Metagame NP: Stage 0 - We've Only Just Begun (Welcome to SV NU) [Quickbans Post #142]

[plznostep]

Heya NU! While playing this tier i have realised that Zangoose might generally be the most scary mon in this entire tier. No, not because of Toxic Boost Facade sets, but its Belly Drum sets is almost unstoppable once you get a boost up, which is easily obtainable with screens support

Zangoose @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Immunity
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Power Trip
- Body Slam
- Quick Attack
- Belly Drum​

Let's start with the moveset. Power Trip (what were they thinking giving this Pokemon that move by the way) at +6 allows Zangoose to OHKO strong defensive walls like Sandaconda, Spiritomb and Vaporeon without the need for a tera. If you thought you could send in a strong Dark Resist like Umbreon and Foul Play, Zangoose can just hit you in its stab Body Slam, so that will not work. You will have to Tera Ghost and pray they don't predict and Power Trip you. The best counterplay you can find is Unaware Crocolor. Otherwise, You will not be able to wall Zangoose when it has got a boost up, don't even try it.
Here are the Damage Calculations to prove that;

Damage Calculations

+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Sandaconda: 345-406 (99.1 - 116.6%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Spiritomb: 381-449 (125.3 - 147.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Vaporeon: 549-646 (118.3 - 139.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Tera Normal Zangoose Body Slam vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Umbreon: 458-540 (116.2 - 137%) -- guaranteed OHKO

So, the main counter play people would have to use is Revenge Killers like scarfers, which is where this last move makes it absolutely broken. Tera boosts moves of that tera type below 60 base power all the way to 60, so Quick Attack is now a 60 base power move with a 2x boost, making it effectively 120 power. That power boost is crucial for OHKOing scarf variants of Passimian, who would be able to otherwise take the boosted priority move. Every other notable Pokemon is just OHKO'd by the move even without Tera, making your counterplay to Zangoose limited to just faster Ghost types like Oricorio Sensu and Rotom.

In short; very broken Pokemon, only way to deal with safely are faster ghost types in the tier and Crocolor, should definitely be looked at once the tier is out of alpha.

Edit: It has come to my attention that priority moves aren't boosted to 60 base power when Terastallized, after doing some research (aka a 3 second google search), it seems this is true but ultimately doesn't change much because that extra power was still overkill for most Pokemon so :P

 

[Perla]

Heya NU! While playing this tier i have realised that Zangoose might generally be the most scary mon in this entire tier. No, not because of Toxic Boost Facade sets, but its Belly Drum sets is almost unstoppable once you get a boost up, which is easily obtainable with screens support

Zangoose @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Immunity
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Power Trip
- Body Slam
- Quick Attack
- Belly Drum​

Let's start with the moveset. Power Trip (what were they thinking giving this Pokemon that move by the way) at +6 allows Zangoose to OHKO strong defensive walls like Sandaconda, Spiritomb and Vaporeon without the need for a tera. If you thought you could send in a strong Dark Resist like Umbreon and Foul Play, Zangoose can just hit you in its stab Body Slam, so that will not work. You will have to Tera Ghost and pray they don't predict and Power Trip you. Otherwise, You will not be able to wall Zangoose when it has got a boost up, don't even try it.
Here are the Damage Calculations to prove that;

Damage Calculations

+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Sandaconda: 345-406 (99.1 - 116.6%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Spiritomb: 381-449 (125.3 - 147.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Zangoose Power Trip (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Vaporeon: 549-646 (118.3 - 139.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+6 252 Atk Tera Normal Zangoose Body Slam vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Umbreon: 458-540 (116.2 - 137%) -- guaranteed OHKO

So, the main counter play people would have to use is Revenge Killers like scarfers, which is where this last move makes it absolutely broken. Tera boosts moves of that tera type below 60 base power all the way to 60, so Quick Attack is now a 60 base power move with a 2x boost, making it effectively 120 power. That power boost is crucial for OHKOing scarf variants of Passimian, who would be able to otherwise take the boosted priority move. Every other notable Pokemon is just OHKO'd by the move even without Tera, making your counterplay to Zangoose limited to just faster Ghost types like Oricorio Sensu and Rotom.

In short; very broken Pokemon, only way to deal with safely are faster ghost types in the tier and should definitely be looked at once the tier is out of alpha.

I might be wrong, but I think that the "technician boost" brought by tera doesn't work on priority moves. So Quick Attack included

 

[Lucario]

I might be wrong, but I think that the "technician boost" brought by tera doesn't work on priority moves. So Quick Attack included

The boost that Tera gives is for all moves of the Tera type. However, Quick Attack isn't necessarily 120 BP from their example. The STAB multiplier is 2x and not 1.5x, making Quick Attack essentially an 80 BP move.

 

[Perla]

The boost that Tera gives is for all moves of the Tera type. However, Quick Attack isn't necessarily 120 BP from their example. The STAB multiplier is 2x and not 1.5x, making Quick Attack essentially an 80 BP move.

Yeah yeah I knew about the "Adaptability" boost brought by tera, but I was referring to the "pseudoTechnician" one.
For example, before considering STAB boosts et similia, Trailblaze BP becomes 60 (if you tera-grass), but, if you tera-normal, Quick Attack BP is still 40, because it's a priority move.
Then you can consider STAB etc.

 

[Quite Quiet]

When you don't want to commit to any of the Flying types for Defog, enter Lurantis:


Lurantis @ Leftovers
Ability: Contrary
Tera Type: Fairy / Fire
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leaf Storm
- Tera Blast
- Synthesis
- Defog

It's not actually particularly amazing but this and Frostmoth are the only non-Flying type Defoggers we have access to; Lurantis being the only one to be neutral to rock of those. It helps that you get a decent matchup vs every other rocker bar Copper. We don't have Superpower anymore so it's stuck using special sets but it's not that big of a detriment since it's at least STAB, unlike Superpower. Basically, it's a C/C+-tier Defog option when you want to use your Oricorio/Braviary/etc. for something else.

