Metagame SwSh LCUU Metagame Discussion Thread

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Hello, and welcome to this generation's metagame thread for LCUU! In LCUU, Pokémon receiving over 4.52% usage on the LC ladder (per the weighted 1630 stats) are banned.

Abra, Carvanha, Diglett, Dwebble, Ferroseed, Foongus, Frillish, Grookey, Koffing, Larvesta, Magby, Magnemite, Mareanie, Mienfoo, Mudbray, Natu, Onix, Pawniard, Ponyta, Porygon, Staryu, Timburr, Trapinch, Tyrunt
:Archen: Archen
:Carvanha: Carvanha (OU by Usage as well)
:Farfetch Farfetch'd-Galar
:Scorbunny: Scorbunny
:Shellder: Shellder
:Wingull: Wingull

You can discuss the tier here, or in the LCUU Discord!
At the moment the council includes myself, zeroouttathere, Albi, risi, and Elfuseon We're working on resources like a VR and sample teams, and we will be holding daily tours in the LC room at 9PM GMT+1. Have fun!
 
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LC UU Viability Rankings
Welcome to the VR for LCUU. Here, we rank pokémon based on our perception of their usefulness in the current meta. We also included sets for all listed pokémon, click their names to see these!
(Disclaimer: Of course these aren't all the viable options for each mon, and some sets are probably worse than others. Making this many pastes without going insane is a challenge and there's bound to be some mistakes and suboptimal stuff. Feel free to customize and tweek your own cool sets and come tell us about it!).

Anyway, on to the ranks:

S RANK
:Pancham:Pancham
:Ponyta-Galar:Ponyta-Galar

A+ RANK
:Diglett-Alola:Diglett-Alola
:Goldeen:Goldeen
:Sandshrew:Sandshrew
:Stunky:Stunky

A RANK
:Croagunk:Croagunk
:Elekid:Elekid
:Lileep:Lileep
:Munchlax:Munchlax
:Oddish:Oddish

A- RANK

:Buneary:Buneary
:Chinchou:Chinchou
:Corphish:Corphish
:Cottonee:Cottonee
:Dewpider:Dewpider
:Joltik:Joltik
:Mantyke:Mantyke
:Pumpkaboo:Pumpkaboo-Super
:Sandshrew-Alola:Sandshrew-Alola
:Shellos:Shellos
:Spritzee:Spritzee

B+ RANK

:Amaura:Amaura
:Bunnelby:Bunnelby
:Golett:Golett
:Growlithe:Growlithe
:Hippopotas:Hippopotas
:Meowth:Meowth
:Minccino:Minccino
:Pumpkaboo:Pumpkaboo-Small
:Salandit:Salandit
:Snover:Snover
:Zorua:Zorua

B RANK

:Baltoy:Baltoy
:Drilbur:Drilbur
:Omanyte:Omanyte
:Squirtle:Squirtle
:Tirtouga:Tirtouga
:Vulpix:Vulpix

B- RANK

:Axew:Axew
:Helioptile:Helioptile
:Inkay:Inkay
:Kabuto:Kabuto
:Mime jr.:Mime jr.
:Sinistea:Sinistea
:Skrelp:Skrelp
:Smoochum:Smoochum
:Torchic:Torchic

C+ RANK

:anorith:Anorith
:Budew:Budew
:Charmander:Charmander
:Cubone:Cubone
:Cufant:Cufant
:Darumaka:Darumaka
:Elgyem:Elgyem
:Lickitung:Lickitung
:Litten:Litten
:Purrloin:Purrloin
:Riolu:Riolu
:Sandile:Sandile
:Solosis:Solosis
:Tentacool:Tentacool
:Trubbish:Trubbish
:Wynaut:Wynaut

C RANK

:Bronzor:Bronzor
:Morelull:Morelull
:Rowlet:Rowlet
:Shelmet:Shelmet
:Stufful:Stufful
:Wimpod:Wimpod

NEW
:Slowpoke:Slowpoke
 
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SS LC UU Role Compendium

Entry Hazards
Stealth Rock::Lileep::Hippopotas::Sandshrew::Sandshrew-Alola::Drilbur::Diglett-Alola::Tirtouga::Omanyte::Amaura::Kabuto::Sandile::Bronzor::Anorith::Sandygast::Roggenrola::Cubone::Bonsly::Golett::Gible::Binacle: :Rhyhorn::Aron::Swinub::Rockruff::Larvitar::Rolycoly:
Spikes: :Omanyte::Trubbish::Budew::Wimpod::Venipede::Bunnelby::Shelmet::Rolycoly::Snorunt:
Toxic Spikes: :Tentacool::Omanyte::Skrelp::Trubbish::Venipede::Skorupi::Shelmet::Yamask::Yamask-Galar::Nidoran-m::Nidoran-f:

Hazard Control
Rapid Spin: :Sandshrew::Drilbur::Tentacool::Sandshrew-Alola::Baltoy::Kabuto::Squirtle::Anorith::Gossifleur::Bergmite::Rolycoly::Tyrogue::Bounsweet:
Defog: :Cottonee::Stunky::Fletchling::Rowlet::Torchic::Noibat::Rookidee::Zubat::Fomantis::Swablu::Hoothoot::Pidove::Seedot:
Magic Bounce: :Hatenna:
Spin Block: :Pumpkaboo:*Small:Sinistea::Pumpkaboo:*Super:Honedge::Sandygast::Duskull::Litwick::Golett::Phantump::Yamask::Yamask-Galar::Dreepy:

Knock Off
Knock Off: :Pancham::Corphish::Sandshrew::Croagunk::Meowth::Sandshrew-Alola::Cottonee::Goldeen::Tirtouga::Krabby::Kabuto::Omanyte::Salandit::Tentacool::Inkay::Minccino::Anorith::Sizzlipede::Lickitung::Cubone::Meowth-Alola::Zorua::Bulbasaur::Machop::Rowlet::Skorupi::Azurill::Karrablast::Purrloin::Nickit::Yamask::Zigzagoon-Galar::Ralts:

Setup Sweepers
Swords Dance: :Pancham::Corphish::Bunnelby::Krabby::Axew::Drilbur::Stufful::Sandshrew-Alola::Sandshrew::Cubone::Riolu::Honedge::Zorua::Snover::Goldeen::Fletchling::Jangmo-o::Lickitung::Rowlet::Lileep::Treecko::Meowth-Galar::Tentacool::Charmander::Clauncher::Rockruff::Rhyhorn::Karrablast::Litten::Bulbasaur::Binacle::Budew::Exeggcute::Fomantis::Lotad:
Nasty Plot: :Stunky::salandit::Croagunk::Spritzee::Zorua::Sinistea::Smoochum::Mime Jr.::Espurr::Meowth::Meowth-Alola::Purrloin::Elgyem::Rowlet::Impidimp::Deino::Hoothoot::Yamask::Litten::Zubat:
Dragon Dance: :Corphish::Axew::Charmander::Jangmo-o::Bagon::Dratini::Larvitar::Barboach::Horsea:
Calm Mind: :Spritzee::Ponyta-Galar::Mime Jr.::Amaura::Slowpoke::Espurr::Baltoy::Elgyem::Smoochum::Solosis::Bronzor::Yamask::Zorua::Duskull::Litwick::Hatenna::Psyduck::Hoothoot:
Bulk Up: :Pancham::Croagunk::Riolu::Stufful::Bunnelby::Jangmo-o::Machop::Clobbopus:
Agility/Rock Polish/Automotize: :Ponyta-Galar::Vulpix::Krabby::Bunnelby::Amaura::Chinchou::Joltik::Elgyem::Lileep::Helioptile::Aron::Honedge: :Growlithe::Rockruff::Golett::Rhyhorn:
Shell Smash: :Omanyte::Tirtouga::Squirtle: :Binacle:
Curse: :Munchlax::Slowpoke::Lickitung::Shellos::Wailmer::Hippopotas::Cufant::Trubbish::Goomy::Eevee:
Belly Drum: :Munchlax::Slowpoke::Azurill::Charmander::Lickitung::Darumaka-Galar::Darumaka::Poliwag: :Cubone:
Shift Gear: :Klink:

Weather
Sand Setter: :Hippopotas:
Sand Abuser: :Diglett-Alola::Sandshrew::Lileep::Drilbur:
Hail Setter: :Snover::Amaura:
Hail Abuser: :Sandshrew-Alola::Cubchoo:
Rain Setters: :Riolu::Purrloin::Mantyke::Bronzor::Helioptile::Goldeen::Wimpod:
Rain Abusers: :Omanyte::Mantyke::Kabuto::Arrokuda::Goldeen::Anorith::Tirtouga::Chewtle::Helioptile::Noibat::Tympole::Psyduck::Horsea::Dewpider::Chinchou::Croagunk:
Sun Setters: :Vulpix::Cottonee::Diglett-Alola:
Sun Abusers: :Charmander::Darumaka::Helioptile::Fomantis:

Priority
Prankster: :Cottonee::Riolu::Purrloin::Impidimp:
Fake Out: :Meowth::Croagunk::Meowth-Galar::Buneary::salandit::Litten::Purrloin::Impidimp:
Vacuum Wave: :Croagunk:
Bullet Punch: :Machop::Croagunk::Riolu:
Sucker Punch: :Stunky::Diglett-Alola::Croagunk::Zorua::Chinchou::Rowlet::Rockruff::Impidimp::Clobbopus::Bonsly::Purrloin:
Shadow Sneak: :Pumpkaboo:*Small:Pumpkaboo:*Super:Honedge::Rowlet::Phantump::Duskull:
First Impression: :Axew:
Extreme Speed: :dratini:
Quick Attack: :Bunnelby::Eevee::Buneary::Vulpix:
Feint: :Meowth:
Aqua Jet: :Carvanha::Corphish::Tirtouga::Kabuto::Squirtle::Azurill::Arrokuda::Dratini::Clauncher::Wimpod:
Ice Shard: :Snover: :Sandshrew-Alola: :Swinub: :Snorunt:
Gale Wings: :Fletchling:


