Metagame Re-Evolution

[Catcus]

I lost my other account (Catcus111111111111) so I made this btw,

anyways heres my thoughts on the survey


How balanced do you think Ceruledge is? 2
haven't had too many issues with this guy. definitely good, but weak armor sets lose it lokix and quagsire beats most sets anyways. life orb can be annoying but has normal life orb problems. might eventually be a bigger issue but its fine for now

How balanced do you think Armarouge is? 3
slightly better than ceru imo. STAB psyshock lets break through clodsire and some other walls. can run hdb spec or even scarf. i think its still fine for now but i think it could be a bit more of a problem later.

How balanced you think Clodsire is? 3
its fine, its a good wall but not unbreakable. its might be bannable but right now its holding back a lot of threats

How balanced you think Gallade is? 5
it might just be me but this thing seems really hard to deal with. its stabs let it break through almost every popular physical wall, and moves like leaf blade can break the rest. on top of that, it isnt even that weak defensively either. it feels like the most op mon in the meta and id hope for a ban.

How balanced you think Baxcalibur is? 1
ive seen like two on ladder so i cant say that much lmao

How balanced you think Noivern is? 2
Really good, but not broken. its mainly just a pivot and thats it

How balanced you think Volcarona is? 2
its really hard to tell if its broken or not since straightcant beat clodsire

Anything not listed that you think should be looked at?
espathra feel almost unbeatable unless you run something like ttar.

 

[InkyDarkBird]

Houndstone and Basculegion should be unbanned and Last Respects should be banned to maintain consistency with Smogon tiering policy.
The main reason these two Pokemon are used are for Last Respects and not much else.

 

[KaenSoul]

Houndstone and Basculegion should be unbanned and Last Respects should be banned to maintain consistency with Smogon tiering policy.
The main reason these two Pokemon are used are for Last Respects and not much else.

I think you may be misunderstanding things here, as while Houndstone and Basculegion-M are banned, Basculegion-F has been legal this whole time and it hasn't been a problem, it shows that this tier can have a fully evolved Last Respects users that isn't broken. That's consistent with tiering policy.
And even if we do that, what would be the point? Houndstone and Basculegion-M are complete shitmons without last respects, and would make Basculegion-F unviable too, it would pretty much leave us with 3 mons less instead of only 2.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

I lost my other account (Catcus111111111111) so I made this btw,

anyways heres my thoughts on the survey


How balanced do you think Ceruledge is? 2
haven't had too many issues with this guy. definitely good, but weak armor sets lose it lokix and quagsire beats most sets anyways. life orb can be annoying but has normal life orb problems. might eventually be a bigger issue but its fine for now

How balanced do you think Armarouge is? 3
slightly better than ceru imo. STAB psyshock lets break through clodsire and some other walls. can run hdb spec or even scarf. i think its still fine for now but i think it could be a bit more of a problem later.

How balanced you think Clodsire is? 3
its fine, its a good wall but not unbreakable. its might be bannable but right now its holding back a lot of threats

How balanced you think Gallade is? 5
it might just be me but this thing seems really hard to deal with. its stabs let it break through almost every popular physical wall, and moves like leaf blade can break the rest. on top of that, it isnt even that weak defensively either. it feels like the most op mon in the meta and id hope for a ban.

How balanced you think Baxcalibur is? 1
ive seen like two on ladder so i cant say that much lmao

How balanced you think Noivern is? 2
Really good, but not broken. its mainly just a pivot and thats it

How balanced you think Volcarona is? 2
its really hard to tell if its broken or not since straightcant beat clodsire

Anything not listed that you think should be looked at?
espathra feel almost unbeatable unless you run something like ttar.

I ranked Gallade pretty low on mine, though admittedly that was because I just hadn't seen many. Using it and facing against a few I completely agree, it is basically unwallable and has way too strong of STABs, and it can eat SpArs hits really well for an offensive mon. I actually think I'd rank Ceruledge at around a 3 now, since I've been trying out Choice Band and it allows it to actually counter what normally walls it and cleanly 2 shot Clod.
For example 252+ Atk Choice Band Ceruledge Poltergeist vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Toxapex: 153-180 (50.3 - 59.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

You also get a really strong priority option with banded Sneak, and allows you to have Polter, BBlade, CC and Sneak all in one. Solid set ngl. Can also opt for either a fire immunity or weak armor to help clean.