 

[LadyLynn]

I might be wrong, but I think that the "technician boost" brought by tera doesn't work on priority moves. So Quick Attack included

The boost that Tera gives is for all moves of the Tera type. However, Quick Attack isn't necessarily 120 BP from their example. The STAB multiplier is 2x and not 1.5x, making Quick Attack essentially an 80 BP move.

Yeah yeah I knew about the "Adaptability" boost brought by tera, but I was referring to the "pseudoTechnician" one.
For example, before considering STAB boosts et similia, Trailblaze BP becomes 60 (if you tera-grass), but, if you tera-normal, Quick Attack BP is still 40, because it's a priority move.
Then you can consider STAB etc.

For reference, here's the relevant post in the battle mechanics research thread.

 

[Rabia]

@ Choice Band
Ability: Stakeout
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Crunch
- Psychic Fangs
- Play Rough
- Wild Charge

@ Choice Scarf
Ability: Defiant
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Earthquake

probably one of the more obnoxious offensive cores right now. the big dog is good at forcing mons to tera fairy and getting the damage on them for a late-game pass clean. meanwhile, passimian commonly makes dudunsparce, klawf, etc tera ghost and can easily bring in dog to crunch them.

 

[schlondark]

Lycanroc @ Life Orb
Ability: Steadfast
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Stone Edge / Accelerock
- Close Combat
- Trailblaze

Little known fact: did you know that moves under 60 BP (that aren't priority or multi-hit) will get boosted to 60 BP when Tera'd?

The technician part of tera seems like it could be useful with trailblaze (as a native grass type) as you boost it to 60x2 which seems quite spammable

There aren't many possible abusers of this, though. The best are cacturne, gogoat, and flapple and that's not a great selling point.

Tera Poison poison fang Bruxish seems like it would be a reaosnable option... if there were any fairies in the tier.

Tera Bug Pounce Scyther? Pounce gets boosted to 60 by tera then 30 by technician and another 60 by tera-stab

 

[Turtlek]

The technician part of tera seems like it could be useful with trailblaze (as a native grass type) as you boost it to 60x2 which seems quite spammable

There aren't many possible abusers of this, though. The best are cacturne, gogoat, and flapple and that's not a great selling point.

Tera Poison poison fang Bruxish seems like it would be a reaosnable option... if there were any fairies in the tier.

Tera Bug Pounce Scyther? Pounce gets boosted to 60 by tera then 30 by technician and another 60 by tera-stab

No, it’s only boosted if the power is under 60 after technicien iirc

 

[LadyLynn]

I think it's going to be tough to find real "abusers" of the Tera Technician mechanic - I reckon its generally going to be something that changes your move evaluations on a Pokemon you're using anyway, rather than something that is the primary reason a Pokemon is worth including.

 

[Pabloaram]

Can we stop talking about mechanic and start talking about the brokeness on some mons like Farigiraf and such??

 

[tom holland]

this is not gonna be a super detailed post bc I'm on my lunch at work lol, but I'll try to elaborate later when I have time.

Scyther @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- U-turn
- Quick Attack
- Aerial Ace

I know the usual angle with this mon currently is HDB with defog, SD, or both. However, with the proper team support, this mon wins games, period. This is (probably?) the strongest uturn in the tier. it's an easy momentum grabber that chips physical walls down quickly for either another cleaner, or itself. It also happens to have one of the strongest priority moves in the tier, which means it can break for itself late game. There are MANY games where I win because the other team let their physdef mons get weak enough for a quick attack clean, and they either didn't have a ghost type or they already let it go to uturn spam+teammates.

This set also has a good chance to ohko goodras with aerial ace depending on the spread, with minimal chip required. This is amazing in a tier where goodra comes in for free on many things and makes people take fat L's. It also is a great fighting check in most scenarios, and allows you to punish choice item fighting types.

Obviously, it's biggest weakness is stealth rocks. You would think this would invalidate this set, but in my experience at least it does not. If you know how to keep momentum on your side, it's relatively easy to keep rocks away long enough for scyther to do what it wants to.

I know on paper it might seem meme to not use HDB on scyther, but I highly recommend at least trying it out! It is a great momentum mon, with lots of utility within its traits. Choice Band gives you more immediate power, momentum, and cleaning Ability at the opportunity cost of not having to worry about stealth rocks.

I'll try to edit this with calcs/replays later!

 

[master oden]

Howdy NU, i've only been testing a bit but Oricorio-Pom-Pom is definitely super super strong here, but one thing i've been suprised by is that no one has tried using a Tera Fighting on it


Oricorio-Pom-Pom @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Dancer
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Quiver Dance
- Roost
- Revelation Dance
- Hurricane

This is basically a standard QD Oricorio set, however the Tera Type is the interesting part. Flying/Fighting are practically unresisted by the entire tier, and being able to turn into a Fighting Type allows Oricorio to set up on most Rock types as even their Ground and Fighting coverage cannot hit this thing for good damage. I feel like this thing is probably not gonna stay around for long, though, since it's really easy for it to get multiple QDs and get way out of control.

 

[Perla]

I know that introducing another Fighting type in a tier with Passimian , Medicham , Toxicroak and Tauros might be reckless and hopeless, but still I wanted to spend some words for a mon that didn't appear in the VR and that I think was already underrated in RU.