Miscellaneous Utility
U-Turn: :Meowth::Helioptile::Bunnelby::Minccino::Darumaka::Fletchling::Clauncher::Meowth-Galar::Darumaka-Galar::Meowth-Alola::Purrloin::Noibat::Litten::Sobble::Zubat:
Volt Switch: :Elekid::Chinchou::Joltik: :Helioptile: :Grubbin: :Electrike: :Klink:
Parting Shot: :Pancham::Meowth-Alola: :Litten: :Zigzagoon-Galar:
Flip-Turn: :Skrelp::goldeen::Clauncher::squirtle::Horsea:
Teleport: :slowpoke::Elgyem::Exeggcute:
Haze/Clear Smog: :Shellos::Mantyke::Stunky::Trubbish::Squirtle::Tentacool::Sobble::Psyduck::Yamask::Yamask-Galar::Duskull::Amaura:
Light Screen: :Baltoy::Bronzor::Spritzee::Sobble::Espurr::Igglybuff::Swinub::Exeggcute::Bulbasaur::slowpoke:
Reflect: :Baltoy::Bronzor::Spritzee::Sobble::Espurr::Igglybuff::Swinub::Exeggcute::Bulbasaur::slowpoke:
Memento: :Cottonee::Diglett-Alola::Stunky::Vulpix::Litwick::Zorua::Shellos:
Aurora Veil: :Amaura::Sandshrew-Alola:

Offensive Pokémon
Physical Attackers: :Anorith::Aron::Arrokuda::Axew::Azurill::Bagon::Bergmite::Binacle::Bonsly::Bulbasaur::Buneary::Bunnelby::Charmander::Chewtle::Clobbopus::Corphish::Croagunk::Cubchoo::Cubone::Cufant::Darumaka::Darumaka-Galar::Deino::Dewpider::Diglett-Alola::Dratini::Drilbur::Eevee::Elekid::Fletchling::Gible::Goldeen::Golett::Growlithe::Hippopotas::Honedge::Inkay::Jangmo-o::Kabuto::Karrablast::Klink::Krabby::Larvitar::Lickitung::Lileep::Lillipup::Litten::Machop::Meowth: :Meowth-Galar::Minccino::Munchlax::Nidoran-m::Pancham::Phantump::Poliwag::Ponyta-Galar::Psyduck::Pumpkaboo:*Small:Pumpkaboo:*Super:Purrloin::Remoraid::Rhyhorn::Riolu::Rockruff::Roggenrola::Rookidee::Rowlet::Sandile::Sandshrew::Sandshrew-Alola::Shinx::Sizzlipede::Skorupi::Skrelp::Slowpoke-Galar::Slowpoke::Snover::Squirtle::Stufful::Stunky::Swinub::Tirtouga::Trubbish::Torchic::Wailmer::Yamask-Galar::Zorua::Zubat:
Special Attackers: :Amaura::Baltoy::Budew::Bulbasaur::Charmander::Chinchou::Clauncher::Croagunk::Cubchoo::Dewpider::Dratini::Electrike::Elekid::Elgyem::Espurr::Exeggcute::Fomantis::Growlithe::Hatenna::Helioptile::Horsea::Joltik::Lickitung::Lileep::Litten::Litwick::Mantyke::Meowth-Alola::Mime Jr.::Morelull::Noibat::Oddish::Omanyte::Ponyta-Galar::Psyduck::Pumpkaboo:*Small:Pumpkaboo:*Super:Remoraid::Rowlet::salandit::Sandygast::Shellos::Sinistea::Skrelp::Slowpoke-Galar::Slowpoke::Smoochum::Snover::Spritzee::Solosis::Squirtle::Stunky::Tentacool::Torchic::Vulpix::Wailmer::Zorua:
Choice Scarf Users: :Krabby::Bunnelby::Chinchou::Axew::Helioptile::Joltik::Drilbur::Darumaka::Darumaka-Galar::Minccino::Meowth-Galar::Pancham::Machop::Cufant: :Wailmer::Remoraid::Deino::Snover::Inkay::Golett::Clauncher::Sandile::Corphish::Baltoy::Smoochum::Amaura::Vulpix:

Defensive Pokémon
Defensive Pokémon: :Munchlax::Shellos::Lileep::Oddish::Spritzee::Hippopotas::Pumpkaboo:*Super:Baltoy::Slowpoke::Tirtouga::Lickitung::Tentacool::Trubbish::Sandygast::Gossifleur::Mantyke::Growlithe::Morelull::Bronzor::Duskull::Squirtle::Skrelp::Cottonee::Cufant::Sandshrew::Wooper::Shelmet::Exeggcute:

If I missed anything notable, I don't care. Maybe I'll fix it later. Who knows. This took forever.
 
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Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
The LCUU council has decided to apply usage shifts every three months after april shifts have been done. We hope that less change gives the metagame the chance to develop properly.
Also, daily roomtours at 9:00PM gmt+2 and 9:00PM gmt-4 will happen starting this thursday, and we aim to have our first VR posted by the end of next week. Stay tuned!
 
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Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
April usage shifts are here!
Pokémon dropping from LC OU to LC UU: :salandit::wingull::natu:
Pokémon rising from LC UU to LC OU: :croagunk::pancham::shellos:

These are some pretty crazy changes, we will work on getting resources up to date as soon as possible, and we are looking into wingull!
 
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Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
Wingull has been quickbanned from LCUU
This shouldn't come as a surprise, in a meta where Mantyke is amazing, Wingull brings the same STAB combination that hits the entire tier bar Helioptile - but with 19 speed, as well as access to Hurricane, Knock Off and U-turn. Because of it's high speed, Wingull can only be checked offensively in a reliable way by scarfers and weather abusers, and none of these can come in safely. This means that almost nothing can switch into Wingull (and nothing can do so repeatedly) and checking it offensively is unreliable or will cost you a mon if you're forced to make a sacrifice. Because of this Wingull is deemed too strong for this metagame and council has unanimously voted to ban it.
 

OranBerryBlissey10

is a Tiering Contributor
NUPL Champion
I'd like to make the following nominations:

:Arrokuda: C to B Powerful rain sweeper with coverage that most water types don't have (Close Combat, Psychic Fangs, Throat Chop).

:Cherubi: C to B Mostly outclassed by Bulbasaur, but any sun sweeper with Weather Ball shouldn't be this low.

:Darumaka-Galar: C to B While usally considered worse than its Unovan counterpart, the difference in viability is small due to the fact that they have similar movesets and not missing out on much since Darumaka-Galar also gets Flare Blitz.

:Electrike: C to C+ While nothing special, Electrike is a decent scarf or specs user with access to Volt Switch and Switcheroo. Not to mention being good at scaring off Mantyke.

:Shelmet: C to B Shelmet has pretty good defenses coupled with reliable recovery. Has a limited movepool, but that isn't much of a hinderance since it's mostly used as a hazard setter.

:Klink: C to B Very similar to Klang, it has bulk and the promise to sweep using Shift Gear. Both offensive sub sets and Resttalk sets have their uses. Specs sets can definitely also work even with limited coverage thanks to Volt Switch.

:Elgyem: C+ to B Analytic sets hit hard, while Synchronize and Recover open the door to setup sets, possibly making use of Stored Power.

:Stufful: B- to B+ While it can run multiple good sets, the one thing holding them all together is Fluffy, making it very hard to kill on the physical side. Having a physical wall with good attack as well can be invaluable if your opponent has no good special attackers left.

:Bronzor: B+ to B: This mon is just too passive in general, and while good defensively, the removal of Psywave really screwed Bronzor. This mon is also quite predictable and is just setup fodder for mons like Solosis and Stunky, against who poison is ineffective.

:Rolycoly: UR to C: While having a fire immunity and reasonable bulk is nice, it's excellent for dominating the hazard game having access to rocks, spikes and Rapid Spin. Unfortunately, it doesn't have a lot of offensive presssure, but that's not where Rolycoly shines.
 

Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
Woobat has been banned from LCUU.
With the addition of grookey to the tier, Woobat gained a really strong gimmick, abusing Grassy Terrain with Simple and Grassy seed. In combination with Calm Mind, Stored Power and Roost, this allows Woobat to deal insane damage while having very little pokémon that can deal with it. Setting up this strategy isn't hard either, since keeping grookey alive for multiple moments to switch in woobat is not difficult, and getting it onto the field can be done safely via U-turn. While counterplay exists, it is often specifically to counter woobat and vastly inferior against every other threat (e.g. Snarl over Dark Pulse on Stunky). Woobat is deemed broken by the LCUU council and has been banned unanimously.
 
Okay so with the Isle of Armor dlc dropping, we here in LC UU, unfortunately, are gonna have to wait to play with many of the newly available mons which is obviously a bummer. But it's not like we didn't get anything new added to our metagame in the meantime thanks to the new move tutor, and in this post, I'm going to go through the new move additions and give some thoughts on them and their assumed impact in LC UU.

Expanding Force

Expanding Force
10 pp​
80 bp​
100 acc​
The user attacks the target with its psychic power. This move's power goes up and damages all opposing Pokémon on Psychic Terrain.

- Unlikely to be notable due to the lack of an auto setter for psychic terrain. Though quite a few of our mons do get it.

Steel Roller

Steel Roller
5 pp​
130 bp​
100​
The user attacks while destroying the terrain. This move fails when the ground hasn't turned into a terrain.