Bax feels weird. It's pretty hard to wall unless you're running Quag or some really niche shit like Avalugg, and with Aurora Veil it can setup pretty easily. As a stall player I don't care for it, but idt it's actually too oppressive.

Also, Volc can KINDA beat Clod >:) if you run the absolute chad Specs set you blast it with either Overheat or Psychic. But that's a meme set I enjoy running, and for the most part I feel Volc is fine if not a little strong as long as Clod sticks around.

After toying around with offense a bit (and some really damn good teams popping up on ladder), my opinion has changed a bit and it feels like stall is struggling hard rn >.< lot of threats that just can't be walled without compromising one of your 6 team slots, and Reuniclus just shits all over the archetype. Genuinely no real counterplay against PsyNoise Reuniclus except REALLY niche mons like Whirlwind Mandibuzz. Not a problem with Reuniclus mind you, just that stall doesn't have a lot of good answers, outside of the stall matchup I think Reun is just fine.

<Anything not listed that you think should be looked at?>
Big thing though I want to bring attention to- I REALLY dislike Screens as they are right now. Grimmsnarl and A-Ninetales feel almost impossible to outplay because of the added bulk of the tier, so they just setup screens for free and give mons like Gallade or Armarouge way too free of a time setting up. Grimmsnarl primarily since ANinetales gets destroyed by TTar, as Grimmsnarl can blast darks with 180 Atk Spirit Break after setting up Reflect, can Taunt any non-darks that try to setup, and while it does have to choose between Taunt/Parting/Spirit, it can also give super free switches with Parting. I, personally propose a Light Clay ban since I feel screens are really unhealthy to fight, but I'd like to hear your guys' opinions.

 

[InkyDarkBird]

I think you may be misunderstanding things here, as while Houndstone and Basculegion-M are banned, Basculegion-F has been legal this whole time and it hasn't been a problem, it shows that this tier can have a fully evolved Last Respects users that isn't broken.

The thing is, Basculegion-F is complete trash since it is essentially forced to run a Choice Scarf in order to outspeed other Pokemon, which it cannot even do well. Furthermore, it is easily countered by Umbreon, Bisharp, Ceruledge, Ursaring, Dragapult, Samurott-Hisui, Lokix, Rillaboom, Meowscarada, etc. Banning Last Respects would not change its usage that much.

Houndstone and Basculegion-M are complete shitmons without last respects, and would make Basculegion-F unviable too, it would pretty much leave us with 3 mons less instead of only 2.

Not really. Basculegion-M gets a stronger Aqua Jet, and Houndstone's Fluffy with Poltergeist, Shadow Sneak, and Will-O-Wisp could make it a bulky attacker or supporter. I believe banning Last Respects does make Basculegion-F slightly worse, but it allows Houndstone and Basculegion-M to be used and allows more creativity into teambuilding.

 

[ZarbyXar]

Gallade is absolutely crazy. I always fear that I’ll let it in for free whenever i see it in team preview. Agility is a good set but honestly you give this mon any set and it destroys.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

[/QUOTE]

The thing is, Basculegion-F is complete trash since it is essentially forced to run a Choice Scarf in order to outspeed other Pokemon, which it cannot even do well. Furthermore, it is easily countered by Umbreon, Bisharp, Ceruledge, Ursaring, Dragapult, Samurott-Hisui, Lokix, Rillaboom, Meowscarada, etc. Banning Last Respects would not change its usage that much.


Not really. Basculegion-M gets a stronger Aqua Jet, and Houndstone's Fluffy with Poltergeist, Shadow Sneak, and Will-O-Wisp could make it a bulky attacker or supporter. I believe banning Last Respects does make Basculegion-F slightly worse, but it allows Houndstone and Basculegion-M to be used and allows more creativity into teambuilding.

I'm going to be real, that is some massive cope. Houndstone is NOT bulky enough or have a half decent enough movepool to ever justify using it outside of Last Respects, and both Basculegions are just... not good. Basculegion-M only has 132 Atk and 58 speed with not all that much bulk, what niche could it possibly have without LR? I'd say just leave Basc-F and Last Respects as is, it's not even really a great threat in the meta and allowing BF to keep Last Respects allows at least one of the 3 to stay semi relevant.

