Resource National Dex Viability Rankings

R8

Leads Natdex Other Tiers, not rly doing ndou stuff
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National Dex Leader
Mega Latios
:sv/latios-mega: UR-> somewhere around B
I unfortunately do not have the time to do a fully fleshed nomination or explore the mon enough to have an exact idea of how good it is, but I used it enough to be convinced of its viability. It matchups well against certain BOs and Sun teams (sun teams in particular are shattered by it lmao), and pairs marvellously well with Kingambit, which can remove Dragapult and Walking Wake locked into Draco Meteor, and be annoying to scarf Lele in certain scenarios. Its matchup against Zard-Y, which people seem to be quite obsessed of atm, is of course a valuable trait to have in the current metagame. I think its best combination of moves might be Recover + Psychic + Aurasphere + MysticalFire/Substitute, sub being a very cool option to fuck with certain passive mons, Heatran, and Kingambit trying to sucker punch you.

Here are some replays:

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1842430851
M-Latios vs Sun (Appropriate music)

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1842444008-yjb7mz7cnr2tndkiock5n5gk1z0g88gpw
Pult and MTios forcing damages on MTTar, allowing volcarona to end the game.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1842427559-p6rehzfgnbmiql9q2edf14z5xahzzpupw
MTios endgame

Here is a post with a team highlighting the mon, even though I think much better can be built, as this team was done with restrictions in mind (see the current Blast from the Past round)
 
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Sputnik

Bono My Tires are Deceased
is a Contributor Alumnus
:diancie-mega: B+ -> A This is one of the hardest mons to switch into right now, hugely threatening to a ton of common Pokemon, typing gives it some switch in opportunities and you can run either Stealth Rock or Spikes depending on what you want to lay down. Magic Bounce is very cool too as you dissuade a lot of hazard leads and ur a great lead into Sun teams. Extremely cool mon.

:garganacl: A- -> A Gargler is still really broken, enormous threats to a lot of teams and yes it does need support to sweep but its sooooo good at doing so if you are willing to work with it, and honestly Rocker Garg is very nice on BO and some other playstyles as it has a nice defensive profile, Recover, and you make progress by just spamming Salt Cure. Def deserves a rise imo.

:landorus-therian: A -> A+ Checks Fighting-types and Ground-types, Spreads status and can Knock, good defensive tera user, can set Rocks and Defog, and can also be a solid Choice Scarf user for compression. Did I mention its good at all of these? Top Five mon right now imo def deserves A+

:kingambit: A+ -> S I can't add much that hasn't already been said here it's easily the most splashable Pokemon right now and is just the best mon in the tier if you ask me. If anything deserves S right now its him.

:slowking-galar: C -> B- AV GKing is a solid choice right now, Future Sight is great and you deal with Wake very well while being a nice pivot into most of our strong special attackers, which is something a lot of teams struggle to do consistently right now. Also absorbs Tspikes. Cool mon.

:tornadus-therian: S -> A+ Torn is still very good don't get me wrong but defensive sets sometimes have problems keeping up with the sheer power of the metagame and it does very little into some common matchups. Plot Torn is extremely good still but not very splashable. I do not believe it is on the same level as Gambit and Pult; its more comparable to Lando-T and Gholdie right now, which is still great but not S tier great.

:dondozo: C -> UR Rain isn't even that common anymore and it's SubSunny Wake food why is this still here.
 
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:rs/zapdos:
Zapdos B > B+

TL:DR: Static is very useful, but even beyond that Zapdos is a sturdy tank who can fulfill multiple roles with its base 125 SpA, Roost, and Defog, though I tend to prefer 3 attacks.

Zapdos is very threatening to the majority of the high tier physical attackers whether or not its actually on the field. It can act as a spin deterrent to Tusk, completely blanks M-Scizor, abuses multi-hit moves from the likes of Urshifu, and can disrupt U-Turn cores. Supereffective non-STAB moves like Zamazenta's Ice Fang ain't cutting it and Triple Axel from M-Lopunny might genuinely be scarier for the Lopunny than the Zapdos even if it does like 70%. I've found the Kingambit matchup to be really situation dependent, if Kingambit is already +2 with ~4 allies fainted then Zapdos will generally only be able to fish for paras to set up a revenge kill, but if the Kingambit is forced off the bench early Zapdos will be able to play the Sucker Punch game with Roost, your Electric STAB, and maybe Heat Wave. But this is not to say that Zapdos is this secret answer to Kingambit; overall, I'd say this is one of Zapdos' worse matchups outside of the obvious stuff like Weavile. On the offensive side, Zapdos hits hard enough uninvested to still be threatening if the moves actually land, the only super notable STAB resists are Tapu Koko and Excadrill.

B rank at the moment is a bit messy and I think Zapdos’ splashability puts it firmly ahead of the other Pokemon in that ranking. Its variety of sets, whether it be Boots pivot, Z-Move, or 3 Attacks+Roost, allow it to fit into so many teams, it it very easy to just slap this bird onto a team and find success.

