR setter, but overall it's developed an actual niche over Lycanroc

Disagree with:
A -> A+
Great mon by all means, but there are just so many switchins like Misdreavus and Gogoat. And that 4mss, having to choose between SD, EQ, Stone Edge, Sucker Punch, Tera Blast (usually Ice), Night Slash, etc. And it's kinda a subpar SR setter and voltblocker, two things Ground mons generally wanna be good at. But the biggest thing for me is prob that I find myself using Gabite on so many of my teams, and while they obv don't completely overlap, it can be hard to find space for two ground mons.
B -> B-
You say nobody is using Vigoroth, but I am here to save the day! (aka I've used it recently). It's as solid as ever, switching into a bunch of special attacks to fish for setup opportunities. With Taunt mons like Lumineon and Tinkatuff can't Encore it and mons like Vespiquen can't use Toxic/set up Spikes. Pairs especially well with Qwilfish-H, being able to Toxic stuff that would otherwise potentially threaten Vig. Also benefits from the decrease in Misdreavus usage.

Also figured I'd mention that people have added an S- rank in their personal VRs, and while I'm not saying to do that, it does kinda raise the question of where mons like Misdreavus, Skuntank, and Gabite fit better, A+ or S.

 

[Melt Gibson]

View attachment 524651

?

That's weird, swear to god I saw it have that in the learnset. My bad!

 

[I am New]

Also figured I'd mention that people have added an S- rank in their personal VRs, and while I'm not saying to do that, it does kinda raise the question of where mons like Misdreavus, Skuntank, and Gabite fit better, A+ or S.

Whats the point of S- if all S Rank mons r gonna drop anyway? Either keep missy in S and drop skunk + gabite and h-qwil to S- or put all of them in A+

Oh also goose can chip storn down till its at +2 facade range.
Though goose has nill longevity so it functions OK goose check.Though stone walling squaq is nice but squaq has roost and or u-turn outlasting u.
If they have wish dachbun u r screwd. Its the best we got though....

+2 252 Atk Toxic Boost Zangoose Facade (140 BP) vs. 120 HP / 252+ Def Stonjourner: 183-216 (49.3 - 58.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

 

[rien]

VR Update - June 11th, 2023

hello everyone, posting this quickly before i go to sleep so sorry that i'm not super verbose lol. we ended up with the addition of a new rank (S-) and a very hefty bunch of drops. as usual, you may check out every council member's individual votes and reasonings in the voting sheet (sensei axew has been inactive so it was only the 6 of us this time). feel free to reach out to me or any of the council members if you have any questions regarding the slate. happy pride month!

new
Qwilfish-Hisui NEW > A+
Rotom-Frost NEW > A
Sliggoo-Hisui NEW > A
Zangoose NEW > A-
Thwackey NEW > B-
Basculin-White-Striped NEW > UR

rises
Charizard A+ > S
Gabite A+ > S-
Tinkatuff A- > A
Lumineon B > B+
Electrode B- > B
Banette C > B
Pupitar UR > B-
Murkrow UR > C

drops
Misdreavus S > S-
Skuntank S > A+
Raichu A+ > A
Crabominable A > A-
Honchkrow A > A-
Indeedee-F A > A-
Squawkabilly A- > B+
Vespiquen A- > B
Camerupt B+ > B
Quaxwell B+ > B
Quilladin B+ > B
Grumpig B > B-
Vigoroth B > B-
Falinks B- > C
Pincurchin B- > C
Scovillain B- > C
Crocalor C > UR
Fraxure C > UR
Jumpluff C > UR
Raboot C > UR
Sliggoo C > UR
Swalot C > UR
Toedscool C > UR

 

[BuilderBe]

Jumpluff UR to B- im probs biased (i love jumpluff) but jumpluffs utility is really good it has encore,sleep powder, strength sap,switcheroo and it even has u turn for some pivots can go sub+leech seed, it has cotton guard to fix(ish) its awful defense and it even has swords dance to go on the offensive with acrobatics. Im even using it for sunny day shennanigans with my charizard as it's the fourth fastest usable mon in PU to use sunny day (dugtrio persian and sneasel are the top 3) and it works pretty well since its speed is so high it can get off these utility moves, finally it also has tera to get rid of its bad typing tera water and steel ain't to bad. basically what the post is tryna say is that jumpluff has lots of variety in its sets and shoudn't be overlooked.