- A really strong STAB move for :Cufant: looks nice. However, the fact that it literally only works when terrain is up severely limits its usability, and that's while :Grookey: still exists in the tier. This isn't going to be particularly impactful

Scale Shot

Scale Shot
20 pp​
25 bp​
90 acc​
The user attacks by shooting scales two to five times in a row. This move boosts the user's Speed stat but lowers its Defense stat.

- While multi-hits are the bee's knees in lc, this doesn't look too stellar to me. Especially when you take into account that nothing with skill link can learn this. Another unimportant addition.

Meteor Beam

Meteor Beam
10 pp​
120 bp​
90 acc​
In this two-turn attack, the user gathers space power and boosts its Sp. Atk stat, then attacks the target on the next turn.

- 2-turn attack bad. The only thing I could see considering this is like, :Elgyem:. But there's no Vull here and who's running power herb for that anyway?

Misty Explosion

Misty Explosion
5 pp​
100 bp​
100 acc​
The user attacks everything around it and faints upon using this move. This move's power is increased on Misty Terrain.

- We actually don't have anything that can even learn this

Grassy Glide

Grassy Glide
20 pp​
70 bp​
100 acc​
Gliding on the ground, the user attacks the target. This move always goes first on Grassy Terrain.

- If you can fit this on your :Grookey: sets for the next 12 days before he goes to ou, have fun. Otherwise, this is pretty low impact.

Rising Voltage

Rising Voltage
20 pp​
70 bp​
100 acc​
The user attacks with electric voltage rising from the ground. This move's power doubles when the target is on Electric Terrain.

- see Expanding Force, replace "psychic terrain" with "electric terrain"

Terrain Pulse

Terrain Pulse
1 pp​
50 bp​
100 acc​
The user utilizes the power of the terrain to attack. This move's type and power changes depending on the terrain when it's used.

- Again, we have no terrain setters outside of the soon to be leaving :Grookey:

Skitter Smack

Skitter Smack
10 pp​
70 bp​
90 acc​
The user skitters behind the target to attack. This also lowers the target's Sp. Atk stat.

- There are just better options for physical bug moves. It does give :Silicobra: an actual coverage option at least, so that's neat. I don't think anything else is particularly interested in using it tho

Burning Jealousy & Lash Out

Burning Jealousy
5 pp​
70 bp​
100 acc​
The user attacks with energy from jealousy. This leaves all opposing Pokémon that have had their stats boosted during the turn with a burn.
5 pp​
75 bp​
100 acc​
The user lashes out to vent its frustration toward the target. If its stats were lowered during the turn, the power of this move is doubled.

- Both of these are anti-dynamax moves. no real reason to run in singles imo

Poltergeist


Poltergeist
5 pp​
110 bp​
90 acc​
The user attacks the target by controlling the target's item. The move fails if the target doesn't have an item.

- Guess who has strong ghost STAB now? :Golett:! Good for him. Other mons I could see actually running this are :Pumpkaboo:, :Phantump:, and :Yamask-Galar:. Finally, a move I think will actually see some use.

Corrosive Gas

Corrosive Gas
40 pp​
-- bp​
100 acc​
The user surrounds everything around it with highly acidic gas and melts away items they hold.

- Seems kinda bad to me

Coaching

Coaching
10 pp​
-- bp​
-- acc​
The user properly coaches its ally Pokémon, boosting their Attack and Defense stats.

- Double's move. Moving on

Flip Turn

Flip Turn
20 pp​
60 bp​
100 acc​
After making its attack, the user rushes back to switch places with a party Pokémon in waiting.

- Hey, another actually good/useful move! :Goldeen: and :Squirtle: both gained access to this water-type pivot move and both will be able to put it to good use. :Goldeen: can really tunnel in on its offensive pivot identity firing off Knocks and Flip-Turning out of things it doesn't want to deal with. :Squirtle:, on the other hand, would be using Flip-Turn on its more defensive/utility-focused sets where it will now be able to come in and rapid spin without worrying so much about being a momentum sink. Overall cool and useful move.

Triple Axel

Triple Axel
10 pp​
20 bp​
90 acc​
A consecutive three-kick attack that becomes more powerful with each successful hit.

- :Minccino: gets it, but I'm not sure it really does anything for it since it doesn't break any of its checks any better than Tail Slap would (other than :Pumpkaboo:, of course, but you have Knock for that). Neat move, but ultimately pretty useless

Dual Wingbeat

Dual Wingbeat
10 pp​
40 bp​
90 acc​
The user slams the target with its wings. The target is hit twice in a row.

- This helps :Pidove: if you're trying to use a bad Defogger, but otherwise, this won't be doing much.

Scorching Sands


Scorching Sands
10 pp​
70 bp​
100 acc​
The user throws scorching sand at the target to attack. This may also leave the target with a burn.

- :Baltoy: is the primary beneficiary of this one, obviously, as it's our only special attacking ground type at the moment. The potential to burn in such a physically oriented tier will likely offset the power difference between this and Earth Power.

So tl;dr I only think 3 of the moves are likely to be seen and that most are bad/not worth it. When the new stuff drops in, I probably will make a similar post talking about them.
 
Cool post. A few small additions and remarks:

- Burning Jealousy gives Impidimp an okay coverage option for the Nasty Plot set. Also it's a bit stronger than Incinerate for Zorua.
- Dual Wingbeat is cool on Fletchling since you can run Heavy Duty Boots (any item in general) without the weak BP of Acrobatics. Not that great, but it can be worth mentioning it, since a 80 BP prio move is always cool to have, and it's probably more relevant than Pidove.
- Corrosive Gas could be ""okay"" on Trubish since it does not learn knock off.
- Alolan Sandshrew has Triple Axel and that's stronger than Icicle, even if the accuracy is meh. Buneary too.
 
Yeah, I was ignoring the new mons in my post because we don't yet have access to them so that's why I didn't bring up A-Shrew or Zorua or anything. Though that is a good call on the Impidimp thing. Trubbish, I feel, has stuff it would be much more interested in running over Corrosion, but I could be wrong I guess.
 
I do think we will see some manual terrain setting experimentation. Or certainly I'm going to try it. People are already using psychic terrain as a defense against priority, and particularly in UU where some of our key offensive threats are partly reliant on priority between fake-out, feint, sucker and quick attack, (not to mention the utility prankster mons + riolu which is kinda huge in UU) seems like what was mostly a niche defensive tech could now have some limited but possible potential for broader team building.
 

DC

Kpop Main, No Brain
is a Community Contributoris a Top Contributoris a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Top Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
Some nominations accounting for HA for starters and general trends i saw in the metagame
:Scorbunny: to A/A+: This mon is pretty insane in the tier with Libero. Realistically, there are two real switch-ins to it with Mantyke and Hippo, both of whom have to check other mons and can be worn down by entry hazards. Plus, access to Libero-boosted Sucker Punch means that it is difficult to revenge kill.

:Grookey: to B+/A-: Grassy Terrain has alot of defensive utilities that are underappreciated. It provides residual healing for Eviolite users while weakening EQ which benefits alot of the top tier mons like Stunky, Cufant, and Helioptile. The mon itself is decent; Grass is not the best offensive type since there are so many top-tier grass-resistant mons but access to SD and U-turn makes it viable.

:Baltoy: to A+: Not much to say here. Its just the best rock setter and remover in the tier. Doesn't have 4mss since Baltoy just need Ice Beam and Earth Power to do its job.

:Meowth-Kanto: to A/A+: Best revenge killer in tier and one of the best offense killer in general. It is one of the best answers to Scorbunny and has good matchups against other frail attackers such as Minccino, Bunnelby, etc.

:Mantyke: to S: This is probably warranted, seeing its consistent usage. It is bulky asf and doesn't really have a bad matchup outside of Helioptile in the tier.

Some other mons that I believe should rise up: :Budew: to A-/A (Spikes, speed tier), :Snover: to A- (Ice STAB hurts)
Some other mons that I believe should move down: :Wynaut: to B+ (generally too passive), :Bulbasaur: to B+ (Bulb w/o Sun :bloblul:), :Krabby: to A- (Not as consistent as other A mons)

Thanks for reading till the end! Feel free to agree/disagree with these noms.
 
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Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
Usage shifts are here!

Pokémon going from LC UU to LC OU: Grookey, Scorbunny

Pokémon dropping from LC OU to LC UU: "Vulpix", Larvesta, Ponyta-galar, Croagunk, Scraggy, Dwebble, Frillish, Slowpoke, Shellder, Skrelp, Oddish, Zorua, Clauncher, Cubone, Sandshrew-alola, Shellos, Azurill, Tentacool, Fletchling, Fomantis, Pancham, Sandshrew, Lickitung, Buneary, Venipede, Sandygast, Exeggcute, Sandile, Slowpoke-galar, Happiny, Horsea, Lillipup, Petilil, Psyduck, Rockruff, Shinx, Whismur

Vulpix is autobanned because it's low usage comes from being legal for only a week. Woobat is unbanned because Grookey has risen, making Grassy Seed a far less threatening option.
 

Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
Scraggy and Shellder have been quickbanned from LCUU.

Scraggy posesses good bulk, a great offensive double stab, plenty of coverage options, Dragon Dance in combination with Moxie, in short everything a pokémon needs to snowball in this metagame. It's bulk made it hard to revenge kill with priority, and it's checks could all be circumvented with different coverage options, such as Zen Headbutt, Poison Jab or Thunder Punch. Scraggy is way too strong for LCUU and was banned unanimously by the council.