Falinks @ Adrenaline Orb/Mirror Herb/Sitrus Berry
Ability: Defiant
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant/Jolly Nature
- First Impression/Rock Slide/Substitute
- Close Combat
- Iron Head
- No Retreat

Falinks' biggest selling point has always been the move "No Retreat", but setting up with this mon has never been easy and you never reached the desired power.
I think that being able to tera-steel increases the probability of successfully setting it up and moreover lets you get the STAB for Iron Head, so you can even set up in front of mons that teraed into fairy and threaten them with the steel move.
The 4th move could be First Impression, if you want to use Falinks also for "emergency kills", or Rock Slide to have a more consistent tool against the Oricorios especially the Pom-Pom one . Substitute lets you avoid WoW or Thunder Wave/Glare.

CC hits all the other stuff,... but you definitely fear opponents' CCs (especially by scarfers), so some Sticky Web or Thunder Wave support is advised. But in general "steel" is a better defensive typing than "fighting" in lots of scenarios.


The item... can be really flexible in my opinion, because it can be easily adapted according to your needs. Even some "meme" choices have their purpose.

You can give the "Adrenaline Orb" to punish the usage of Tauros and Qwilfish (already punished by Defiant).
The Mirror Herb can be used to make some aggressive plays and catch some QD (then you tera and set up with NR).
Sitrus Berry is always reliable for more longevity.
White Herb (for CC drops) or Protective Pads are also legitimate choices.

 

[Danny]

I’m back, babies! Everyone rejoice.

Been playing lots of SV NU and wanted to talk about what mons I think are too good for the tier. Going to format this post by going over the broken and borderline pokemon. I will be making more posts soon but expect a post about the underutilized pokemon, some really cool sets I have seen or used, and a post about the biggest problem facing sv nu currently(hint: it is not the pokemon in this post). Without further ado, let's jump into it!

Brokens:



This guy is by far the most broken mon atm. unwallable coverage, a variety of viable sets and great bulk. It is simultaneously holding the tier together and breaking it. I have seen a lot of specs being used in the first round of the SV NU tour, mostly courtesy of Finchinator's team but also on other squads. Specs is extremely potent, especially with spikes support. AV is also a great addition to any team. It walls many scary special attackers and can also serve as a breaker with Acid Spray. I tend to run dragon tail on my AV Goodra as it can phase out most annoying special setup mons and also weaken Chansey and Umbreon after a few cycles of hazards+dtail. Another set that I have seen that is very scary is the Body Press set with dragon tail. Only walled by other tera fairies(it should be that), it still retains the bulk that AV has with the added benefit of becoming a late-game wincon.
In summary, it has too many sets that are not only viable but each one requires different checks. That makes dealing with Goodra near impossible. Some common mons that I have tried using to counter it is Haze Vaporeon but overall that is subpar as Thunderbolt stings, Sludge Bomb Poisons are ruining, and Dragon Tail chips the Vapo and stops it from checking other mons.



The second mon on my list of brokens and clear bans is the bird. Its bulk is surprisingly really great, and its quiver dance set is as dangerous as ever right now. I do not understand how a mon ranked in the 'Good Tier' in UU with several significant tournament wins in both the Kickoff and the ongoing Masters is even being considered balanced. Tera Ground allows you to nuke certain checks to it, live Accelerock better, and resist most of its weaknesses in general. Tera Fairy allows it to potentially get past Goodra of all things, and still retain its fight resist. I have seen a lot of Defog Ori-pom being used at the moment, and although I think that is a viable set, and arguably the best removal in our tier that lacks defog, I still believe that to slap defog on Oricorio-Pom-Pom is squandering its potential. Do not let its cute demeanor fool you this is a dangerous mon and should be banned immediately.



This is the tier of quiver dancers. The second best QD user, Venomoth is extremely potent at the moment and its only reliable check is Goodra(see a pattern?). It only needs one attacking move, as it should run sleep powder and morning sun in addition to its other two moves. I have tried lots of ter types on this mon but have found that a neutral one like Water to be best. Poison is also very useful, keeping it neutral to Goodra's coverage moves and stopping it from Sludge Bomb poisoned or Toxic'd after a QD. The one thing keeping it in line is Goodra. It can afford to run bulk as the tier is slow, or it can opt to go fully offensive and just muscle through its opponents. Definetly should be QB'd after Alpha is over.



This one might be closer to borderline bannable but the tier does not lose anything by removing this. Band is unwallable. It has a solid speed tier, and its movepool is remarkable at the moment. Scarf and Life Orb are also extremely potent. I think the strength this mon puts out is just a bit high for the tier at the moment. Our fight resists are marginal at best right now( I will make a post about the fighters soon) and all of them fold to this guy besides the middle-low tier Spiritomb(underrated rn ngl tho). Not as much to say about than the others but this guy is a snap ban imo because it is extremely strong.

Borderline:



Strong asf. Not much else to say about this besides the mind games that it forces. If you predict wrong you lose a mon. I will explain, if you assume it is banded you could keep your fast mon in against it to try and threaten it with a kill. If it is scarfed you lose a breaker. If you assume it is scarfed and decide to switch to a neutral phys def mon, you risk taking extra damage from a Stakeout boosted attack in addition to potentially losing your Sandaconda or Qwilfish if your assumption is wrong. It forces an unhealthy playstyle. I have seen one semi reliable check to it in Tinkatuff thanks to OnArceus. But the issue comes similar to Medicham check's issue, you are running a subpar mon to check a major threat and your team suffers for it. It has the perfect coverage for most things in the tier and its speed is very nice at the moment, it out speeds +Spe base 80s and has solid bulk for a breaker. I would keep an eye on it, my one reason it is here and not in the Broken category is its match-up vs the common offenses that might hold it back. All this said without mentioning the Tera Fairy set that is very common and dangerous as play rough resists that can switch into Crunch are nonexistent.