Okay that's it, Zapdos is a consistently solid Pokemon as a physically defensive tank, defogger, and/or pivot despite so often living and dying on 30% chances. I want to keep this relatively concise and avoid too much stuff you already know, so yea Zapdos to B+.

Oh and PSA, Mold Breaker does not ignore Static

---
edit: To not double post, I'll list some other kinda unoriginal rises on pokemon that given me pain and/or success that I think isn't quite reflected in their current viability ranking:

:kingambit: > S - One of the very very best Pokemon in the tier, its bulk and unholy trinity of Dark STAB in Sucker Punch, Knock Off, and Pursuit make it tough to play around. Basically the first Pokemon you have to think about when building a team.

:lopunny mega: > S- - Not a complex Pokemon, but an extremely effective one. Fast and powerful, nothing resists it, it's constantly forcing switches, and it can be slapped onto any team with a free mega slot and do work.

:landorus Therian: > A+ - My favorite multi-tool. Lando is still able to do almost anything you want it to and excel at it, one of the most splashable Pokemon in the tier.

:garganacl: > A - Probably my least favorite Pokemon to see on the other team. It is able to be threatening with just Salt Cure and Recover leaving its other move slots open to fit a wider variety of teams with Stealth Rock, Curse, or Body Press.

:diancie mega: > A- - Hard hitting mixed attacker that's super tough to switch into while also bringing some important utility with its access to hazards and Magic Bounce. Turns outs 700 BST is pretty good, who'da thunk it.

:skarmory: > B/B+ - Excellent physical wall, one of the best Spikes setters in the tier, and can turn into a surprisingly potent an offensive threat with Iron Defense + Body Press.

:gliscor: > B/B+ - Gliscor in C is the biggest sore thumb on the VR for me personally. It's incredible mix of utility with Defog, Toxic, Hazards, and U-Turn combined with its bulk and recovery (both passive and active) make it such consistently good Pokemon that very much outshines its fellow C rank compatriots other than Glowking.
 
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adem

yap
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Dondozo c to B/B+ dondozo is an excellent physical wall that can deal decent chip on a rest talk wall set and can eventually sweep with enough curses set up on a curse set, overall a decent mon and c is far too low of a rank to do it justice.
dondozo is a horrible physical wall that loses the moment it gets knocked or spikes go up. half the games it spends asleep and abused as a free switch in. the only reason i can imagine that its not ur is that it is a very cheesy wincon against some badly / fishy ho teams, it does nothing at all against fat and even struggles vs bo/offense (if ferro, washtom, or gastro exist u are pretty much just as useless [90% of bos/offenses]), and even vs ho u jsut get taunted, worn down, abused very easily by most mons. if u are using dondozo 90% of the time u can rebuild ur team better without it.
 
Toxapex Pex B+ to A-/A seeing as recover had it's pp reduces it seems as if Toxapex is fitting here HOWEVER the reduced pp isn't that big of a deal certainly not large enough to put it down as far as an insulting B+ it has incredible bulk and an incredible ability in regenerator allowing it to switch out and come back in to take more hits later and one thing you can't forget to mention is a great moveset for its stat spread despite the nerf to recover Toxapex continues to be an extremely strong choice.
 
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Kyo

In Limbo
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National Dex Leader
dondozo is a horrible physical wall that loses the moment it gets knocked or spikes go up. half the games it spends asleep and abused as a free switch in. the only reason i can imagine that its not ur is that it is a very cheesy wincon against some badly / fishy ho teams, it does nothing at all against fat and even struggles vs bo/offense (if ferro, washtom, or gastro exist u are pretty much just as useless [90% of bos/offenses]), and even vs ho u jsut get taunted, worn down, abused very easily by most mons. if u are using dondozo 90% of the time u can rebuild ur team better without it.
Dondozo @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Tera Blast
- Curse
- Rest
- Soak

When you were partying

I studied The Dozo

When you were having premarital sex

I mastered The Curse Sweeper

While you wasted your days at the gym in pursuit of vanity

I cultivated God Awful Movesets

And now that the world is on fire and the barbarians are at the gate you have the audacity to come to me for help?
 

about15guys

your favorite pop idol
is a Pre-Contributor
post-ban nominations:
:toxapex: from B+ to A-
the king of stall's still got it, hands down one of the best water resists in the metagame for bulkier teams, and is hard as hell to switch into to boot with both scald and toxic. regenerator lets it come in near constantly throughout an entire match, and with one of the strongest special attackers in the metagame gone, pex can much more freely run physdef to check a good majority of the metagame, pairing extremely well with defensive mons like gliscor, who can absorb the SE things that would hit pex effectively

:kingambit: from A+ to S
basically the face of ndou right now, this mon is incredibly splashable and a very serious contender for the best overall mon, it can be fit on almost any archetype and be useful, easily the best pursuit trapper and resident tera abuser of the metagame, it got #1 on usage stats for a reason

:lopunny-mega: from A+ to S
same as above, can fit on and do well on basically every archetype, while also just being potent as a whole