 

[InkyDarkBird]

I'm going to be real, that is some massive cope. Houndstone is NOT bulky enough or have a half decent enough movepool to ever justify using it outside of Last Respects, and both Basculegions are just... not good. Basculegion-M only has 132 Atk and 58 speed with not all that much bulk, what niche could it possibly have without LR? I'd say just leave Basc-F and Last Respects as is, it's not even really a great threat in the meta and allowing BF to keep Last Respects allows at least one of the 3 to stay semi relevant.

Houndstone definitely has a good enough movepool and bulk to be somewhat viable with Fluffy and Poltergeist, Crunch, Play Rough, Psychic Fangs, Shadow Sneak, Destiny Bond, Will-O-Wisp, and Trick. It can also provide a new synergy with Tyranitar as a Sand Rush Pokemon. I do not understand why you are saying that Houndstone is not bulky when it has Fluffy, one of the best defensive abilities in the game.
Basculegion-F is not semi-relevant in the current meta; it is completely irrelevant. Basculegion-M and Houndstone are both at least much better than Basculegion-F and will likely see more usage than it if they are unbanned and Last Respects is banned.

 

[KaenSoul]

Houndstone definitely has a good enough movepool and bulk to be somewhat viable with Fluffy and Poltergeist, Crunch, Play Rough, Psychic Fangs, Shadow Sneak, Destiny Bond, Will-O-Wisp, and Trick. It can also provide a new synergy with Tyranitar as a Sand Rush Pokemon. I do not understand why you are saying that Houndstone is not bulky when it has Fluffy, one of the best defensive abilities in the game.
Basculegion-F is not semi-relevant in the current meta; it is completely irrelevant. Basculegion-M and Houndstone are both at least much better than Basculegion-F and will likely see more usage than it if they are unbanned and Last Respects is banned.

Houndstone is a side grade to Dusclops at best, and that's not exactly a popular mon, you pretty much trade Taunt for Roar, Fluffy doesn't even help that much when the top mons are already using non-contact moves, like Poltergeist, Icicle Spear and Psycho Cut. Offensively it doesn't offer much and is outclassed by Excadrill as a Sand Rusher, as 141 isn't high enough to sweep here, specially without a boosting move.
Basculegion-M is also extremely weak by reevo standards, the bulk is decent, but it doesn't compare to the likes of Vaporeon as a bulky water and offensively is a Barra without speed or a Samurott-h without all the cool dark moves.
They just don't offer anything worth fighting for, Ghost just isn't a good defensive typing in the tier with all the darks and offensive ghosts, and I would prefer to at least keep Basculegion-F usable.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

By the way, new team because I'm addicted to this metagame and am currently abandoning stall. So far it's been feeling REALLY strong and unga bungas its way to victory :)

​

Volcarona @ Choice Specs
Ability: Flame Body
Tera Type: Bug
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Fiery Dance
- Giga Drain
- Psychic
- Bug Buzz

The Mywookiearmy signature for Reevo offense, god I love Specs Volcarona so much. I swear to god not enough people even run Stonks, and this thing just clicks so many fucking buttons. Everyone expects QD, so they switch in their like Ceruledge only to be blasted by Specs Psychic. Is it the best set for Volcarona? Debatable honestly, I think QD especially with all the Ceruledges and Gallades running around is just way too slow to get going to also be hard walled by Clod. This mf though clicks button and then dies to 4x Rock Weakness, it's wonderful. Also fishing for flame body procs is better than the slots I swear.


Tyranitar @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Rock
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Knock Off

TTar is really good, REALLY good. I might actually just drop speed and DDance for HP and my own Stonks, but it has come in handy and swept a few times. With Webs up this thing is hard as balls to wall, and it feels really good screwing over these Alolan Ninetales users that haven't switched to imo the objectively better screen setter. Use TTar! Knock is so broken why did they give it Knock, praise our fallen OU titan!


Ceruledge @ Choice Band
Ability: Weak Armor
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Poltergeist
- Bitter Blade
- Close Combat
- Shadow Sneak

I mean, idk what to tell you this thing clicks buttons. Another mon that baits your enemy into thinking it's the same basic ass SD set to be walled by an unaware mon, only this one isn't a meme compared to Volc. Like, this isn't a joke, Band is REALLY good and it picks up so many unexpected KOs. It cleanly 2 shots Clod with Polter, always 2 shots non black sludge Pex, it basically just mauls anything and everything. You even hard punish Volcaronas, can heal with BBlade, CC for hitting things like Bax, and Shadow Sneak is so good and has saved me countless times in the end game. DO NOT SLEEP ON BANDED CERULEDGE