and

Bunching these together because they effectively force the same lines of play from different sides. A brief summary of Bruxish: Strong asf, can run SD or band, and is essentially unwallable unless your opponent uses a defensive tera. I will mention Cacturne shortly, it is a natural switch into Bruxish but the fish can run Tera Blast, but that is the only reliable switch and it is shaky at best. The other common counterplay is having a Vaporeon+Psychic resist/immune. This works in a vacuum but wrong wrong move and you either lose your wish passer or your dark type both of which are valuable throughout a game. Tera Dark Vapo is a common emergency button for when you face a Bruxish and it also has lots of other utility. HOWEVER, that leads me into the second mon. Clawitzer is exclusively specs, and although it is a slow breaker there is nothing that stands in its way. Togkey has been using a Tera Dragon set that is unwallable...except by Tera Fairy Vaporeon. The issue is you cannot check both, either sack a mon every time Claw is in or straight up lose to Bruxish. I would keep an eye on these. They are borderline and not a QB because Bruxish has bulk issues and a middling defensive typing(solvable by tera), and Clawitzer is slow. Would definitely keep an eye on these guys.



A tale as old as time. Toxicroak ravages the NU tier. Not going to speak as much on this guy as the others as, by this point, everyone knows what he does. He did get some new tools this generation, however, that I fear push it over the edge. Close Combat gives Toxicroak a strong fighting STAB move, making it an extremely potent physical attacker and wincon. I have felt that SD leftovers or Life Orb is the best set, however, Banded is a relatively underutilized set that can easily open up holes for other win conditions. The set that I have been using was what poh showed me, Tera Dark CC/Gunk/SD/sucker punch. Very strong guy that is extremely scary.



Once again, I am ending this category with a mon that I feel could be broken but also might just be balanced and fair. Dudunsparce has incredible bulk and many viable sets. I have used CM, Glare+Hex, Coil, and Stealth Rocks. The sets that make this mon potentially broken include the CM and the Glare+Hex. Coil is fine, but be wary of Body Slam Paras getting out of control. Glare+Hex is extremely potent and scary at the moment. I will make a post about how paralysis is damn near broken in and of itself in the tier on a later date, however, I will say that Dudunsparce's ability to easily spread paras is very dumb. CM is only checked by Haze mons in my experience. Keep an eye on this cute guy.

 

[schlondark]

Raichu @ Choice Band
Ability: Lightning Rod
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Nuzzle
- Volt Tackle
- Volt Switch
- Quick Attack / Play Rough


Tera-Technician heavily boosts Nuzzle turning it into a very spammable move (2hko's 248hp/0def Copperajah) with volt tackle as a great backup, volt switch as utility, and access to priority (especially given 110 speed is quite good currently) making a fairly decent revenge killer, pivot, and status spreader.

 

[Fragmented]

Hi, I did usage stats for the first round NU Kickoff Tour (hopefully nobody else was doing it too). A total of 66 games were played, but I could only find 65 replays, so the stats aren't entirely complete. Still, I think it's interesting to see the current trends early on in the metagame and how the tier proceeds from there (yes I am copying the UU Kickoff Tour post).

extra info

I did most of this in excel and copy/pasted the stats here, so some of the stats might be wrong, like Rank and Win%, but I think overall it should be correct. I included all the games from round 1, including the extensions. I also took the liberty to combine some of the forms together, so that's why there's only Dudunsparce and Sawsbuck instead of their alternate forms. If you want the stats for individual forms, then here you go:

+ ------------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Pokemon                   | Uses | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ------------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Dudunsparce               |   10 |   7.69% |  80.00% |
| Dudunsparce-Three-Segment |    7 |   5.38% |  14.29% |
| Sawsbuck-Autumn           |    3 |   2.31% |  33.33% |
| Sawsbuck-Summer           |    1 |   0.77% |   0.00% |
| Sawsbuck-Winter           |    1 |   0.77% |   0.00% |