:chansey: from B- to B
ok hear me out on this one, chansey has always been a little behind on the metagame, but with one of its main counters gone (ape) it can be very good for very bulky archetypes, with wishpassing being a full heal on basically anything, aromatherapy being surprisingly goodand being able to sit on mons like charizard-y and threaten them either hazards or toxic, while I understand it's not going on every team I feel like the raw bulk and support it provides is candidates to raise it up a tier

rapid fire shed nerf noms
:dragonite: from A- to B+
:gyarados-mega: from B to B-
:hawlucha: from B to B-
:cyclizar: from B+ to UR
shed tail got banned (thank god) so all the stupid busted ho screens shed tail sweepers got worse as a whole, volc didnt drop because it's got utility outside of just ho and functions perfectly fine on non-screens ho teams
 
Okay, Okay I know this has been brought up multiple times but it deserves it Kingambit A+ to S .
Holy fuck this thing is so good. To start you have 2 amazing abilities in Supreme Overlord and defiant, Incredible stats, Great typing, and a fantastic movepool. With swords dance this thing can reverse sweep someone, And with pursuit it can become an incredible pursuit trapper, I cannot stress how amazing this mon is and tera (for now) is the cherry on top. Overall Kingambit is a Killing machine and is absolutely deserving of S tier.
 
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Amstan

beebadoobea
is a Tiering Contributor
UR →C+

Because Annihlape has been banished from OU, fat is going to be one of, if not the best playstyle. I think Umbreon should be ranked significantly higher. Umbreon puts in ungodly amounts of work. With 95-110-130 bulk, it looks like it can sponge up hits like crazy. With an excellent support movepool containing moves like TWave, yawn, and Heal Bell. Additionally, it can wishpass or at least threaten a wishpass using wishtect. Foul Play allows it to deal actual damage.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 164 SpD Umbreon: 254-302 (64.4 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(you always live one and wishtect and switch out)

252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 194-230 (49.2 - 58.3%) -- 66% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery | 252 Atk Choice Band Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 292-344 (74.1 - 87.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(scout with tect and switch out to smth else)

252+ Atk Swampert-Mega Waterfall vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon in Rain: 186-220 (47.2 - 55.8%) -- 23.8% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(wins 1v1 with tect and foulplay or just switch out)

+1 252 Atk Umbreon Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Baxcalibur: 270-318 (72.7 - 85.7%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock(get rocks up and foulplay wins)

+1 252 Atk Baxcalibur Icicle Spear (5 hits) vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 260-315 (65.9 - 79.9%) -- approx. 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(switch in on the dd)

252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 5 allies fainted Kingambit Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(chip with foul play so you have a dying chance)

+1 252+ Atk Tera Normal Dragonite Extreme Speed vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 169-201 (42.8 - 51%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(foul play and wishtect stall out espeed pp or just switch out)

252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Return vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Umbreon: 159-187 (40.3 - 47.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(tera and you check mlop)

252 Atk Choice Band Zamazenta Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Umbreon: 127-150 (32.2 - 38%) -- 1.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(walls cb zama after tera)

252+ SpA Choice Specs Dragapult Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 175-207 (44.4 - 52.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(eats everything it throws at you)

+1 252+ Atk Dragapult Never-Ending Nightmare (175 BP) vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(eat a z thru tect and scout what its doing and tera accordingly)

252 SpA Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 186-222 (47.2 - 56.3%) -- 25% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery( tect and scout and switch around it)

252+ SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 306-362 (77.6 - 91.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(funny calc and you can wish tect and switch)

252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon in Sun: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(stalls out the sun so that you dont get fucking burned)

252 SpA Choice Specs Greninja Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 164 SpD Umbreon: 160-190 (40.6 - 48.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(stop the battlebiond or it beats u 1v1 and u need to use smth else)

252 Atk Tera Ground Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 182-216 (46.1 - 54.8%) -- 9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(try to predict sd and foul play--+2 252 Atk Umbreon Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Landorus-Therian: 366-432 (114.7 - 135.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO)

Umbreon can wall most all neutral hits and heal up. It can also scout out choice locked breakers using protect.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1840206285
Umbreon completely soloed this endgame. Using tect and switching around, umbreon helps pp stall string cheese man out of make it rains.At first iI didnt see this so I thought I lost, but Umbreon beats the gholdengo who is now out of recover pp and make it rain pp. It can no longer touch umbreon. Umbreon is also able to stall out the rillaboom who has already been toxiced earlier in the game. Umbreon also proceeds to beat the tran 1v1, sealing the game.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1827673111
A bit of an older replay, however it still showcases the sheer bulk of umbreon and its capabilities. Umbreon beats the teapot with a well timed tera and walls the celesteela coming in. After a bit of switching around, Umbreon comes in on the valiant and completely walls it, forcing it to switch out and letting vanilluxe ko the gyarados and winning the game.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1840190640-3zwqump82cs8u5tubpykv96a0odfwnopw
With malt as the defogger, it doesnt get much opportunities to defog off the hazards and my team struggles against lele. However, umbreon scouts what the lele clicks every time it comes in allowing the combo of pex + umbreon and predictions to switch around the lele. Umbreon also helps pp stall the ferro out of leech seeds to allow sub np torn to set up and pick up kills and eventually, lele and hoopa get chipped enough to die to rocks allowing me to win the game.