Shellder is another mon capable of just blasting through teams after it has set up with Shell Smash, with only Shellos and a fully healthy Pancham being able to take hits from it after it would set up, without a guarantee that they would actually be able to kill it or stop it from sweeping. It's respectable physical bulk and good defensive typing means it would also often get opportunities to set up, making it even harder to deal with. A metagame with shellder would require a healthy Shellos on every team and council has unanimously voted to ban it.
 

Kipkluif

Liever Kips leverworst
is a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
LCPL Champion
09474e2fd2d4d0c5bb7f72baac9b328c.jpg

Say hello to our new friend!
Due to a bad oversight, we somehow missed that Zigzagoon-hoenn had also dropped to LCUU! Obviously, it poses a big threat in this metagame, although it might find trouble setting up. From now on, Zigzagoon will be allowed in LCUU games, unless we decide to ban it.
 

DC

Kpop Main, No Brain
is a Community Contributoris a Top Contributoris a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Top Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Top Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
The new meta has managed to stabilize somewhat and you know what that means, a new viability ranking nomination! I will mostly be focusing on S and A rank since they are metagame staples. Without further ado, here are my proposed rankings of the new additions.

S-Rank
:Ponyta-Galar:
G-Pony doesn't need any introduction as possibly the best offensive mon in the tier. You can run a plethora of sets (LO special, Evio CM, Mixed, Physical) that is difficult to predict and handle. As an added bonus, you outspeed basically everything in the tier.

:Sandshrew:
Sandshrew is a mon I contemplated putting as S or really high A+. LCUU has very few "good" ground-resists and Sandshrew exploits that fact by outspeeding everything after a Rapid Spin and pressing EQ to just win games. Having Knock Off is tremendously useful, weakening Frillish and Pancham to assist in its sweep.

A+ Rank
:Pancham:
The king returns once again, this time in sorta a worse state. The tier is saturated with G-Pony, Poison-types, and Ghost-types which makes using Pancham feel a little bad. But it has both good offensive and defensive utility, providing Knock and Parting Shot support while checking sweepers like Dwebble, Zig, and Sandshrew.

:Frillish:
Amazing defensively and underrated offensively. Wisp + Hex is punishing against physical attackers and helps u win a potential 1v1 scenario against G-pony. Cursed Body is annoying and disabling a Psychic or EQ loses so much offensive momentum for the opponent.

A-Rank
:Zigzagoon:
Belly Drum + Espeed decimates the majority of the tier. Ghost-types lose to Thief and bulky Pokemon like Slowpoke and Shellos die to Seed Bomb. It doesn't outright win you the game in most conditions because stuff like Cufant, Pumpkaboo, and Meowth exist, but it has good matchups against both offensive and bulky builds.

:Dwebble:
A slightly worse version of Zig (Lacking priority, susceptible to prio, etc.) Dwebble's offensive capabilities are pretty scary against certain teams as only a healthy Pancham can truly "check" it. Plus, Dwebble isn't one dimensional like Zig and can opt for a more supportive set that capitalizes on stacking hazards.

:Croagunk:
Croagunk is good, but not great. Nasty Plot sets are pretty hard to deal with, but Croagunk has alot of offensive checks, having the misfortune of being fodder for G-pony and Sandshrew. Prio Vacuum Wave is amazing, helping pick off weakened Cufant, Alolan Dig, and Sandshrew-A.

A- Rank
:Shellos: :Slowpoke:
These two are similar enough that they should just share the nomination. Both are top answers to most G-pony sets and have good matchups against Sandshrew. Problem is both are also somewhat passive and loses hard to stuff like Stunky and Pumpkaboo.

:Skrelp:
Decent Pokemon. Has the coverage to do consistent damage to bulky cores that rely on stuff like Frillish and defensive Sandshrew. Generally overshadowed by other top-tier Poison-types.

Rest of the Pokemon I got tired of writing for
:Sandshrew-Alola: [B+] - Badder Sandshrew, requires more team support to function
:Tentacool: [B+/A-] - You get Skrelp with Rapid Spin and Knock Off but no Thunderbolt
:Lickitung: [B+] - Underwhelming, but has potential to succeed; Being able to pass Wish is a solid addition to the tier
:Oddish: [B+] - Budew without Spikes but with Strength Sap; has a worse speed tier
:Sandile: (B) - Underrated; you get a Ground-type with a Psychic immunity (decent role compression)

Thanks for reading till the end! Feel free to agree/disagree with these nominations.
 
Alright, this week has been crazy with work so this is not nearly as elaborate as I'd hoped it'd be but I did my best. And yes I literally don’t believe in an S rank UU mon currently, meaning a mon that is totally meta defining/centralizing warps multiple other important mons and team structures toward/around it and can run multiple sets. Not here. This is mostly DLC mons and recent drops with some old standbys updated for the meta.

NOMS

:pancham:A+
Pancham is king of the hill in UU as it's the best glue mon in the tier. Pancham is one of the few mons that can put down our tanks as well as live and RK after some of our more dangerous boost mons have set up with it's great bulk for an offensive mon. It is the only fighting type with pivot access in the tier and it has coverage to make work of almost anything, though right now it is pretty much forced to run drain, knock and zhb to deal with opposing panch and croagunk. Currently there is a Pancham speed creep war going on in the meta and there isn't a surefire way to tell if the opposing Panch is running 12, 13, or 14 speed (11 and 15 sets are a bit more obvious). So in spite of a somewhat predictable moveset, Panch can still surprise and is always a significant threat, knocking shit around and just powering through teams with drain punch.

:Dwebble:A/A+
Super dangerous mon that can 6-0 unprepared teams. As cottonee usage has fallen, this thing has an easier time setting up. Pancham is really the only safe switch in. The hazard stack set has been less popular but is also a huge annoyance. Weak armor still seems unexplored in the current meta.

:Ponyta-galar: A
Stats-wise a cut above the majority of the tier fast and strong both physically and specially with respectable defenses. Psychic type is better than it's been in a while rn, and yet Pony-G still has a tough time coming and getting started in a lot of games because of knock off spam. Physical has been seeing more play as a hard Stunky counter and with more coverage options but ZHB is a mediocre and somewhat unreliable primary stab attack. Dazzling gleam isn't great in the tier rn so special is pretty much always psychic and mystical fire. Mixed however is easy to run w these stats and HHP or wild charge as coverage. Utility and defensive sets are still somewhat unexplored bc this thing is mostly being deployed as an offensive answer to Panch and Croa or as a life orb cleaner.

:sandshrew:A
Sandshrew is an excellent glue mon that can function as a powerful physical attacker, or a decent physical defender with spin support. While it has some decent coverage options, it pretty much always prefers to run a variation on an offensive sweeper set or a defensive hazard set, with some combination of earthquake, knock off, rapid spin, swords dance and stealth rock. Even despite this level of predictability, few things switch in easily here, and under sand this guy can wreak havoc on teams. Sandshrew works great on both weather and non weather teams, as it doesn't necessarily need a sand rush boost to do it's job, but it does have to be careful of defensive grass and water types and as well as faster special attackers that can revenge against it's paltry spdef stat.

:stunky:A
King Stunky has lost his crown with the drops but he is still a major threat with the crazy number of excellent sets this thing can run. Life orb, evio, physical, nasty plot, mixed, berry juice, utility, even scarf if ur a freak, Stunky p much does it all. Dark/Poison typing is also still extremely clutch. It absolutely hates the rise of Sandshrew, Pancham and the heaven-sent Pony G which have together knocked it from it's S tier perch. Don't sleep Stunky can still win games.

:croagunk:A-/A
Almost always a threat and a great cleaner, not to mention a good Meowth deterrent, poison stab is still great in the tier and +2 vacuum wave goes brr. Ghosts are somewhat on the rise atm and shadow ball access makes this thing even more potent in addition to being a one time switch in to Pancham though you have to be wary of ZHB. Physical/bulk up hasn't been explored much, we've seen some mixed sets w knock. Does have to be careful around things with surprise psychic coverage as it can't eat psychic from anything. Between this thing, Skrelp and Stunky, Cottonee usage has dropped significantly.

:frillish:A
Great fat water wall w lots of utility tricks, wisp hex and strength sap are still as annoying and hard to deal with as ever and most of our best special attackers can't do much to this thing. Hard countered by helio only.

:shellos:A
Probably the best tank in the tier, also great at stopping most of the setup sweepers. A bit of a momentum suck however in a tier that is still heavily HO biased.

:meowth-kanto: A
The best revenge killer in the tier, and a painful lead to deal with. Not a lot of answers to this thing.

:zigzagoon: A-
I hate this thing, it’s ruining and cheesing my beautiful tier. Very few things live +6. Make sure you have an answer on your team. Thankfully we have a few things that can stick it to Ziggy so it doesn’t always win. I expected more screens spam when this thing dropped, along with some of the other set ups sweepers but so far that hasn’t been the wave as much. We’ll see how it evolves.

:skrelp:A-
Adaptability just kills shit in this tier. Slow and and hurt by the current ground spam meta trend. Can go physical or special and can be decently bulky. Flip turn is a big help. Max speed frailer sets w flip turn should probably be played more often on vortex teams.

:cottonee:A-
Cotton falls off a bit with the additional poison mons in the tier giving it a bad day. Prankster nerf against opposing dark mons also makes Stunky more or less a free switch in as d gleam never does more than 30%. Still Cottonee is one of the best utility mons in the tier and is excellent glue on many teams that appreciate it’s support w knock off, status and set up enabling.

:helioptile:A-
Probably the best scarfer in the tier, has fallen off a little because of sandshrew / sand picking up some traction as well as fight spam now being a viable thing. Still, the faster pace of UU means most teams appreciate a fast pivot and hello’s offensive output can clean up effectively late game .