NU Kickoff Tour Round 1

+ ---- + -------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon              | Uses | Usage % |  Win %  +
+ ---- + -------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Passimian            |   48 |  36.36% |  54.17% |
| 2    | Sandaconda           |   46 |  34.85% |  56.52% |
| 3    | Goodra               |   45 |  34.09% |  48.89% |
| 4    | Copperajah           |   41 |  31.06% |  51.22% |
| 5    | Oricorio-Pom-Pom     |   31 |  23.48% |  58.06% |
| 5    | Vaporeon             |   31 |  23.48% |  51.61% |
| 7    | Venomoth             |   22 |  16.67% |  36.36% |
| 8    | Jolteon              |   19 |  14.39% |  63.16% |
| 9    | Lycanroc             |   18 |  13.64% |  50.00% |
| 10   | Vespiquen            |   17 |  12.88% |  64.71% |
| 10   | Dudunsparce          |   17 |  12.88% |  52.94% |
| 12   | Braviary             |   15 |  11.36% |  40.00% |
| 12   | Medicham             |   15 |  11.36% |  26.67% |
| 14   | Hattrem              |   14 |  10.61% |  71.43% |
| 14   | Mabosstiff           |   14 |  10.61% |  50.00% |
| 14   | Drifblim             |   14 |  10.61% |  35.71% |
| 17   | Oricorio-Sensu       |   13 |   9.85% |  38.46% |
| 17   | Toxicroak            |   13 |   9.85% |  23.08% |
| 19   | Muk                  |   12 |   9.09% |  91.67% |
| 19   | Eelektross           |   12 |   9.09% |  50.00% |
| 19   | Frosmoth             |   12 |   9.09% |  50.00% |
| 19   | Bruxish              |   12 |   9.09% |  33.33% |
| 19   | Farigiraf            |   12 |   9.09% |  25.00% |
| 24   | Umbreon              |   11 |   8.33% |  54.55% |
| 24   | Whiscash             |   11 |   8.33% |  36.36% |
| 26   | Crocalor             |   10 |   7.58% |  80.00% |
| 26   | Haunter              |   10 |   7.58% |  80.00% |
| 26   | Chansey              |   10 |   7.58% |  50.00% |
| 26   | Jumpluff             |   10 |   7.58% |  30.00% |
| 26   | Morgrem              |   10 |   7.58% |  20.00% |
| 31   | Lurantis             |    9 |   6.82% |  44.44% |
| 31   | Houndoom             |    9 |   6.82% |  33.33% |
| 33   | Spiritomb            |    8 |   6.06% |  87.50% |
| 33   | Qwilfish             |    8 |   6.06% |  62.50% |
| 33   | Tauros-Paldea-Combat |    8 |   6.06% |  62.50% |
| 33   | Oricorio             |    8 |   6.06% |  50.00% |
| 33   | Zoroark              |    8 |   6.06% |  50.00% |
| 38   | Rotom                |    7 |   5.30% |  71.43% |
| 38   | Klawf                |    7 |   5.30% |  42.86% |
| 38   | Quaxwell             |    7 |   5.30% |  42.86% |
| 38   | Camerupt             |    7 |   5.30% |  14.29% |
| 42   | Spidops              |    6 |   4.55% |  66.67% |
| 42   | Honchkrow            |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Rabsca               |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Zangoose             |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Masquerain           |    6 |   4.55% |  16.67% |
| 47   | Scyther              |    5 |   3.79% |  40.00% |
| 47   | Vivillon-Fancy       |    5 |   3.79% |  40.00% |
| 47   | Sawsbuck             |    5 |   3.79% |  20.00% |
| 50   | Golduck              |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Indeedee-F           |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Veluza               |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Wugtrio              |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 54   | Basculin             |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Crabominable         |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Gogoat               |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Pyroar               |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Frogadier            |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Leafeon              |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Perrserker           |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Rotom-Fan            |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Glimmet              |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Appletun             |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Clawitzer            |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Eiscue               |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Tinkatuff            |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Ursaring             |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Cacturne             |    3 |   2.27% |   0.00% |
| 54   | Rotom-Frost          |    3 |   2.27% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Carkol               |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Electrode            |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Murkrow              |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Scovillain           |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Skuntank             |    2 |   1.52% |  50.00% |
| 70   | Magneton             |    2 |   1.52% |  50.00% |
| 70   | Ampharos             |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Delibird             |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Flapple              |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Squawkabilly-Blue    |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Dugtrio              |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Stonjourner          |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Toedscool            |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Squawkabilly         |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Glaceon              |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Hypno                |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Luxray               |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Misdreavus           |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Oricorio-Pa'u        |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Swalot               |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Greedent             |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |

I was going to write about each of the top ten mons in the tier, but I think most of us already know what to expect from them. For the unacquainted, here's a short run down:
Passimian is a reliable scarfer with Knock Off in a generation where Knock Off distribution is limited
Sandaconda has Glare, Shed Skin and Rest, making it an annoying lasting presence
Goodra nukes with Specs Dracos and tanks hits with AV. Physical and Special sets are both viable.
Copperajah is the best Steel-type we have. Heavy Metal Heavy Slam hurts a lot, and it can also phase with Whirlwind.
The tier's best defogger and Quiver Dancer, it threatens other Quiver Dancers by virtue of its typing. It also naturally outspeeds the common Fighting-types like Passimian, Medicham, and Toxicroak and threatens them with Hurricanes.
Did you know in terms of Wish passing and Calm Mind users, Vaporeon is one of the best in the tier. Its base 130 HP makes it difficult to kill and +1 Surfs coming from base 110 SpAtk can deal massive damage. Haze, Yawn, or SubCM Stored Power are other usable options.
It's this low because Oricorio and Goodra exist in the tier. It's still a threat to watch out for as Tinted Lens Tera Bug Bug Buzz can do alot. Sleep Powder gives it free turns and Morning Sun helps with longevity.
It got Calm Mind and better coverage with Terastallization.
Most of the Quiver Dancers are weak to Accelerock. Most people use it as a suicide lead, but it could run a Band set.
NU has a lot of fighters. There are no clerics at all. Vespiquen has Toxic, Spikes, Toxic Spikes, and 4x resists Close Combat. Pressure is also annoying when your main STAB has only 8PP.
If I treated the forms separately it wouldn't be here. Debates on two-segment or three-segment superiority aside, Dudunsparce can run a plethora of sets like CM Boomburst, Coil sets, and even Glare+Stealth Rocks. Terastallization allows it to negate its weakness to Fighting and allows it to become near unkillable.

Some other stuff:
Toxic and Haze is good in this restricted meta. Can tank at least one strong special hit like Goodra's Specs Draco. Curse sets are a thing, but personally I prefer SpDef Haze while Quiver Dancers exist in the tier. Access to Tspikes is also a plus.
Should be used more. It trades coverage for a better speed tier. BU Trailblaze is a genuine threat. Raging Bull can be a thing to deal with Screens teams.
Botherline broken mon, hard to switch into.
This thing has a 100% win rate somehow. Gogoaters stay winning.

edit

missed a game, reuploaded stats, should be more accurate now.
total games played should be 67, total replays available is 66.
the usages are slightly affected, but there isn't any major shifts.

 

[tom holland]

something that stood out to me outright with those usage stats is the usage of hattrem and its winrate. There has been a lot of back and forth I feel like on whether it's worthwhile to use as an option against hazards, and I feel like this round at least is pointing towards yes in these early stages. Here is a set I've been running with.