Umbreon is an insanely underrated fat mon right now, and I think it should be appropriately ranked. It fills as a glue on fat teams, but requires a decent amount of team support. However, with the correct support, I think umbreon could be one of the most hard to break fat mons on a team.
 

adem

yap
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UR →C+

Because Annihlape has been banished from OU, fat is going to be one of, if not the best playstyle. I think Umbreon should be ranked significantly higher. Umbreon puts in ungodly amounts of work. With 95-110-130 bulk, it looks like it can sponge up hits like crazy. With an excellent support movepool containing moves like TWave, yawn, and Heal Bell. Additionally, it can wishpass or at least threaten a wishpass using wishtect. Foul Play allows it to deal actual damage.
except it is demolished by spikes and overall extremely passive, with wishtect half your slots are gone, then i assume you run fp to touch pult and your left with one sole utility move

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 164 SpD Umbreon: 254-302 (64.4 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(you always live one and wishtect and switch out)

252 Atk Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 194-230 (49.2 - 58.3%) -- 66% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery | 252 Atk Choice Band Kartana Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 292-344 (74.1 - 87.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(scout with tect and switch out to smth else)

252+ Atk Swampert-Mega Waterfall vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon in Rain: 186-220 (47.2 - 55.8%) -- 23.8% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(wins 1v1 with tect and foulplay or just switch out)

+1 252 Atk Umbreon Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Baxcalibur: 270-318 (72.7 - 85.7%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock(get rocks up and foulplay wins)

+1 252 Atk Baxcalibur Icicle Spear (5 hits) vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 260-315 (65.9 - 79.9%) -- approx. 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(switch in on the dd)

252+ Atk Supreme Overlord 5 allies fainted Kingambit Iron Head vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(chip with foul play so you have a dying chance)

+1 252+ Atk Tera Normal Dragonite Extreme Speed vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 169-201 (42.8 - 51%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(foul play and wishtect stall out espeed pp or just switch out)

252 Atk Lopunny-Mega Return vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Umbreon: 159-187 (40.3 - 47.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(tera and you check mlop)

252 Atk Choice Band Zamazenta Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Umbreon: 127-150 (32.2 - 38%) -- 1.3% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(walls cb zama after tera)

252+ SpA Choice Specs Dragapult Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 175-207 (44.4 - 52.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(eats everything it throws at you)

+1 252+ Atk Dragapult Never-Ending Nightmare (175 BP) vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(eat a z thru tect and scout what its doing and tera accordingly)

252 SpA Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 186-222 (47.2 - 56.3%) -- 25% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery( tect and scout and switch around it)

252+ SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon: 306-362 (77.6 - 91.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(funny calc and you can wish tect and switch)

252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Umbreon in Sun: 171-202 (43.4 - 51.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(stalls out the sun so that you dont get fucking burned)

252 SpA Choice Specs Greninja Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 164 SpD Umbreon: 160-190 (40.6 - 48.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery(stop the battlebiond or it beats u 1v1 and u need to use smth else)

252 Atk Tera Ground Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 92+ Def Umbreon: 182-216 (46.1 - 54.8%) -- 9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery(try to predict sd and foul play--+2 252 Atk Umbreon Foul Play vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Landorus-Therian: 366-432 (114.7 - 135.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO)

Umbreon can wall most all neutral hits and heal up. It can also scout out choice locked breakers using protect.
ur calcimg multiple different umbreon sets, is it 92+ def or is it max spdef, lol u cant run both, half of these calcs are going to actually realistically happen since u can only use one set at a time. furthermore, a lot of these calcs just seem like a way to fill up space lol, ok u can waste wishtects and swap out of diancie, which u already do, whats the point if u dont stay in lol. stuff like 5 allies fainted non sd kingambit which u cant touch back?? some of these calcs are also on mons / sets which frankly arent used / common enough to justify, band kart (or kart in general lol), bax, offensive tera ground lando t???. this is a wall of calcs which really only like a quarter of them are actually relevant to any argument with this mon.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1840206285
Umbreon completely soloed this endgame. Using tect and switching around, umbreon helps pp stall string cheese man out of make it rains.At first iI didnt see this so I thought I lost, but Umbreon beats the gholdengo who is now out of recover pp and make it rain pp. It can no longer touch umbreon. Umbreon is also able to stall out the rillaboom who has already been toxiced earlier in the game. Umbreon also proceeds to beat the tran 1v1, sealing the game.

let me reword this for you, your opponent used a jolly grassy seed sd rillaboom, and a mega absol, already a pretty good sign of a horrible team to be used in a replay, your opponent also turned off his brain at the end and instead of clicking literally anything else your opponent spent 5 turns clicking recover???????? on the 32 damage, slower umbreon, and wasted his recover pps. umbreon easily lost that interaction if the gholdengo user realised that 100-32= more than enough hp to click nasty plot / mir lol, and even threw at the end by failing literally every sequence. tldr your opponent was awful using an awful team and honestly this replay would be more believable if you told me you paid your opponent to lose lol.
umbreon did nothing, it was all your opponents work trying not to win as hard as possible.



https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1827673111
A bit of an older replay, however it still showcases the sheer bulk of umbreon and its capabilities. Umbreon beats the teapot with a well timed tera and walls the celesteela coming in. After a bit of switching around, Umbreon comes in on the valiant and completely walls it, forcing it to switch out and letting vanilluxe ko the gyarados and winning the game.