I dont think it breaks past B- because of its meh typing,poor abilities and bad offenses but its speed and utility are what bring it up, Thank you for reading!

 

[Aurist]

-> B+
This lil thing is only getting better with time, reliably switching in repeatedly on most of the physical-based A tiers and pivoting around some special attackers too while still staying in the game. The longevity alone has me running this thing on a lot of teams. It also functions as a temporary check to a number of setup sweepers even if they hurt it. It's still got obvious vulnerabilities that prevent it from ever being an A tier mon, mainly that hazard chip sucks and it lacks threat outside of Toxic, but this thing is so persistently good I think it can only belong here.

-> A+
I know it only just rose into S tier but lately it's having a harder time switching in. Few too many games I see it function as just a couple of Rough Skin procs for me to think that it's S-tier crucial to a team. Obviously it getting value even in dead games for it is a part of why it's top tier, but I am finding myself considering other Rockers more often than I used to.

-> B
Sorry to once again nom a mon that's only just moved, but I earnestly feel that people have been underrating this mon something fierce. This thing eats up a lot of threats in the tier, I'm surprised its ability to check both special and phys Zard wasn't already enough for people to not drop it. I think people might be a little too hung up on the old set which isnt as bulky as it could be, I'm finding better results from investing more thoroughly into defenses.

-> B
Thwackey is proving a little more decent than expected partly due I think to people giving up on trying to run fully offensive sets like scarf. Grassy Terrain is a bit of sweet relief for other NFEs in the tier who are taking hazard damage every time they come in. 252hp Thwackey has good enough bulk to live some decently strong hits, Knock Off is invaluable in the tier and it's a decent pivot. I like to use Leech Seed as a 4th move to put pressure on mons that would come in on its attacks and emphasise the effectiveness of its Terrain. It's not reliably great but I think B reflects its usefulness.

-> B
I guess the theme of this post is "B- mons are slightly underrated right now". I think Spidops is matching up relatively well into the tier right now, partly because Sticky Web is decent when the speed tiers are pretty tight around the middle and partly because it's quite bulky and has some decent threat to it. The bulk + Circle Throw also makes trying to chip at it an annoying prospect. You actually have to think a bit when playing around this mon as switching can be a liability.

 

[GXE]

raichu back to at least A+, although personally would have it S/S-

truly do not understand why this mon dropped, using it on nigh every team is incredibly low drawback. there are 5 legal mons faster than it, and I'd argue 4 of them aren't good. it's perfect for a boots spam meta, not needing a choice item to be good. it's volts are virtually unblockable without gabite and even if you have gabite you're prone to facing some tera (ice or even water after a plot so you don't need tera blast). not to mention tera'ing into a type like ice or water gives you the added ability to temporarily check a mon like rotom frost (who also seems incredibly good and I wouldn't be surprised to see rise even higher). Lrod is incredibly important in a tier with virtually one viable ground type. its special bulk is usually good enough to switch in to at least one attack asw. don't understand the drop but would nom it back up

skunktank down to A. it has decent niches because of sucker and plot ig but this mon is outclassed by qwil, and qwil is so easy to slap onto a wide array of teams rn (being able to spec offensively or defensively). intimidate and spikes are amazing, and it's bulk with eviolite just makes this mon better to me

zangoose A-> higher than that

not gonna outright say this mon is problematic but it might be. it's drawbacks are pretty clear, can't run boots for hazards and poison chip sucks, BUT there's not a single viable defensive measure in the tier other than prediction and it will get a kill every game. i don't like comparisons to squak at all bc 1. it's not rocks weak 2. 96 vs 115 attack is massive 3. it has close combat. these guys are not the same