Hattrem @ Eviolite
Ability: Magic Bounce
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
- Healing Wish
- Nuzzle
- Psychic
- Charm

The fourth move is really filler for me, I tend to alternate between charm and dazz for my last move depending on the team. Charm has some surprising utility, being a helpful panic button against certain physical threats to expand my options against them. For example, it can charm down a coil dudunsparce if needed. It is pretty niche though from my experience; I just don't get enough mileage out of dazz oftentimes.

What has been yalls experience with hattrem so far? And have you been running different sets/spreads? This one has been putting work in for me with the para-utility, magic bounce, healing wish support, etc.

 

[EonX]

Hm, what these Kickoff Tour stats tell me is that Balance is alive and very well. Excluding Jolteon, the 4 highest winrates in the top 15 of usage are all Pokemon you're likely to find on balance teams. Sandaconda, Vespiquen, and Oricorio work super well together as it gives you a hazard core, status in Toxic and Glare, and all 3 have reliable recovery to stick around for the long haul. Vesp also has a slow U-turn to help the offensive members of Balance teams get in more reliably while Oricorio provides the core with a win condition thanks to its access to Quiver Dance. Hattrem is the other and it provides a way to deny entry hazards for the opponent while also having Nuzzle to spread paralysis. Moving beyond the top 16 in usage and expanding to those appearing in at least 10 battles, this trend even continues:

Muk is incredibly versatile for Balance and Stall teams thanks to Toxic, Haze, and great natural special bulk to handle at least one hit from Goodra. Also does well against the QD trio. Crocalor sits at an 80% win rate and it's pretty easy to see why. Good typing to handle QD mons in conjunction with Unaware and max SpDef Eviolite bulk and Encore + Yawn to force switches. Umbreon also having an above 50% win rate is not shocking as it's probably the best Wish passer the tier has. Haunter is a sleeping menace with only 10 uses, but a strong 80% win rate to show that more people should probably be using this as a way to break common defensive cores and have the Speed to threaten offensive teams as well.

It's also pretty easy to see what the participants were prepared to face in the early meta: despite its incredible power, Medicham has the 3rd lowest win rate among the top 23 usage Pokemon sitting at a paltry 26.6% win rate. While some of this can be blamed on team matchups, it's obvious that Fighting types are public enemy #1 when it comes to teambuilding and you better be doing something else than just clicking CC to win. (see Passimian with Knock + U-turn utility or Tauros's Intimidate + high Speed tier) Drifblim and Oricorio-Sensu's low win rates also suggest that your Fighting answer better not be weak to Knock Off, which would also be further backed by the high win rates of Vespiquen and Muk as they are Fighting resists not weak to Knock Off. Lastly, Jolteon's high win rate is a great reminder that having good power alongside a high natural Speed tier is something that should NOT be under-valued. Ground-types aside from Sandaconda (which commonly Teras defensively) are pretty subpar which will often mean that Jolteon is free to spam Volt Switch until it can clean with Thunderbolt. Calm Mind + Tera is also threatening and perhaps the most telling statistic to support that a high natural Speed tier is crucial right now is that Jolteon is the ONLY strictly offensive Pokemon with more than 10 uses with an above 60% win rate. Some of this is obviously due to stuff like Goodra and Passimian being stuck in battles against each other due to how common (and good) they are, but stats are still stats.

 

[chillwaffles]

Hi, I'm here to promote a strong Wall-Breaker/Sweeper, and that is Lycanroc-Midnight.

Lycanroc-Midnight @ Life Orb
Ability: No Guard
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Trailblaze
- Stone Edge
- Play Rough

I initially tried it with Loaded Dice Rock Blast but I couldn't secure the KOs that I needed so I swapped it for Life Orb. No Guard is seriously a great ability as I don't have to worry about missing my rock moves unlike Lycanroc-Dawn or Klawf.

Trailblaze allows it to hit OHKO Sandacondas after a SD, and gives it the speed to outspeed Scarf Passimion and Medicham (You can run 285 Speed as a minimum if you want).

100% Accuracy Play Rough helps secure kills against Fighting types except for Toxicroak, although that gets OHKO'd after a +2. This moveset makes it weak to Steel-Teras or Copperajah but the latter is quite frail and chipping it with Stone Edges ain't terrible.

 

[iLiekMudkipz_]

Hi, I did usage stats for the first round NU Kickoff Tour (hopefully nobody else was doing it too). A total of 66 games were played, but I could only find 65 replays, so the stats aren't entirely complete. Still, I think it's interesting to see the current trends early on in the metagame and how the tier proceeds from there (yes I am copying the UU Kickoff Tour post).

useless addendum

I did most of this in excel and copy/pasted the stats here, so some of the stats might be wrong, like Rank and Win%, but I think overall it should be correct. I included all the games from round 1, including the extensions. I also took the liberty to combine some of the forms together, so that's why there's only Dudunsparce and Sawsbuck instead of their alternate forms. If you want the stats for individual forms, then here you go:

+ ------------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Pokemon                   | Uses | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ------------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Dudunsparce               |   10 |   7.69% |  80.00% |
| Dudunsparce-Three-Segment |    7 |   5.38% |  14.29% |
| Sawsbuck-Autumn           |    3 |   2.31% |  33.33% |
| Sawsbuck-Summer           |    1 |   0.77% |   0.00% |
| Sawsbuck-Winter           |    1 |   0.77% |   0.00% |