3CF6DC49-1F9A-4523-A0DD-FA5BC92263EC.jpeg

do i even need to explain this, like, genuinely dude it looks like your opponents are trying to lose on purpose. if they terablasted there they won instantly, 6-0 no question, and even worst case you *did* tera fairy or ghost or whatever, shell smashing was a throw of a play since they rk you anyways with ice shard from vanilluxe. shadow ball or even stored power would have made more sense there, smash was genuinely the worst play they could have ever done outside of just switching out. umbreon did nothing here again, your opponent just turned his brain off. funnily enough, a teapot game is realistically one of the few matchups where umbreon could have realistically done something, but it didnt without your opponent turning off their brain.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1840190640-3zwqump82cs8u5tubpykv96a0odfwnopw
With malt as the defogger, it doesnt get much opportunities to defog off the hazards and my team struggles against lele. However, umbreon scouts what the lele clicks every time it comes in allowing the combo of pex + umbreon and predictions to switch around the lele. Umbreon also helps pp stall the ferro out of leech seeds to allow sub np torn to set up and pick up kills and eventually, lele and hoopa get chipped enough to die to rocks allowing me to win the game.

this is probably the only replay out of the 3 where your opponent did not try and lose the game on his own, but again its really not that special, just shows your opponent not geting any turn with lele correct, sacking half his team to toxapex, some reason not killing the malt defogging away all of the progress u made, like yes umbreon was a dark that game and did dark type stuff, and wish was sort of helpful with malt and torn, but again same concept with a different dark and a less hazard pained mon that malt that actually does something lol (unless this was pre bans), aka a overall better team. also they were using a hoopa :worrywhirl: with somehow the only hoopa u set that loses to fat??? (i also dk why they psychiced ur umbreon lol, ig scared of torn on focus but umbreon takes focus for days)
outlined the replays in the spoiler, see the red. sorry if i was too brash or w/e in these reviews, dont take it personally at all. its just that the replays were off a terrible quality and barely showed anything of umbreons potential, and on the contrary just showed how awful this ladder is lol.

Umbreon is an insanely underrated fat mon right now, and I think it should be appropriately ranked. It fills as a glue on fat teams, but requires a decent amount of team support. However, with the correct support, I think umbreon could be one of the most hard to break fat mons on a team.
completely disagree with this, poor glue on fat due to how reliant it is on wishtect (easily taken advantage of), its low threatening ability, and how utterly fucked it is by hazards.
 
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Sulo

pure heroine
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National Dex Leader
Got some nominations; I already posted about them so I'll be linking my reasoning here. I'll add a tl;dr if you do not want to look at that.

:clefable: B- -> B+
Good utility Pokemon and wincon, very dependable item removal + good Garganacl and Zamazenta check.

:gliscor: C -> B+
Already nominated this guy a while back, but I'd wanna go higher. Very, very good wincon on fat teams atm (and against them), can really do a lot more with its last moveslot if not Swords Dance with Annihilape being gone on utility sets.

E: Nevermind, I got some replays from some cool guys (lie) (they suck)
:mew: UR -> B
Mew is generally just a really good utility Pokemon, great bulk that lets it take on threats that lack super effective coverage against it, and can compress roles with entry hazards / can spread status easily. Replays below:
Replay 1 - Mew helps out early- and late-game against Excadrill and Kingambit respectively, the latter being a majorly important target since it won if Mew couldn't burn.
Replay 2 - Mew basically is the reason that the end-game was won here; it's bulky enough to take on Iron Valiant and staves off its attacks and KOes it afterwards.
 
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Slither Wing to B-
20230424_180731.jpg
Slither Wing is not only a fun Set Up Sweeper, but also an amazing Wallbreaker in sun and should be ranked higher. Here is why.

The first one I want to show is the Wallbreaker moveset with Choice Band.
The goal with this Slither Wing is to get in free with sun, which activates its ability Protosynthesis and gives it an ridiculous Attack stat of 718. With a Base Speed of 81 it's faster than common threats like Heatran, Dragonite, Buzzwole and (Mega) Tyranitar. Combined with Terastallization its damage output becomes incredibly high.

252 Atk Choice Band Protosynthesis Tera Fire Slither Wing Flare Blitz vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Dragapult in Sun: 372-438 (117.3 - 138.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

-1 252 Atk Choice Band Tera Fire Slither Wing Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 164+ Def Landorus-Therian in Sun: 253-298 (66.2 - 78%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 Atk Choice Band Protosynthesis Slither Wing First Impression vs. 112 HP / 0 Def Kingambit: 253-298 (68.5 - 80.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 Atk Choice Band Protosynthesis Slither Wing Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Swampert-Mega: 361-426 (105.8 - 124.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1849340597-4zslm9gckn0luvvubc28l1kr3wwrna5pw

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1849367475-xur7ro0inmm6c6snz12vesoom4wocifpw

20230424_195807.gif


The second and last one I want to show is a Bulk Up Sweeper.
This Slither Wing wants to come in (with sun if possible) and get a free Bulk Up or Flame Charge to increase its speed stat. Once it has done that, it becomes a very fast, strong and bulky Pokemon that can be pretty hard to stop if you aren't prepared for it.