:baltoy:A-
becomes a little redundant on teams that may prefer sandshrew, but great utility in spin, rocks and more niche options like magic coat or weather setting, I addition to it’s typing and offensive coverage keep this thing as an excellent anti-meta check in tier.

:pumpkaboo-small:A-
I’m not gonna rank all pump’s as I haven’t thought about it super carefully but I wanna talk about smol right now. Specifically pump-small physical life orb. As Joltage has shown in his beloved Youtube videos, little lo pump is super potent in UU atm. With flame charge and poltergeist, little pump can sweep teams. Poltergeist hits hard, bullet seed denies subs and shadow sneak cleans. I’m not putting it higher because it’s still a ghost, it gets knocked and then it’s kinda done. If played carefully Pump has the tools to really capitalize on the current meta.

:mantyke: A-


:oddish:A-/B+
Even with a useless ability, Oddish is still pretty tough to deal with in UU though it doesn't prefer the little bit of shine that hail has gotten post DLC. Great defensive typing sleep powder and strength sap access and above average stats make this a great option for a lot of teams that previously had to pick between the both excellent but very specific mons of budew and cottonee. I think Oddish wants to go a bit faster here than the defensive set that became dominant in LC OU. It’s still gonna be slower than bud and cott but it has more offensive and defensive prowess than either.

:larvesta:B+/A-
Surprisingly flexible mon that can be a dangerous attacker, can be played tanky or as a utility/pivot mon. Can run max bulk and live a +6 zig e speed. Can get decently fast for the tier but doesn't necessarily need it. Burns shit. Less speedy water types are not necessarily safe with electric and grass coverage. Can also be run special as invented by KSG last week. Held back by brutal stealth rock weakness and tricky typing which can be a boon offensively but pretty vulnerable defensively.

:sandile:B+/A-
Originally had thought of this as a solid mid or even low B tier mon, but Joltage’s anti-lead set convinced me that baby sand croc can really put in work. The moxie scarf set is lackluster among other sweeping/cleaning options in the tier, but intimidate + taunt + rock, unique typing as well as pretty good speed and respectable offensive prowess makes this thing an under the radar threat.

:joltik:B+/A-
Little yellow bug is finally getting his time to shine. Joltik can be surprisingly tanky with evio, can be a great scarfer and pivot around, and it can nab early ko’s with life orb. Electric/bug is an undervalued typing and has some crucial meta advantages in the tier at the moment, though it still has to be played carefully around poisons and ground mons with rock coverage. It’s fast with a better spa stat and defensive typing than helioptile, though it unfortunately doesn’t have such an easy time with :mantyke: who has, fortunately for Joltik, become way less dominant post dlc. It’s ability to come in and out of the field as a pivot is also hindered by rocks so it needs some team support. Nonetheless the stab combo and giga drain/energy ball is pretty wide coverage, and it’s typing allows it to switch into things like pancham on occasion. With a swarm boost bug buzz can really put the hurt on unsuspecting mons.

:snover:B+
Snover is a hard one to rank on it’s own, as it is really most effective in tandem with A-shrew. It does have a few niche options but mostly it is seen running scarf or icy rock and clicking blizzard. We’ve seen a few more evio/life orb sets recently as well as some people attempting physical. At the end of the day snover is currently the crucial hail setter to enable that weather archetype and has decent offensive prowess with it’s stab combination, but dies pretty fast due to it’s awful defensive typing.

:growlithe:B+
Growlithe has a lot of similarities with Larvesta as a fire mon that can be run offensively or defensively, w respectable bulk and decent offensive prowess as a physical or special attacker along with some utility options in wisp, covet roar and snarl. Mono fire typing means it has a little bit of an easier time coming in and doesn’t get rolled over as quickly by rocks. It isn’t quite as strong as vesta however, and lacks pivoting and coverage on the special side. Probably deserved A- pre DLC, but hurt in viability by new ground and waters. Still an undervalued pick imo.

:sandshrew-alola:B+
Bad defensive typing makes alola shrew less preferable than it’s kantonian brother, but this thing can still put in serious work and makes hail viable, aurora veils support can turn a game around and stab ice and stab iron head also slaps in addition to knock off and rapid spin support it can provide.

:lickitung:B/B+
Fat beast w/ wish passing ability, curse press and knock off, as well as untapped special offensive potential and crazy coverage. Can also vanish weather. Hates the presence of panch and croa and has a hard time fitting on most team archetypes in any of the above functions bc of it.

:slowpoke:B
Less great fat water with some interesting tricks. Teleport is probably better on paper than in practice so far, but there's still a ton of exploration to be done with this mon given it's wild ass gen 1 move pool. Held back bc it's probably the third or fourth best bulky water, can't really hit that hard against other fat mons and knock off spam means it can't really do it's job that well for very long. Still fblast and other weird coverage options are probably undervalued atm in the tier.

:tentacool:B
Another option for a defensive water mon, but with the same mixed typing as Skrelp has a hard time lasting as long as it would like to as spin support. Has some interesting offensive options as it can happily run physical mixed or special, but it's respectable stab combo is outclassed by Skrelp. Some combination of utility support sort of makes it a poor mans Sandshrew, however this one suffers a bit from 4MSS. Probably underexplored particularly w t spikes but currently less splashable than it seems like it could be on paper. I could see it rising in the future.

:sizzlipede:B
Sizzlipede is often overshadowed by Larvesta. This thing really only needs one set with a variable item (evio or scarf imo): fire lash/knock/power whip/leech life. It’s a surprisingly potent lead that plants it’s feet and just trades with way more mons than you expect it to because fire lash (sometimes in combo w knock off) is kind of op. As with larval fire moth, stealth rocks own you, but I say resist the temptation to run boots. Sizz is a purely offensive mon it’s not switching in and out that much and it wants to kill as many things as possible. I

:zorua:B/B-
Zorua has a decent niche in UU as it can convincingly Illusion bluff several important mons with it's widened movepool. Access to a surprisingly strong stab knockoff makes this thing almost always capable of putting in respectable work. It can effectively run life orb or choice scarf and can really turn momentum quickly. It's still pretty frail and ultimately a mon that lives on it's own ability gimmick. Nonetheless it can be a respectable pivot, cleaner or revenge killer on the right teams.

:buneary: B-
An interesting flavor option for the Meowth/Mincinno normal type rk/sweeper role, lo bun actually hits stupidly hard with a few of the tricks Meowth has plus some of it's own, but no technician, feint, knock, u turn and no double edge so for a high bp stab move it has to either use the unreliable last resort or megakick. It also unfortunately can't hit a life orb number meaning it's time on the field is more limited than coin cat.

:rowlet:B/B-
I been on the Rowlet train since pre-dlc and though the influx of strong poison type attackers and the rise of hail certainly doesn’t help the little owl, I think Rowlet is being slept on somewhat. This thing can get bulky. It can swords dance up and crush your fighting mons with brave bird or dual wingbeat. It gets defog, it gets roost, it gets sucker punch, it gets knock off, it gets shadow sneak (which unfortunately it cannot run concurrently with roost). You can nasty plot giga drain. Mixed is plausible. Rowlet has plenty of options but it is painfully slow and has an extremely defensively vulnerable typing. For this reason I may be overrating it a bit but I think Rowlet is neglected and can be worked into certain team archetypes and provide good utility and surprising offensive pressure.

:cubone:B-
Mighty little Cubone has the ability to totally wreck teams, but as everyone knows it's hard for this thing to get going and manage more than a 1v1 without speed control due to it's bad speed and inability to supplement it's solid base base defense but lackluster special bulk due to thick club, and it's vulnerable defensive typing so serious team support is required. Theoretically decent potential on webs or trick room but we haven't seen it in action much yet..

:golett:B-
Golett can finally run a threatening scarf set with Poltergeist, Dynamic Punch and your choice of elemental punches and/or drain punch. Unfortunately you die to pretty much anything, so the potential here is kinda low. An evio set has more slightly more longevity but Golett still dies fast and loses it’s breaking power pretty quickly by investing into defenses and remains painfully slow.

:psyduck: B-
Psyduck can be a decent defensive mon and nullify weather teams with Cloud 9, or it can be a dangerous swift swimmer with both physical and special options. Duck suffers from 4MSS and serious competition as a water mon in a meta where water spam is viable but typically prefers a more convincing defensive water type to go alongside a pivot or more offensively dangerous water. Psyduck remains pretty unexplored here and has some potential but it’s def a niche pick.


:morelull:B-/C+
I’m mad bc morelull has criminally been C rank in the viability ranking when pre dlc it should’ve been B/B+ at the least. This thing was one of our best defensive mons with crazy spore/sap utility and the only viable thing w stab moonblast in the tier. Unfortunately as with sister cot, Morelull’s viablility has been damaged badly by more poison steel and ice mons in the tier as well as speed creep making it’s slow defensive self even less relevant. Nonetheless once it’s checks are cleared it can be quite difficult to break morelull, this thing is capable of winning games. Don’t sleep.

:sandygast:B-/C+
Sand castle has respectable stats and a good move pool. Unfortunately ghost ground is just kind of a shitty typing and this thing has a hard time getting much done before it drops dead. While it requires some team support this guy can throw rocks and throw out some decently strong attacks before it gets knocked or washed away. Super niche pick but I want to see it explored more.

:fletchling: C+/B-
In a tier with limited options for flying types, Fletch has interesting potential w Gale Wings priority. Unfortunately Fletch is weak and frail, suffers somewhat from 4MSS and if it wants to get much mileage out of Gale Wings or function effectively as a defogger, has to wear HDB. It's also not very fast without priority. This makes it pretty 1 dimensional and hard to find openings. It's also hard for this thing to kill much without a swords dance boost. That being said it can function as a decent cleaner within certain team structures but the accuracy of Dual Wingbeat and the aforementioned flaws make this thing sadly unreliable.