Araquanid @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Water Bubble
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Liquidation
- Lunge
- Sticky Web
- Endeavor

Mfs running Ribombee when this is honestly just objectively better. Araquanid hits super hard with Liquidation, has absolute bonkers natural bulk, Webs are broken in this format especially with how hard you punish any Corvi trying to defog with our other members, and Endeavor has actually gotten me a cheeky kill once in a while. Sitrus Berry is for opposing Ceruledges hilariously, I previously tried Mental Herb but there is like, 1 good taunt user (our last member) and even then it's really rare rn. But yeah, it's really fucking funny hard walling opposing Ceruledges after you eat your berry, and you could arguably go itemless as well for even safer Ceruledge dominance.


Armarouge @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Weak Armor
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Endure
- Stored Power
- Armor Cannon

This thing is our actual sweeper, and slayer of Corvis. some folk running Magneton only to get Uturned on while we setup and just win after a single calm mind + weak armor boost, and Arceus help them if they procced our WP without having priority. Yeah, I can see the hype behind Armarouge, it hits like a freight train and is only really walled by TTar. Great mon, highly recommend.


Grimmsnarl (M) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Parting Shot
- Taunt

Yeah, this is what I mean when I say we gotta ban light clay. I hate this thing so much, I hate screens, I hate HO, but damn if the style isn't anything but efficient and unga bunga. You click taunt, laugh at them being unable to do anything because of their severe lack of judgement in party choice. Then you click reflect/light screen, and once again belittle your opponent for not daring to have Brick Break TTar. Then you parting shot, because screw having an actual attacking stat, and screw hard switching as well! We hate everyone equally here! Then, you go to whichever party member you feel like sweeping with, maybe swap out a member for Gallade if you really want to sell your soul, click a funny boosting move and never die whilst you proceed to OHKO the entire rest of the enemy's team. This has been my PSA on why I despise screens.

But yeah, this team has been putting in a goofy amount of work for me right now, even if I'm running memey Specs Volcarona. Screens are really broken rn imo. I do wanna say though there has been fun tech, with Sitrus Araq and Specs Volcarona being memes with purpose :) reminds me of Coalossal, and we all love Coalossal Anywho cheers, I should probably be doing my college work but we have ungas to bunga.

 

[Playering]

Why's Last Respects on the watchlist? Only Smeargle and Basculin-Something Stripped can use it. Seems balanced.

 

[Catcus]

Why's Last Respects on the watchlist? Only Smeargle and Basculin-Something Stripped can use it. Seems balanced.

people are debating if its really a problem or not. houndstone and basculegion-m got banned because of their ability to abuse it. Basc-F(and smeargle) however both can use the move and arent overpowered, though basc-f does have a small niche with it. the debate rn is over if its worth it to ban LR as a whole, killing basc-f's small niche but unbaning the other two, or to keep things as is

 

[TDLoriat]

Reevo is overall a far bulkier tier, but clod is absurd. Special attackers are just worse than physical ones because clod stonewalls them. I believe that after ceruledge and gallade, clod is the next on the chopping block.

 

[KaenSoul]

Reevo is overall a far bulkier tier, but clod is absurd. Special attackers are just worse than physical ones because clod stonewalls them. I believe that after ceruledge and gallade, clod is the next on the chopping block.

Clod doesn't really limit that many special attackers, it has very low power, so most can just use sub to ignore most of what it can do to them, as once it becomes unable to toxic them, then they can just set up on it. Is also a Poison type, so well-timed Future Sight can just ruin it, it also means is weak to Psyshock, so any Psychic type can deal with it.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

Reevo is overall a far bulkier tier, but clod is absurd. Special attackers are just worse than physical ones because clod stonewalls them. I believe that after ceruledge and gallade, clod is the next on the chopping block.

Clod is good but not immovable. Remember as well that Clod has no built in sustain, so once you knock its leftovers that chip damage starts to REALLY eat into its Recover PP. It also has very apparent weaknesses, poison ground is a very finicky typing that is weak to a lot of things and most people run it really passive with Toxic.

Clod as well (at least imo) is best running Def because it is tasked with taking on a lot more than just SpArs, so it has a lot of pressure on it throughout a game. Specs mons can also tear into it, and it isn’t really stopping Armarouge or the oversized chicken from setting up. I’m not denying it’s strength, it’s one of if not the best wall in the tier, but I believe it’s very healthy for the metagame and keeps mons like Volcarona from just setting up and sweeping teams for free.