+1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Tera Fire Slither Wing Flame Charge (60 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Lopunny-Mega in Sun: 310-366 (114.3 - 135%) -- guaranteed OHKO
(Thanks to Tera Flame Charge gets 10 points more Base Power for some reason lol)

+1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Slither Wing Leech Life vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Lele: 331-391 (117.7 - 139.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

+1 252 Atk Protosynthesis Slither Wing Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Garchomp: 409-483 (114.5 - 135.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO


https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1849388893-3g48xwj4zmqwv9y4znupfd8hgtlgm2opw

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1849408981-rvj3o2x6qpmebed3h0milzbf6nh6u3bpw

20230424_212542.gif
 
post-ban nominations:
:toxapex: from B+ to A-
the king of stall's still got it, hands down one of the best water resists in the metagame for bulkier teams, and is hard as hell to switch into to boot with both scald and toxic. regenerator lets it come in near constantly throughout an entire match, and with one of the strongest special attackers in the metagame gone, pex can much more freely run physdef to check a good majority of the metagame, pairing extremely well with defensive mons like gliscor, who can absorb the SE things that would hit pex effectively

:kingambit: from A+ to S
basically the face of ndou right now, this mon is incredibly splashable and a very serious contender for the best overall mon, it can be fit on almost any archetype and be useful, easily the best pursuit trapper and resident tera abuser of the metagame, it got #1 on usage stats for a reason

:lopunny-mega: from A+ to S
same as above, can fit on and do well on basically every archetype, while also just being potent as a whole

:chansey: from B- to B
ok hear me out on this one, chansey has always been a little behind on the metagame, but with one of its main counters gone (ape) it can be very good for very bulky archetypes, with wishpassing being a full heal on basically anything, aromatherapy being surprisingly goodand being able to sit on mons like charizard-y and threaten them either hazards or toxic, while I understand it's not going on every team I feel like the raw bulk and support it provides is candidates to raise it up a tier

rapid fire shed nerf noms
:dragonite: from A- to B+
:gyarados-mega: from B to B-
:hawlucha: from B to B-
:cyclizar: from B+ to UR
shed tail got banned (thank god) so all the stupid busted ho screens shed tail sweepers got worse as a whole, volc didnt drop because it's got utility outside of just ho and functions perfectly fine on non-screens ho teams
chansey is completely outclassed by boots blissey, i have no idea why chansey is even ranked
 

about15guys

your favorite pop idol
is a Pre-Contributor
chansey is completely outclassed by boots blissey, i have no idea why chansey is even ranked
252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Eviolite Chansey in Sun: 183-216 (25.9 - 30.6%) -- 15.1% chance to 3HKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey in Sun: 220-261 (30.8 - 36.5%) -- 63.8% chance to 3HKO

Even with rocks up, chansey is better at taking hits, since with eviolite it's got decently higher special bulk and much higher physical bulk, allowing it to take most hits better than blissey. The oppurtunity cost of taking hazards chip, while valid, isn't enough to make me want to run hdb blissey over chansey, since I care more about the much better bulk when facing threats like tapu lele and charizard y, with the blob's access to recovery I feel like the chip is much more negligable then on a mon like toxapex, which wants to constantly switch in throughout a match multiple times, while blissey and chansey come in much less often and can afford to take the 12% due to their significantly higher defensive stats
 
252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Eviolite Chansey in Sun: 183-216 (25.9 - 30.6%) -- 15.1% chance to 3HKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Charizard-Mega-Y Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey in Sun: 220-261 (30.8 - 36.5%) -- 63.8% chance to 3HKO

Even with rocks up, chansey is better at taking hits, since with eviolite it's got decently higher special bulk and much higher physical bulk, allowing it to take most hits better than blissey. The oppurtunity cost of taking hazards chip, while valid, isn't enough to make me want to run hdb blissey over chansey, since I care more about the much better bulk when facing threats like tapu lele and charizard y, with the blob's access to recovery I feel like the chip is much more negligable then on a mon like toxapex, which wants to constantly switch in throughout a match multiple times, while blissey and chansey come in much less often and can afford to take the 12% due to their significantly higher defensive stats
oh ok
 
I think normalium z porygon z with thunderbolt in first slot + ice beam recover conversion would fit in well around b or b-, it is an excellent cleaner and with 1 turn of setup can threaten a lot of the metagame and is bulky enough after setup to tank all relevant priority attacks (survives 5 fallen kingambit sucker punch easily from full with no bulk investment after setup). been using and seeing a fair amount with sucess around 1600-1700 on the ladder.

with electric terrain/screens support from tapu koko, thunderbolt will ohko most neutral targets that arent blissey and after setup it is only weak to ground making it tough to revenge since only scarf landorus or iron treads with quark drive boost really threaten to outspeed and hit it with super effective damage.