:rockruff: C+
Man I wrote an essay about Rockruff pre-dlc. This mon has five abilities and almost all of them actually have something to offer. As the fastest unboosted rock type in the tier with a respectable attack stat, not to mention just a cute ass mon, you gotta hope Ruff can do something. Sadly while it’s evo was blessed with powerful coverage this gen in addition to it’s signature priority rock attack, little murder dog has a hard time murdering much. One of the niches I had imagined was as a steadfast anti-meowth lead which may still have a tiny bit of cache in a tier where meowth has less reason to run water pulse. Ruff either forces Meowth out or gains a Steadfast speed boost after tanking a resisted fake out. Either scenario allows Rockruff to either throw rocks or swords dance boost to begin a sweep. Though an SD boosted Ruff can dole out respectable damage, this is hampered by the fact that it has to rely on Stone Miss or Rock Slide for stab. Sucker punch, iron head, and zen headbutt are decent coverage options. An Own Tempo set can abuse thrash without worrying about confusion. Overall it’s a little hard to justify using this thing as it has few set up opportunities and gets put down pretty easy by the big bads of the tier.

:horsea: C+
Horsea has the highest spa stat of all UU water mons (sadly tied w unviable sobble and wailmer) and the second highest defense stat after Krabby, along with decent speed- on paper it may seem to have the potential to be a decent swift swim sweeper. Unfortunately horseas low hp stat and pitiful special bulk along less favorable coverage vs mantyke, arrokuda, psyduck and goldeen make it probably the lesser choice on rain teams, though rain has fallen out of favor int he meta and seahorse seems to be unexplored at the moment.

:fomantis:C
Fomantis is a bootleg Snivy that can either run choice scarf and just click Leaf Storm and try to sweep unprepared or mismatched teams, or it can run Life Orb and try to take advantage of sun by boosting up with Leaf Storm and letting off powerful Weather Balls. It does get defog but using defog with this thing is tricky and requires prediction given it's frailty and lackluster defensive typing.

:Azurill: C/C-
Similar to Cubone, Azurill has the potential to claim lives (though not nearly with as much authority as the bone orphan) but is held back by a pitiful speed stat and nonexistent bulk. The requirement to run juice on the BD set makes this thing pretty 1 dimensional and relegated to being a trick room sweeper. It may have a miniscule niche as a knock off > double edge / aqua jet cleaner but this is clearly outclassed by Meowth and others.

:clauncher:C-/Unranked
Clauncher has had 0 usage in LPL so far and with good reason. As a water type it's outclassed in pretty much all capacities except in potential damage output. Unfortunately without an auto terrain setter Megalauncher boosted Terrain Pulse is an even harder gimmick to set up. Bearing that in mind, Clauncher has decent stats and access to some interesting moves; it has some unexplored possibilities as a defensive mon or even as a surprise physical attacker, but these sets are pretty much outclassed in all cases.

:petilil: C-/UR
In a pre IoA meta, Petilil might have had a niche as a defensive grass type w some interesting utility options in entrainment, healing wish, healing bell/aromatherapy, covet and stun spore. Sadly there’s little reason to run this thing over oddish, bud or cott given how tough it is for grass types these days.
 
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jcbc

lechonk is so cute
is a Pre-Contributor
RISES
:Fletchling: Fletchling (from B- to B/B+) - My little bird is imo, being forgotten for no reason, it has the ability to outright sweep entire teams given specific conditions and with the help of HDB you rarely lose gale wings.
:Skrelp: Skrelp (from A to A+) - The seahorse is just so good. Having a bulky water that hits like a truck absorb tspikes and can volturn is just yikes.
:Machop: Machop (from C+ to B-) - Machop has saw better days, pancham and croagunk existing makes it hard to find a slot on a team but the damage it can output is amazing and as a inmediatly wallbreaker it's so good.
:Slowpoke: Slowpoke (from B+ to A-) - Not at the level of frillish skrelp or shellos but poke with teleport is such an excelent pivot to have and hard to kill with good coverage and utility.
:Croagunk: Croagunk (from A to A+) - With all this waters around, having the unique ability of bringing in a wallbreaker like croagunk is for free is amazing, is also very splashable in all kind of teams.
:Cufant: Cufant (from A to A+) - The baby elephant is the definitipn of splashable rocks. Not only that but is very threatning and hard to switch into.

DROPS
:Sizzlipede: Sizzlipede (from B- to C) - Sizzlipede was cool pre DLC and all but why on earth would you use it when superior version Larvesta is in the tier?
:Diglett-Alola: Diglett-Alola (from A to A-) - diglett saw better times tbh, sand got kinda mu fishy and out of there this mon is kinda ehh.
:Stunky: Stunky (from S to A) - As the meta develops stunky finds himself in a weirder position, is a verygood pokemon with a pretty much unique ability in the tier to threaten psychics and a strong sweeper but even with all this pros it hardly finds itself to be a threat anymore like it used to be.
:Shellos: Shellos (from A+ to A) - Shellos is still very good don't get me wrong with this one, i just feel like A+ is kindof overanked, shellos usually struggles vs the offenses that are being played rn more than other bulky waters do.
:Tentacool: Tentacool (from B to C+) - Tentacool is cool and all that (jaja get it?) but is just so hard to justify, as a bulky water it has very little room to be added to a team when things like skrelp shellos frillish or slowpoke exist and as a spinner both sandshrew and baltoy outclasses it.
:Sandshrew-Alola: Sandshrew-Alola (from A to A-) - Okey i love sandshrew alola but is not as the kanto version, it's weakness pushes it way more making it harder to use as a defensive pokemon and as a hail abuser suffers from all the good waters that the tier has.
 
I'm just gonna pick and choose things I feel like talking about rn
RISES
:Fletchling: Fletchling (from B- to B/B+) - My little bird is imo, being forgotten for no reason, it has the ability to outright sweep entire teams given specific conditions and with the help of HDB you rarely lose gale wings.
What you're really overlooking with this one is that Fletch is extremely weak w/out an SD. And even then, it can't break through bulky mons with consistency. B- is a perfectly acceptable rank for it.
:Croagunk: Croagunk (from A to A+) - With all this waters around, having the unique ability of bringing in a wallbreaker like croagunk is for free is amazing, is also very splashable in all kind of teams.
I actually agree here. Gunk is excellent and enjoys some versatility in what it can run on each team. I had it in A+ in my personal rankings.
:Cufant: Cufant (from A to A+) - The baby elephant is the definitipn of splashable rocks. Not only that but is very threatning and hard to switch into.
I both agree with everything you said about Cufant, and disagree that it should move up. It feels more on par to the A mons than the A+ mons for me.


DROPS
:Sizzlipede: Sizzlipede (from B- to C) - Sizzlipede was cool pre DLC and all but why on earth would you use it when superior version Larvesta is in the tier?
What you appear to be overlooking is that while they share a typing, Sizzlipede and Larvesta are not the same nor do they fill a similar role. Sizzli is a surprisingly effective wallbreaker as it is ridiculous to switch into. Fire Lash into Power Whip murders Shellos just as an example. Larvesta just does not have that ability, especially not with such little drawback. This isn't to say Sizzli is amazing or anything, but to just compare it to Larvesta and say it's a worse version, is a failure to understand what Sizzlipede's role is. And that is to wallbreak. Which it does quite competently.
:Stunky: Stunky (from S to A) - As the meta develops stunky finds himself in a weirder position, is a very good pokemon with a pretty much unique ability in the tier to threaten psychics and a strong sweeper but even with all this pros it hardly finds itself to be a threat anymore like it used to be.
Agree that Stunky isn't S rank anymore. I do still think it provides a lot for a team and is the easiest Poison to double up on so you can run another of the tier's insane roster of poison types. I think A+ is a fairer representation of where it is atm.
:Shellos: Shellos (from A+ to A) - Shellos is still very good don't get me wrong with this one, i just feel like A+ is kindof overanked, shellos usually struggles vs the offenses that are being played rn more than other bulky waters do.
Disagree that Shellos is over-ranked. Disagree that it has greater issues with offense than the other bulky waters do. Gunk is just as much a problem for it as it is things like Skrelp. It handles Pony-G just as well as Frillish does. It handles the Ground-types better than any other Bulky water. I don't believe its current low usage in LPL is indicative of its effectiveness
:Tentacool: Tentacool (from B to C+) - Tentacool is cool and all that (jaja get it?) but is just so hard to justify, as a bulky water it has very little room to be added to a team when things like skrelp shellos frillish or slowpoke exist and as a spinner both sandshrew and baltoy outclasses it.
Disclaimer: I am extremely high on Tenta compared to others. However, C+ is completely insulting. A good bulky water with access to rapid spin and knock off can NOT be considered on par with garbage like Morelull, Charmander, and Binacle. Does Tenta have drawbacks, clearly, but it spins just as well as Baltoy in every situation and C+ is entirely underrating it.
 