 

[KaenSoul]

You can check the survey answers here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1...K-6YgyKRVBNb6znMekPz9qiCFUqaW3Q/viewanalytics

I will go on details, but first, the new bans are Baxcalibur and Light Clay!

	KaenSoul	Gimmicky	Cratersmash	Rarre	Result
Ceruledge	Do Not Ban	Abstain	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Not Banned
Clodsire	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Abstain	Not Banned
Gallade	Do Not Ban	Ban	Abstain	Abstain	Not Banned
Baxcalibur	Do Not Ban	Ban	Abstain	Ban	Banned
Noivern	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Not Banned
Volcarona	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Ban	Ban	Not Banned
Light Clay	Ban	Ban	Ban	Abstain	Banned

Thanks to its very high stats and Ice typing, it could easily set up against most of the tier while under Snow, and sometimes in the company of screens, and while Light Clay is getting banned too, it is not like Baxcalibur needed multiple turns to set up, after a single SD it could deal heavy damage with its near perfect coverage of Ice + Dragon + Ground, only resisted by the mostly useless Bronzong, and the sturdiest walls in the tier like Avalugg and Quagsire.


As there are multiple set up sweepers in the tiers and two great screen setters to help them, it was decided to nerf the archetype in a way that wouldn't require taking action on whatever the top abuser is at the time.

Now for what is staying:

Got mixed responses, with them concentrating at 3, it shows that there is support for action, so it will stay under vigilance, but for the time it doesn't seem to be causing enough trouble. There are multiple factors cutting its potential in the tier, it has trouble against rain teams, needs to give up on a move to fit CC to hit Ttar and Nacl, can't break pass Quagsire and Clod that easily, Armarouge can check it well after consuming its item.


Very few responses higher than 3 so it wasn't voted on.


There is support for action, but as explained in the previous posts, breaking pass it isn't that difficult, is something you have to prepare for, but there are more than enough options to take it down so is not as centralizing as it may seem at first.


With responses all over the place, it seems like some people want to see action on it. Gallade Is a really strong Pokémon, and it can be difficult for bulkier teams to handle without good prediction, but it can't fit all the moves it wants in a single set and against offense it often ends being rather useless thanks to average speed, poor physical bulk and weakness to common types like Flyging and Ghost.


It doesn't have the most support for action, but is clearly a big influence in the tier, with one of the highest BST among legal Pokémon it can stat check most of them, as it is faster and bulkier than most, allowing it to fire off decently powerful stab moves, but it doesn't deal enough damage with its coverage, so offensive sets are very easy to wall, the stall breaker set can usually deal with walls better but is not as easy to fit on teams and other sets don't do much beyond pivoting around and defogging from time to time.


Got some support, but the responses are also quite mixed. QD sets are quite powerful, but it has serious problems breaking pass Ceruledge, Clodsire, some Noivern sets, and depending on its coverage it can be checked by the likes of Tyranitar, Toxapex or Armarouge, can also be revenge killed quite easily by Barraskewda, Lokix, Urshifu-RS and Lycanroc-Dusk, among other checks it has. Specs is another strong set, but requires a lot of prediction and good decisions to work, on top of being much harder to build around.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

You can check the survey answers here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1...K-6YgyKRVBNb6znMekPz9qiCFUqaW3Q/viewanalytics

I will go on details, but first, the new bans are Baxcalibur and Light Clay!

	KaenSoul	Gimmicky	Cratersmash	Rarre	Result
Ceruledge	Do Not Ban	Abstain	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Not Banned
Clodsire	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Abstain	Not Banned
Gallade	Do Not Ban	Ban	Abstain	Abstain	Not Banned
Baxcalibur	Do Not Ban	Ban	Abstain	Ban	Banned
Noivern	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Not Banned
Volcarona	Do Not Ban	Do Not Ban	Ban	Ban	Not Banned
Light Clay	Ban	Ban	Ban	Abstain	Banned

Thanks to its very high stats and Ice typing, it could easily set up against most of the tier while under Snow, and sometimes in the company of screens, and while Light Clay is getting banned too, it is not like Baxcalibur needed multiple turns to set up, after a single SD it could deal heavy damage with its near perfect coverage of Ice + Dragon + Ground, only resisted by the mostly useless Bronzong, and the sturdiest walls in the tier like Avalugg and Quagsire.