Replay ~1700 Porygon sweep (OHKOs Tera Dark kingambit from full) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1860367614
 
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I think normalium z porygon z with thunderbolt in first slot + ice beam recover conversion would fit in well around b or b-, it is an excellent cleaner and with 1 turn of setup can threaten a lot of the metagame and is bulky enough after setup to tank all relevant priority attacks (survives 5 fallen kingambit sucker punch easily from full with no bulk investment after setup). been using and seeing a fair amount with sucess around 1600-1700 on the ladder.

with electric terrain/screens support from tapu koko, thunderbolt will ohko most neutral targets that arent blissey and after setup it is only weak to ground making it tough to revenge since only scarf landorus or iron treads with quark drive boost really threaten to outspeed and hit it with super effective damage.

Replay ~1700 Porygon sweep (OHKOs Tera Dark kingambit from full) https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1860367614
You got a paste for the team in this post? looks like a fun one
 
Hey guys!
With the start of ndwc rolling around, the vr team has decided to do one last update before significant metagame development rolls around.

Kingambit:kingambit: A+ => S
Landorus-T:landorus-therian: A => A+
Tapu Lele:tapu-lele: A => A+
Garganacl:garganacl: A- => A
Toxapex:toxapex: B+ => A-
Zapdos:zapdos: B => B+
Clefable:clefable: B- => B
Gliscor:gliscor: B- => B
Iron Moth:iron-moth: B- => B
Kyurem:kyurem: B- => B
Skarmory :skarmory: B- => B
Manaphy :manaphy: B- => B
Baxcalibur :baxcalibur: C => B-
Hatterene :hatterene: UR => B-
Mega Venusaur :venusaur-mega: UR => C
Mega Latios :latios-mega: UR => C
Hoopa-U :hoopa-unbound: UR => C
Moltres-Galar :moltres-galar: UR => C
Cresselia :cresselia: UR => C
Mew :mew: UR => C
Dragapult :dragapult: S => S-
Tornadus-T :tornadus-therian: S => S-
Great Tusk :great-tusk: A => A-
Mega Scizor :scizor-mega: A => A-
Mega Charizard Y :charizard-mega-y: A- => B+
Pelipper :pelipper: A- => B+
Mega Swampert :swampert-mega: A- => B+
Weavile :weavile: A- => B+
Barraskewda :barraskewda: B+ => B
Clodsire :clodsire: B+ => B
Gastrodon :gastrodon: B+ => B
Skeledirge :skeledirge: B+ => B
Ting-Lu :ting-lu: B+ => B
Mega Tyranitar :tyranitar-mega: B+ => B
Mega Charizard X :charizard-mega-x: B => B-
Chansey :chansey: B- => C
Excadrill :excadrill: B- => C
Grimmsnarl :grimmsnarl: B- => C

And the following Pokemon have been unranked:
Cyclizar
Blissey
Dondozo
Iron Treads
Sandy Shocks
Slither Wing

If you guys are curious, a sheet of all the votes can be found here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gk0eF92SHYxganzmv9BEbVpkmTs3hMidOvxENL9rs_E/edit#gid=0
 
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LBN

is a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnus
UPL Champion
1683994163517.png

Guys cmon this takes up my entire screen. Jokes aside uh, yea this needs some work still. C Rank isn't much better by the way please make a C+/C-. On another note i think you guys were simply allergic to doing large rises for whatever reason, the last time we had an update before this was Zama suspect like 2 months ago, so a lot of my noms will end up existing to alleviate the fact that alot of mons were undershot.

-> B-
I'm gonna be real idk how you guys slapped this one in B. Hippowdon, Clodsire, Gliscor and Gastrodon all provide more useful utility, and it's vulnerability to knock compared to it's competition puts immense strain on it's ability to do the things you want it to. Yes it's got insane GSC bulk, but numbers are not everything when you barely if ever last in the fat mu as opposed to others.

-> B+
Nothing about this should surprise anyone. Gliscor has been killing it in NDWC, I've witnessed this Pokémon beat Kyurem 1v1 with Tera, and then snowballing the rest of the teamdown, or variations of this exact scenario multiple times. Incredible fat win con that dumpsters bulkier builds, while also being able to be a solid defogger who keeps rocks off very well. Absolutely incredible Pokémon.

-> A-
I'm not done raising this thing either. Incredible offensively, Flyinium-Z Sets are very underutilized and does insane work vs a ton of teams, while maintaining defensive use vs other styles. Gliscor wants no part of this thing either, and Blissey stocks are in the bin. Very good into Hawlucha teams too, and that Pokémon I'll get too soon.

-> D
This. Thing. SUCKS. I have seen plenty of slander for Hoopa-U and Greninja being OU by usage, but no amounts of slander directed at this vitriolic trash. This thing is genuinely worse than every single mon in C rank. Besides maybe Excadrill and Amoongus, but those two also stink. Checks things nobody struggles to check, does not check lele or fighting types well compared to Skarmory, and also unlike Skarmory, does not do a single useful thing into any team with Gholdengo. Does not keep off vs Heatran or Clef, and if your defogger cant keep off vs lando idk what you doing honestly. Zard Y is a better defogger man come on. Please UR this trash, this thing is just not good. Atall.