NU Kickoff Tour Round 1

+ ---- + -------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon              | Uses | Usage % |  Win %  +
+ ---- + -------------------- + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Passimian            |   48 |  36.36% |  54.17% |
| 2    | Sandaconda           |   46 |  34.85% |  56.52% |
| 3    | Goodra               |   45 |  34.09% |  48.89% |
| 4    | Copperajah           |   41 |  31.06% |  51.22% |
| 5    | Oricorio-Pom-Pom     |   31 |  23.48% |  58.06% |
| 5    | Vaporeon             |   31 |  23.48% |  51.61% |
| 7    | Venomoth             |   22 |  16.67% |  36.36% |
| 8    | Jolteon              |   19 |  14.39% |  63.16% |
| 9    | Lycanroc             |   18 |  13.64% |  50.00% |
| 10   | Vespiquen            |   17 |  12.88% |  64.71% |
| 10   | Dudunsparce          |   17 |  12.88% |  52.94% |
| 12   | Braviary             |   15 |  11.36% |  40.00% |
| 12   | Medicham             |   15 |  11.36% |  26.67% |
| 14   | Hattrem              |   14 |  10.61% |  71.43% |
| 14   | Mabosstiff           |   14 |  10.61% |  50.00% |
| 14   | Drifblim             |   14 |  10.61% |  35.71% |
| 17   | Oricorio-Sensu       |   13 |   9.85% |  38.46% |
| 17   | Toxicroak            |   13 |   9.85% |  23.08% |
| 19   | Muk                  |   12 |   9.09% |  91.67% |
| 19   | Eelektross           |   12 |   9.09% |  50.00% |
| 19   | Frosmoth             |   12 |   9.09% |  50.00% |
| 19   | Bruxish              |   12 |   9.09% |  33.33% |
| 19   | Farigiraf            |   12 |   9.09% |  25.00% |
| 24   | Umbreon              |   11 |   8.33% |  54.55% |
| 24   | Whiscash             |   11 |   8.33% |  36.36% |
| 26   | Crocalor             |   10 |   7.58% |  80.00% |
| 26   | Haunter              |   10 |   7.58% |  80.00% |
| 26   | Chansey              |   10 |   7.58% |  50.00% |
| 26   | Jumpluff             |   10 |   7.58% |  30.00% |
| 26   | Morgrem              |   10 |   7.58% |  20.00% |
| 31   | Lurantis             |    9 |   6.82% |  44.44% |
| 31   | Houndoom             |    9 |   6.82% |  33.33% |
| 33   | Spiritomb            |    8 |   6.06% |  87.50% |
| 33   | Qwilfish             |    8 |   6.06% |  62.50% |
| 33   | Tauros-Paldea-Combat |    8 |   6.06% |  62.50% |
| 33   | Oricorio             |    8 |   6.06% |  50.00% |
| 33   | Zoroark              |    8 |   6.06% |  50.00% |
| 38   | Rotom                |    7 |   5.30% |  71.43% |
| 38   | Klawf                |    7 |   5.30% |  42.86% |
| 38   | Quaxwell             |    7 |   5.30% |  42.86% |
| 38   | Camerupt             |    7 |   5.30% |  14.29% |
| 42   | Spidops              |    6 |   4.55% |  66.67% |
| 42   | Honchkrow            |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Rabsca               |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Zangoose             |    6 |   4.55% |  50.00% |
| 42   | Masquerain           |    6 |   4.55% |  16.67% |
| 47   | Scyther              |    5 |   3.79% |  40.00% |
| 47   | Vivillon-Fancy       |    5 |   3.79% |  40.00% |
| 47   | Sawsbuck             |    5 |   3.79% |  20.00% |
| 50   | Golduck              |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Indeedee-F           |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Veluza               |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 50   | Wugtrio              |    4 |   3.03% |  50.00% |
| 54   | Basculin             |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Crabominable         |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Gogoat               |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Pyroar               |    3 |   2.27% | 100.00% |
| 54   | Frogadier            |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Leafeon              |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Perrserker           |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Rotom-Fan            |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Glimmet              |    3 |   2.27% |  66.67% |
| 54   | Appletun             |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Clawitzer            |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Eiscue               |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Tinkatuff            |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Ursaring             |    3 |   2.27% |  33.33% |
| 54   | Cacturne             |    3 |   2.27% |   0.00% |
| 54   | Rotom-Frost          |    3 |   2.27% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Carkol               |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Electrode            |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Murkrow              |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Scovillain           |    2 |   1.52% | 100.00% |
| 70   | Skuntank             |    2 |   1.52% |  50.00% |
| 70   | Magneton             |    2 |   1.52% |  50.00% |
| 70   | Ampharos             |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Delibird             |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Flapple              |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 70   | Squawkabilly-Blue    |    2 |   1.52% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Dugtrio              |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Stonjourner          |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Toedscool            |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Squawkabilly         |    1 |   0.76% | 100.00% |
| 80   | Glaceon              |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Hypno                |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Luxray               |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Misdreavus           |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Oricorio-Pa'u        |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Swalot               |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |
| 80   | Greedent             |    1 |   0.76% |   0.00% |

I was going to write about each of the top ten mons in the tier, but I think most of us already know what to expect from them. For the unacquainted, here's a short run down:
Passimian is a reliable scarfer with Knock Off in a generation where Knock Off distribution is limited
Sandaconda has Glare, Shed Skin and Rest, making it an annoying lasting presence
Goodra nukes with Specs Dracos and tanks hits with AV. Physical and Special sets are both viable.
Copperajah is the best Steel-type we have. Heavy Metal Heavy Slam hurts a lot, and it can also phase with Whirlwind.
The tier's best defogger and Quiver Dancer, it threatens other Quiver Dancers by virtue of its typing. It also naturally outspeeds the common Fighting-types like Passimian, Medicham, and Toxicroak and threatens them with Hurricanes.
Did you know in terms of Wish passing and Calm Mind users, Vaporeon is one of the best in the tier. Its base 130 HP makes it difficult to kill and +1 Surfs coming from base 110 SpAtk can deal massive damage. Haze, Yawn, or SubCM Stored Power are other usable options.
It's this low because Oricorio and Goodra exist in the tier. It's still a threat to watch out for as Tinted Lens Tera Bug Bug Buzz can do alot. Sleep Powder gives it free turns and Morning Sun helps with longevity.
It got Calm Mind and better coverage with Terastallization.
Most of the Quiver Dancers are weak to Accelerock. Most people use it as a suicide lead, but it could run a Band set.
NU has a lot of fighters. There are no clerics at all. Vespiquen has Toxic, Spikes, Toxic Spikes, and 4x resists Close Combat. Pressure is also annoying when your main STAB has only 8PP.
If I treated the forms separately it wouldn't be here. Debates on two-segment or three-segment superiority aside, Dudunsparce can run a plethora of sets like CM Boomburst, Coil sets, and even Glare+Stealth Rocks. Terastallization allows it to negate its weakness to Fighting and allows it to become near unkillable.