Alright so the regular season of LPL, the only LC team tour brave enough to include the best LC Meta, has wound to a close and this post is gonna be a dump of the usage stats and the teams I used and maybe some quick thoughts on the meta as a whole at the moment (we'll see how i'm feeling at the end here)

Usage
:Pancham:Cumulative:Sandshrew:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Pancham            |   30 |  51.72% |  60.00% |
| 2    | Sandshrew          |   26 |  44.83% |  53.85% |
| 3    | Cufant             |   21 |  36.21% |  42.86% |
| 4    | Cottonee           |   16 |  27.59% |  56.25% |
| 4    | Ponyta-Galar       |   16 |  27.59% |  50.00% |
| 4    | Meowth             |   16 |  27.59% |  43.75% |
| 7    | Frillish           |   14 |  24.14% |  35.71% |
| 8    | Stunky             |   11 |  18.97% |  36.36% |
| 8    | Dwebble            |   11 |  18.97% |  27.27% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |   10 |  17.24% |  60.00% |
| 10   | Natu               |   10 |  17.24% |  50.00% |
| 10   | Croagunk           |   10 |  17.24% |  50.00% |
| 12   | Baltoy             |    9 |  15.52% |  55.56% |
| 12   | Budew              |    9 |  15.52% |  55.56% |
| 12   | Helioptile         |    9 |  15.52% |  55.56% |
| 15   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    8 |  13.79% |  75.00% |
| 15   | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    8 |  13.79% |  62.50% |
| 15   | Grubbin            |    8 |  13.79% |  50.00% |
| 15   | Zigzagoon          |    8 |  13.79% |  50.00% |
| 19   | Snover             |    7 |  12.07% |  57.14% |
| 20   | Sandile            |    6 |  10.34% |  83.33% |
| 20   | Joltik             |    6 |  10.34% |  66.67% |
| 20   | Skrelp             |    6 |  10.34% |  50.00% |
| 23   | Shellos            |    5 |   8.62% |  60.00% |
| 23   | Trubbish           |    5 |   8.62% |  40.00% |
| 23   | Hippopotas         |    5 |   8.62% |  20.00% |
| 26   | Larvesta           |    4 |   6.90% | 100.00% |
| 26   | Growlithe          |    4 |   6.90% |  50.00% |
| 26   | Axew               |    4 |   6.90% |  50.00% |
| 26   | Squirtle           |    4 |   6.90% |  25.00% |
| 26   | Slowpoke           |    4 |   6.90% |  25.00% |
| 26   | Diglett-Alola      |    4 |   6.90% |   0.00% |
| 32   | Salandit           |    3 |   5.17% |  66.67% |
| 32   | Goldeen            |    3 |   5.17% |  66.67% |
| 32   | Krabby             |    3 |   5.17% |  66.67% |
| 32   | Oddish             |    3 |   5.17% |  33.33% |
| 36   | Wynaut             |    2 |   3.45% | 100.00% |
| 36   | Sizzlipede         |    2 |   3.45% |  50.00% |
| 36   | Minccino           |    2 |   3.45% |  50.00% |
| 36   | Machop             |    2 |   3.45% |  50.00% |
| 36   | Woobat             |    2 |   3.45% |  50.00% |
| 36   | Mantyke            |    2 |   3.45% |  50.00% |
| 36   | Poliwag            |    2 |   3.45% |   0.00% |
| 36   | Bulbasaur          |    2 |   3.45% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Duskull            |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Tentacool          |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Cubone             |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Wooper             |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Cubchoo            |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Shellos-East       |    1 |   1.72% | 100.00% |
| 44   | Pumpkaboo-Super    |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Zorua              |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Binacle            |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Electrike          |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Golett             |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Fomantis           |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Meowth-Galar       |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Lickitung          |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
| 44   | Fletchling         |    1 |   1.72% |   0.00% |
:Pancham:Week 1:Ponyta-Galar:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Pancham            |    8 | 100.00% |  50.00% |
| 2    | Ponyta-Galar       |    4 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 3    | Sandshrew          |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 3    | Helioptile         |    3 |  37.50% |  33.33% |
| 5    | Hippopotas         |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Croagunk           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Cufant             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Squirtle           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Frillish           |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 5    | Baltoy             |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Grubbin            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Stunky             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Mantyke            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Sandile            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Shellos-East       |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Wynaut             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Growlithe          |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Axew               |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Budew              |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 11   | Diglett-Alola      |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Cottonee           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Meowth             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Snover             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Woobat             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Skrelp             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Fletchling         |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 11   | Bulbasaur          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Sandshrew:Week 2:Grubbin:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Sandshrew          |    5 |  62.50% |  40.00% |
| 2    | Grubbin            |    4 |  50.00% |  50.00% |
| 2    | Ponyta-Galar       |    4 |  50.00% |  25.00% |
| 4    | Pancham            |    3 |  37.50% |  33.33% |
| 4    | Frillish           |    3 |  37.50% |  33.33% |
| 6    | Baltoy             |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 6    | Meowth             |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 6    | Trubbish           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Cottonee           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Zigzagoon          |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Dwebble            |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Stunky             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Croagunk           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 6    | Skrelp             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 16   | Wynaut             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 16   | Helioptile         |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 16   | Oddish             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 16   | Cufant             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 16   | Joltik             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 16   | Hippopotas         |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 16   | Shellos            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 16   | Meowth-Galar       |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 16   | Lickitung          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Sandshrew:Week 3

Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Sandshrew          |    4 |  50.00% |  50.00% |
| 1    | Meowth             |    4 |  50.00% |  50.00% |
| 1    | Stunky             |    4 |  50.00% |  25.00% |
| 4    | Pancham            |    3 |  37.50% | 100.00% |
| 5    | Frillish           |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 5    | Krabby             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Helioptile         |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Cufant             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Natu               |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Hippopotas         |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Ponyta-Galar       |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Budew              |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Snover             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Baltoy             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Larvesta           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Cottonee           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sandile            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Croagunk           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Diglett-Alola      |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Oddish             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Joltik             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Grubbin            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Salandit           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Slowpoke           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Fomantis           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Dwebble            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Machop             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Trubbish           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Pancham:Week 4:Cottonee:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Pancham            |    5 |  62.50% |  60.00% |
| 1    | Cottonee           |    5 |  62.50% |  40.00% |
| 3    | Snover             |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 3    | Sandshrew          |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 3    | Dwebble            |    3 |  37.50% |  33.33% |
| 3    | Cufant             |    3 |  37.50% |   0.00% |
| 7    | Sandshrew-Alola    |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 7    | Frillish           |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 7    | Zigzagoon          |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 7    | Slowpoke           |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 7    | Ponyta-Galar       |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 7    | Meowth             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 7    | Croagunk           |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Cubchoo            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 14   | Larvesta           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 14   | Growlithe          |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 14   | Budew              |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 14   | Axew               |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 14   | Skrelp             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Mantyke            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Electrike          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Helioptile         |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Golett             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Baltoy             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 14   | Poliwag            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Pancham:Week 5:Budew:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Pancham            |    4 |  50.00% |  25.00% |
| 2    | Budew              |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 2    | Sandshrew          |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 2    | Meowth             |    3 |  37.50% |   0.00% |
| 5    | Larvesta           |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 5    | Natu               |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Ponyta-Galar       |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Cufant             |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Diglett-Alola      |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 5    | Dwebble            |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Cubone             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Wooper             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Machop             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Goldeen            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Woobat             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Cottonee           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Skrelp             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Joltik             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sandile            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Croagunk           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Helioptile         |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Krabby             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Zigzagoon          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Squirtle           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Stunky             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Growlithe          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Frillish           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Slowpoke           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Oddish             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Binacle            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Cufant:Week 6:Cottonee:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Cufant             |    6 |  75.00% |  50.00% |
| 2    | Cottonee           |    4 |  50.00% |  75.00% |
| 3    | Sandshrew          |    3 |  37.50% |  66.67% |
| 3    | Natu               |    3 |  37.50% |  33.33% |
| 5    | Pancham            |    2 |  25.00% | 100.00% |
| 5    | Sandile            |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Shellos            |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Zigzagoon          |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Dwebble            |    2 |  25.00% |  50.00% |
| 5    | Ponyta-Galar       |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 5    | Frillish           |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 5    | Axew               |    2 |  25.00% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Salandit           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Duskull            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Sizzlipede         |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Tentacool          |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Trubbish           |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Baltoy             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Meowth             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Goldeen            |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Joltik             |    1 |  12.50% | 100.00% |
| 13   | Poliwag            |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Croagunk           |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Snover             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Bulbasaur          |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Stunky             |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
| 13   | Budew              |    1 |  12.50% |   0.00% |
:Sandshrew:Week 7:Cufant:
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Sandshrew          |    4 |  66.67% |  25.00% |
| 2    | Cufant             |    3 |  50.00% |  33.33% |
| 3    | Pancham            |    2 |  33.33% | 100.00% |
| 3    | Shellos            |    2 |  33.33% | 100.00% |
| 3    | Minccino           |    2 |  33.33% |  50.00% |
| 3    | Joltik             |    2 |  33.33% |  50.00% |
| 3    | Natu               |    2 |  33.33% |  50.00% |
| 3    | Cottonee           |    2 |  33.33% |  50.00% |
| 3    | Meowth             |    2 |  33.33% |  50.00% |
| 3    | Frillish           |    2 |  33.33% |   0.00% |
| 3    | Budew              |    2 |  33.33% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Snover             |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Skrelp             |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Baltoy             |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Helioptile         |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Croagunk           |    1 |  16.67% | 100.00% |
| 12   | Sizzlipede         |    1 |  16.67% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Goldeen            |    1 |  16.67% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Growlithe          |    1 |  16.67% |   0.00% |
| 12   | Zorua              |    1 |  16.67% |   0.00% |
There was 1 dead game this week
:Pumpkaboo:Semi-Finals:Pancham:
(One of the games this week featured an illegal mon and therefore was an auto loss. Not entirely sure the best way to handle the situation usage stats-wise, but I decided on just not including it in the stats, as it would've kinda fucked everything up)
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    2 | 100.00% |  50.00% |
| 1    | Pancham            |    2 | 100.00% |  50.00% |
| 2    | Sandile            |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 2    | Salandit           |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 2    | Sandshrew-Alola    |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 2    | Natu               |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 2    | Grubbin            |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 2    | Cufant             |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 2    | Stunky             |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 2    | Ponyta-Galar       |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 2    | Pumpkaboo-Super    |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
Finals
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon            | Use  | Usage % |  Win %  |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1    | Grubbin            |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Stunky             |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Cufant             |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| -    | Pumpkaboo-*        |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Pancham            |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Sandshrew          |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Pumpkaboo-Small    |    1 |  50.00% | 100.00% |
| 1    | Trubbish           |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 1    | Baltoy             |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 1    | Meowth             |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 1    | Zigzagoon          |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 1    | Dwebble            |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |
| 1    | Squirtle           |    1 |  50.00% |   0.00% |