-> B
Do you want me to make the exact same argument again? Fantastic into Fatter teams, solid into offensive teams, helps vs alot of obnoxious threats like Kyurem, Gliscor etc, Mega lopp aswell. Idk how im expected to make the same argument again but uh, again, B or B- at absolute worst.

-> B+
I Apologize for my previous transgression and i hope the church of horseshit setup sweepers can forgive me. This pokemon is so stupid man i cannot begin to describe it. Tera hawlucha is perfect for individuals with room temperature IQs and need quick and easy wins on a dime. Tera anything for easy setup makes this mon truly a force to be reckoned with, and despise lmao.

-> UR
Glowking is just better at the job of supporting Arctozolt, who is actually very good, and if C+ and C- get created i'd nom him for C+, very solid threat and underexplored.

-> UR
This hurts. Unfortunately adding 2 incrediblely common counters to this thing and direct pursuit competition, aswell as the primary target being gholdengo makes life so hard for TTar. Landorus's continued Ubiquity, Tusk, Kingambit, Hippo, Gliscor, Skarms resurgence over Corv, tera in general, everything went poorly for Tyranitar this gen.

-> B-
Literal exact same arguments as last time, Cress is a solid check to tusk, good against sun, fatter builds without kingambit, and a good mu into gholdengo surprisingly enough. I highly rate this thing and I think it's on par with some of the things in B- (though 3 things there do not belong there)

-> D/UR
Mediocore hazards lead in comaprison to Landorus-T, who has taunt, a faster than tusk speed tier, and even then, most HOs would prefer using this slot for something more dangerous and less of a nothing burger suicide lead. Hot take but Greninja >>. Aswell as a mediocore screens setter where again, people would rather just HO with threats and have koko do double duty for screens + valliant support. Koko also is not kingambit fodder.

-> B
I'm surprised this didn't rise to B alongside 8 million other Pokémon. Tornadus may seem like a problem but Tornadus is realistically not that bad for Rillaboom, between tera rock/electric and CB glides doing a shit ton, Rillaboom is a solid team player and pairs fantasticly with great tusk, G terrain utility is very nice, and provides good anti lele measures, aswell as Valliant. Good mon, I'm getting tired of tryna type for mons i've already done...

-> B-
Nommed hands down before and i'll do it again, he's solid but idt he's a B rank mon. Awkward typing while not bad, isn't amazing, but is solidly threatening and can work on the right teams. It's matchups are decent, but relies heavily on natural bulk to facetank threats.

-> UR
Not sure why i'd ever use Amoongus over Clodsire, Toxapex or Mega Venusaur. All of them have distinct, superior attributes and with Electric/Psychic terrain being more prominent, Spore is less valuable aswell. Excadrill on the other hand is a middling abuser of the worst weather in the tier! Chilly Reception + Arctozolt claims bodies incredibly effectively, Sun off of Zard Y + Tusk and friends is still a viable strategy, and Rain needs no introduction. Hippowdon is a good pokemon, as is Mega Tyranitar, but Excadrill feels lackluster, and wants both Z-Moves and Tera to be effective, but is still frail and vulnerable to Kingambit. Tusk also is more than capable of doing the same shit Landorus-T does to it in a pinch.

-> A-
Send it right back up. I haven't the slightest idea why this dropped, Walking Wake being banned is unfortunate but does not change this thing being very strong as a breaker, while being a nuke that can threaten out Gliscor on demand, which is becoming more valuable as time goes on. Options to beat Heatran like Air slash have popped up, also making Skeledirge a clean flinch away from being worthless.

Most of my previous noms still apply, like Mega Diancie for A-, Kyurem to B+ and so on.

Now, for my big 2.

-> A+
I think Kingambit's omnipresence has pidgeon holded this mon down enough to go to A+. While not insurmountable, with things like Tera Fighting, Wisp Hex, or CB U-Turn, Pult has options to deal with it. However, a ton of sets are screwed over and heavily restricted in both the builder and the battle, at fear of Pursuit. Of course, Kingambit isn't on every team. But the odds of a team not having a Garganacl, Clef, priority users like Mega Scizor, Tera Fairy Gholdengo, and more lower end picks like Mega Tyranitar, Fini, and even things like Clodsire mess with what Dragapult can get away with. Overall, i find it not as easy to slap on teams as Torn-T is, and it's offensive capabilities have enough options to stuff both naturally and without too much fuss.

-> S-
Now this is peak pokemon. It's new movepool additions, being NP and Taunt, only Taunt is that useful, however it mainly bolsters the Suicide lead set. Being a fantastic check to Zamazenta, a good rock setter, knocker, Z moves are still amazing on it, and sets like Double Dance are still capable to see use to success. This pokemon does it all, and is equally splashable as Torn is, fantastic pokemon we all know it. He deserves S- imo
 

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