As there are multiple set up sweepers in the tiers and two great screen setters to help them, it was decided to nerf the archetype in a way that wouldn't require taking action on whatever the top abuser is at the time.

Now for what is staying:

Got mixed responses, with them concentrating at 3, it shows that there is support for action, so it will stay under vigilance, but for the time it doesn't seem to be causing enough trouble. There are multiple factors cutting its potential in the tier, it has trouble against rain teams, needs to give up on a move to fit CC to hit Ttar and Nacl, can't break pass Quagsire and Clod that easily, Armarouge can check it well after consuming its item.


Very few responses higher than 3 so it wasn't voted on.


There is support for action, but as explained in the previous posts, breaking pass it isn't that difficult, is something you have to prepare for, but there are more than enough options to take it down so is not as centralizing as it may seem at first.


With responses all over the place, it seems like some people want to see action on it. Gallade Is a really strong Pokémon, and it can be difficult for bulkier teams to handle without good prediction, but it can't fit all the moves it wants in a single set and against offense it often ends being rather useless thanks to average speed, poor physical bulk and weakness to common types like Flyging and Ghost.


It doesn't have the most support for action, but is clearly a big influence in the tier, with one of the highest BST among legal Pokémon it can stat check most of them, as it is faster and bulkier than most, allowing it to fire off decently powerful stab moves, but it doesn't deal enough damage with its coverage, so offensive sets are very easy to wall, the stall breaker set can usually deal with walls better but is not as easy to fit on teams and other sets don't do much beyond pivoting around and defogging from time to time.


Got some support, but the responses are also quite mixed. QD sets are quite powerful, but it has serious problems breaking pass Ceruledge, Clodsire, some Noivern sets, and depending on its coverage it can be checked by the likes of Tyranitar, Toxapex or Armarouge, can also be revenge killed quite easily by Barraskewda, Lokix, Urshifu-RS and Lycanroc-Dusk, among other checks it has. Specs is another strong set, but requires a lot of prediction and good decisions to work, on top of being much harder to build around.

Super happy with these bans! :D It is really interesting to see the different perspectives from the survey (admittedly I did lol at the dipplin proposal) and I’m curious to see how the meta game will develop from this.

As for me, I’m wondering how Gallade and Ceruledge will fair going forward, and without screens support I think Armarouge is a really well balanced threat in the meta game. Overall great job, I’m very satisfied!

 

[Mywookiearmy]

I am once again back to talk about Gallade, and yeah- this thing is a big problem imo. It completely invalidates slower/defensive teams, as it has unwallable STABs and coverage. While it can potentially suffer from FMSS, the sheer power from its 2 STABs + SD + Filler Move is enough to destroy every single mon slower than it. Let's take some examples of potential checks to Gallade, and discuss why it just doesn't give a shit about them.

VS
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Dipplin: 135-160 (30.4 - 36%) -- 46.5% chance to 3HKO

Hey, that's not half bad! Reminder, this is not banded, and Dipplin basically can't threaten Gallade out, AND Dipplin has essentially the best physical bulk in the tier- but let's discuss why Dipplin isn't a true counter to Gallade. First off, that is still 30% min to a mon without leftovers, boots or any form of magic guard so after spikes or rocks that 8 Recover PP is looking very poor. Second, Gallade can actually just slot in Triple Axel and nearly OHKO the damned thing, so if they have the right coverage not even Dipplin can 'safely' switch in!

VS
How about Dusclops? Dusclops is not only immune to sacred sword, but has Wil'O as well to threaten Gallade alongside STAB ghost moves! Oh... wait.

252+ Atk Gallade Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Dusclops: 112-134 (34.5 - 41.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Once again with the right move (not banded calc btw) Gallade can completely invalidate Dusclops' defensive profile, and TWO HIT KO WITH A CHOICE BAND. Do we see the issue here?

VS
Okokok, what about Hatterene? Hatterene quad resists Sword and resists Psycho Cut, while not being weak to Knock! Surely Hatterene can take on Gallade!

252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Hatterene: 147-174 (46.2 - 54.7%) -- 10.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Hatterene Psyshock vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gallade: 156-184 (46.2 - 54.5%) -- 59.8% chance to 2HKO

...oh. Well, nevermind that I suppose. NOT. CHOICE BAND. BY THE WAY. Or Life Orb! OR ANY BOOSTING ITEM.