Some other stuff:
Toxic and Haze is good in this restricted meta. Can tank at least one strong special hit like Goodra's Specs Draco. Curse sets are a thing, but personally I prefer SpDef Haze while Quiver Dancers exist in the tier. Access to Tspikes is also a plus.
Should be used more. It trades coverage for a better speed tier. BU Trailblaze is a genuine threat. Raging Bull can be a thing to deal with Screens teams.
Botherline broken mon, hard to switch into.
This thing has a 100% win rate somehow. Gogoaters stay winning.

edit

missed a game, reuploaded stats, should be more accurate now.
total games played should be 67, total replays available is 66.
the usages are slightly affected, but there isn't any major shifts.

i was one of the 2 scovillain users and 3 frogadier users

also Mabostiff is honestly one of the best mons in the tier

 

[plznostep]

Heya, it's me again : D

I'm back to shed some light on a Pokemon that's been actually pretty cool to use here due to its offensive presence having an amazing stab pairing and bulk when combined with a Assault Vest, and that mon is



Crabominable!
(clisk on the crab for the set)
Crab getting access to Tera means it can finally get out of that bad defensive typing and dawn an AV set, with Drain Punch as a great way to get passive recovery. Tera Fairy is nice to sponge hits from Goodra and threaten it with Ice Hammer in return. Crabominable's stab combination is also really nice for this tier because a lot of the common Fighting Resists are weak to Ice such as the Oricorio's and the Poisons are hit hard by Earthquake as well. Thunder Punch is there so you can chunk Vaporeon when you need too as well. For partners, I used Vaporeon to help it keep healthy throughout a game, because even though Drain Punch is great i find that sometimes i get a little low on HP, and Crab also can help versus mons that Vaporeon might be afraid of such as Goodra and Oricorio Pom Pom once tera'd.

So um, yeah. Is it Niche? Most definitely but i find it really amusing in how it performs and i urge people to try it out for themselves, it's very fun to use.​

 

[Catalisador]

Hey, y'all! I wanted to share a set I've been using:


Veluza @ Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
Ability: Mold Breaker
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fillet Away
- Stored Power
- Recover
- Substitute / Surf

At first, after testing a bit with offensive Fillet Away, I thought Veluza was gonna end up being an underwhelming pick. However, I've recently been spamming a bulky variant of Veluza capable of checking and setting up in front of the likes of Bruxish, Medicham, Tauros-Paldea, etc. and bulkier walls. It has performed decently so far and offers a solid secondary wincon to teams.

252 Atk Choice Band Pure Power Medicham Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 248+ Def Veluza: 158-186 (41.2 - 48.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 Atk Life Orb Strong Jaw Bruxish Psychic Fangs vs. 248 HP / 248+ Def Veluza: 103-121 (26.8 - 31.5%) -- guaranteed 4HKO

 

[Fragmented]

Hey, y'all! I wanted to share a set I've been using:


Veluza @ Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
Ability: Mold Breaker
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Def / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fillet Away
- Stored Power
- Recover
- Substitute / Surf

At first, after testing a bit with offensive Fillet Away, I thought Veluza was gonna end up being an underwhelming pick. However, I've recently been spamming a bulky variant of Veluza capable of checking and setting up in front of the likes of Bruxish, Medicham, Tauros-Paldea, etc. and bulkier walls. It has performed decently so far and offers a solid secondary wincon to teams.

252 Atk Choice Band Pure Power Medicham Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 248+ Def Veluza: 158-186 (41.2 - 48.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 Atk Life Orb Strong Jaw Bruxish Psychic Fangs vs. 248 HP / 248+ Def Veluza: 103-121 (26.8 - 31.5%) -- guaranteed 4HKO

Just a minor nitpick, but you'd probably want either 244 HP or 252 HP to get to an even number so that Sitrus procs at 50%.

 

[Melons-N-Soda]

Cacturne @ Focus Sash
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Spikes / Toxic Spikes
- Sucker Punch
- Giga Drain
- Dark Pulse

A niche pick for sure, but seeing this guy on the VR made me wanna try him out, turns out he's not that bad. ATM he's able to completely blank both Bruxish and Veluza minus Tera Blast Fairy/Fighting variants that might pop up here and there, and when hazard removal is scarce, any mon that can get at least a Spikes layer up is neat. Cacturne's no slouch offensively either, Dark Pulse hits harder than you might expect, and even less invested Sucker Punches can get the job done if need be. I prefer T-Spikes but Spikes is more practical in most cases. The movepool in general is a bit deeper than you might expect, there's options like Fighting coverage, Destiny Bond, or Leaf Storm and w/e else. Tera Ghost is for spinblocking purposes and so you can catch blind CC attempts from the Fighters + Lycanroc (who Cacturne has a nice matchup against which helps in the hazard lead war).

Indeedee-F (F) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
Tera Type: Psychic
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball
- Healing Wish

Also a quick shoutout to Indeedee-F who even without Expanding Force hits really hard and still blanks priority which is neat for a sweeper. Healing Wish gets a mention as its one of the only ways of curing status ATM.