Teams I Used
(Click Sprites for Importable)
:Ponyta-Galar::Hippopotas::Sandshrew::Helioptile::Pancham::Shellos:
This was initially built around the idea of CM Pony-G. Being that the one good Dark-type in the tier is Stunky, Hippo was a natural option to partner with Pony as it is one of the better Stunky checks in the tier. From there, I thought to myself why not just make it a sand team if you're already running Hippo, and promptly added Sandshrew; shifting the team's overall focus, but ending up a fairly unique approach to Sand that I'm fairly pleased with. Helio just makes sense on this as a way to deal with bulky waters and happens to be the best scarfer in the tier, imo. All-out attacking, fast Panda acts as a sort of glue for this team providing always useful Knock Off support as well as Gunk Shot to get rid of potential Cottonee. Lastly, Shellos rounds out the squad by just being a bulky Water that can just kinda sit on things and deter set up with Clear Smog. The double toxic on this team exists because I was and remain perpetually paranoid that my teams won't be able to break through bulky mons, such as opposing Shellos and Frillish.
Replay

:Oddish::Frillish::Cufant::Sandshrew::Joltik:
This marks the debut of a team structure I found myself really anchored on as I would build bulky offenses during the rest of the season. Cufant+Sandshrew+Water+Grass+Filler2x is something I found myself just kinda falling into without necessarily trying to do so. Though I only ended up bringing it twice more in the rest of my games, I built it quite a bit more and nearly brought it a 3rd time more before I realized that I had done 3 of the last 4 weeks I played. Anyway, this team itself is pretty self-explanatory imo. Oddish+Frillish is an excellent core paired with Cufant+Shrew. Cufant is my favorite rocker in the tier and helps my paranoia vs opposing Meowth and Ziggy. Joltik is a super annoying pivot for most teams to deal with. And Meowth, is extra Ziggy insurance + "speed control" via its strong priority. This Frillish is probably the most non-standard set here, but Psychic is really neat for Croagunk and the other non-Stunky poisons and without Will-o, Hex is obviously less favored over Shadow Ball.
Replay
:Sandile::Croagunk::Natu::Helioptile::Pumpkaboo::Krabby:
This team is already chillin as a sample and was actually brought a second time by KSG later on in the season where it was able to win as well. This, at its core, is just an update of a very old ORAS RMT of mine that was one of my favorite teams of all time. My personal innovation of utility Sandile serves as a great role-player on this team along with Gunk and Natu to put the more offensive members fo the team in a position to clean. Life Orb Pump-Small is an utter delight to use and as a note: Adamant nature on it gets you 3 extra damage with Poltergeist against 14 Def Evio targets, which is significant enough for me to opt for that over Jolly on this mon. Krabby is a slept-on threat but if you get weaken/get rid of it's few hard stops, it will run shit over. This is probably my favorite of the teams I ended up using.
Replay
:Woobat::Cottonee::Sandshrew::Skrelp::Cufant::Joltik:
In terms of actual execution of a concept, I think this might be the most cohesive team I built this season and I'm quite pleased with it. Initially, it sort of started it as a meme build because manual terrain is not something I typically consider to be super viable, but as it turns out Woobat makes it not bad at all. Max Def on Woobat because having 30 Def post-Grassy Seed pop makes your life setting up so much easier. I opted for Psychic over Stored Power because I didn't want to need to set up to have a chance to actually hurt things, but Stored Power is extremely valid there. The rest of the team is really standard, with the only odd variations being Grassy Terrain on Cott for obvious reasons and Superpower over my typical Zen Headbutt on Cufant. If you haven't realized yet, this is another example of the Cufant+Shrew+Water+Grass+Filler2x team structure that I was talking about earlier.
Replay
:Axew::Cufant::Budew::Frillish::Sandshrew::Natu:
This is probably the weakest of the squads I ended up bringing this season, and I'm not just saying that because it's the only one that lost. Don't get me wrong, I think the concept is solid. I think Axew is absolutely a strong threat in the meta. I just think that my actual execution of the build was subpar and I look at my loss against KSG primarily as a loss in teambuild and secondarily as a loss to Power Whip missing. SD just wasn't the correct choice on Axew. No one is building fat. What did I need the extra power for? I didn't and it cost me the game. It does turn out that I likely don't win at the end with DD now that I've seen the actual Joltik spread assuming it gets the 1-turn sleep and wakes up on my Axew's -1 Outrage I'm forced into, contrary to what I tried to explain during my video where I was assuming max Spe and max Spa on KSG's Joltik. But, the point being that DD at least gives me a chance at victory and is just a better option against the majority of teams that were being brought in the meta. So yeah, if you borrow this, I recommend switching to DD on it.
Replay

:Snover::Sandshrew-Alola::Skrelp::Baltoy::Pancham::Helioptile:
So this week technically didn't matter for me and I almost brought another Blueprint team before realizing that I had done that a lot. Then I almost brought a Sinistea squad, before chickening out because I felt it would be too meme-y despite the game not really mattering other than for my overall record. So ultimately, I decided to go with a fairly generic-looking Hail Team with the only interesting variations being BJ Snover and A-Shrew as opposed to their more typical Scarf and Evio/Life Orb options respectively. Other than that, there's not much to say about it. Baltoy is faster than I normally run it because Croagunk, but yeah.
Replay

Quick Thoughts
Overall, I'm really into LC UU as a whole right now and I think it's in a great spot. Nothing feels overbearing. There's a ridiculous amount of genuinely viable options to run and that makes for exciting options in the builder.
Ignore the fact that I kept falling back to the Blueprint, that was mainly because I build in a very checklist-y manner where I overly crutch on cores that I find a modicum of success with and hyper-focus on dealing with specific threats (currently Meowth and Shellos/Frillish if you were curious) which limits my tournament building variety.
I'm thinking about doing a video that sort of half serves as an LPL season retrospective and half as an opportunity to talk more specifically about stuff I think is good/bad. I can't wait for the next opportunity to play some meaningful lc uu, but in the meantime, the roomtours will have to do. Actually, if you see me online at all, and feel like playing, don't hesitate to ask for a game or two.​
 
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DC

Kpop Main, No Brain
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Now that our team's season is over, it is prolly the ideal time to share some thoughts about the current meta and teams. I felt that LPL had a big meta shift during the course of the season which brought forth new mons that were previously seen as "less viable". So, these are the two teams I personally enjoyed building or using the most, incorporating some of the underrated mons.

:Ponyta-Galar: :Sandshrew: :Pancham: :Larvesta: :Budew: :Goldeen:
LCUU SpikeTurn Offense: https://pokepast.es/1f4817fb6da9a9c5
The team is relatively simple in its approach. Larvesta and Goldeen make up a formidable duo, taking advantage of Budew's Spikes to put the opponent in a pivot cycle and wearing down their defensive walls. Modest G-Ponyta and Swords Dance Pancham provides the necessary power to sweep or clean the weakened opposing team. Sandshrew serves as a solid defensive glue, clearing hazards for the Turn-users.

:Pumpkaboo: :Joltik: :Cufant: :Pancham: :Natu: :Shellos:
LCUU PumpNatu Balance: https://pokepast.es/6c86abb40928ce82
The team structure is more traditional for this one, featuring a defensive core of Cufant, Fast Pancham, and Shellos. LO Natu has very little switch-ins with its vast coverage and the ones that want to switch into it like Shellos and Frillish are covered by Joltik and Pumpkaboo. Team is very simple, but very effective especially against other balance builds.

Might as well add rises/drops for the VR while I am at it.
Rises:
:Sandshrew: to S: It has seen enough usage to justify its S ranking. It provides most teams with what they need: a defensive glue that can set up hazards, clear hazards, provide Knock support, etc.
:Cufant: to A+: Cufant's rise was surprising, but expected. For a Stealth Rock user, its coverage is unmatched and not even the likes of Sandshrew or Frillish wants to take a Power Whip.
:Goldeen: to A-: A 17 Speed pivot with Knock and Electric-immunity is very good.
:Salandit: to A-: Most teams dont have an answer to this mon. Life Orb Nasty Plot shreds everything, barring Frillish and Shellos.
:Joltik: to A-: All of LCUU's ground-types lose to this bug. VoltTurn is broken.
:Natu: to A-: This mon is better than I thought. It has the coverage to seriously annoy all its checks (T-wave for Stunky, Heat Wave for Cufant and Joltik, etc.)
:Budew: to A-: Spikes is broken. It beats the two common forms of hazard control in Defog Cottonee and Sandshrew.
:Sandile: to B+/A-: I have been on this mon's hype train for a bit. The tier has really bad Ground resists which makes EQ extremely threatening. Ground-immunities like Baltoy and Natu are chewed up by Crunch.

Drops:
:Stunky: to A+: Unfortunately, this mon is not as good as it used to be.
:Diglett-Alola: to B+: Generally only seen on HO or Sand and is super frail.
:Krabby: to B+: Too many water resists.
:Oddish: to B: It sucks and is outclassed by Budew.
:Wynaut: to B: Kills offensive momentum; can only trap very specific targets.

Thanks for reading till the end! Heres to the end of another good LPL season.
 

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