VS
Lastly, Corviknight! One of the sturdiest mons in the tier, resists Psycho Cut and isn't weak to Sacred Sword! SURELY THIS CAN SAFELY CHECK GALLADE RIGHT?

252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 187-222 (40.6 - 48.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 Atk Corviknight Brave Bird vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gallade: 288-338 (85.4 - 100.2%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO

...no boosting item. No Life Orb. No Choice Band. No Black Belt. And this thing can almost 2HKO Corviknight. And Corvi is only able to threaten it back if it uses up one of its precious 4 move slots for Brave Bird... only to trade kills after it switches in. On a 6.3% chance. Without Stealth Rocks or previous chip damage.

I think I've made my point clear. While Gallade can sorta-not-really-struggle against fast offense teams, its mere presence alone is enough to stifle ANY chance of a defensive team being able to work in the tier. While it can struggle to slot in everything it wants, it can more than make due with 3 moves + SD, or brainlessly maul teams with Band STABs + Leaf Blade and Shadow Sneak. Mind you, with Sticky Webs this thing can still screw over faster teams that don't pack full HDB. The sheer versatility, power, sweep potential after a single free turn, respectable bulk (and amazing special bulk), and unwallable STABs combine to me thinking Gallade should be the next mon on the chopping block.

Ceruledge gets checked by Garganacl, Pex and Quag/Clodsire.
Noivern is walled by most Regen mons like Glowking.
TTar is a bit harder to check due to its versatility but it is still very manageable, and beat hard by most Corvi sets.

Nothing checks Gallade that is slower than it. It has a strangehold on the metagame at the moment, forcing people to either outrun it and hopefully not drop to a Shadow Sneak, or immediately lose. The sheer versatility, power, sweep potential after a single free turn, respectable bulk (and amazing special bulk), and unwallable STABs combine to me thinking Gallade should be the next mon banned. Cheers!

EDIT: Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Scarf isn't an awful set to run either. As shown in the previous calcs, Gallade has no problem tearing apart teams without a boost, and guess what fixes its speed problem? I rest my case.

 

[Mywookiearmy]

Hey gang! It's me back again for some more fun Gallade calcs! Is this continuation a bit salt induced? I won't deny it. But damn please we gotta do something about it because stall is genuinely unplayable while this thing roams the tier. You give it 1 free turn and it 6-0s your entire team while eating any attempt at a special attack you throw at it. So without further ado, let me offer more reasons why this thing has 0 counterplay as a stall player! We're going rapid fire this time because I think I made my points clear in the last post. We're not assuming Leaf Blade is on the set as well this time, just to really rub it in!

VS 120/98 defenses Unaware
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Psycho Cut vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 204-240 (45.9 - 54%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

VS 150/135 defenses
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Mandibuzz: 208-246 (41.3 - 48.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

VS 135/125 defenses Unaware OHKO by LB
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Quagsire: 220-261 (46.4 - 55%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

VS 140/160 defenses
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garganacl: 368-434 (76 - 89.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

VS 148/125 defenses
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garchomp: 220-261 (44 - 52.2%) -- 15.2% chance to 2HKO

VS 107/167 defenses
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Psycho Cut vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Sinistcha: 138-163 (33.8 - 39.9%) -- 31% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

VS 148/158 defenses 2HKO by LB
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Hippowdon: 186-219 (37.2 - 43.8%) -- 99.8% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

VS 127/122 defenses Unaware
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Psycho Cut vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Skeledirge: 174-205 (37.9 - 44.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

VS 135/255 defenses
252+ Atk Sharpness Gallade Sacred Sword vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Avalugg: 254-300 (53.5 - 63.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


Want me to continue? I can keep going! Not like there's anything actually viable that can eat Gallade's attacks except kinda the ghosts (and if its running Knock or hazards are up gg). Please, for the love of all that is holy ban this thing. Can it struggle a little without an actually well structured team built around it when against a specific matchup (fast offense)? SURE! But if you use webs at all (Araq is a great setter btw, 252 HP Atk and Adamant hits like a truck and eats more than enough hits) that weakness is gone, and considering it invalidates anything that dares be slower than 110 Spe? Please. Get rid of it. I am tired of seeing people brainlessly click the funny dance move and unga bunga 6-0 my entire team, and what doesn't drop in 1 hit can't even hit it for more than 30%. At the very least, Baxcalibur could be checked by Curse Quag and Avalugg. There isn't any defensive counterplay for Gallade.