Been doing some travel recently and had some time to kill in airports, so I wrote a few of my thoughts on some Pokemon in UU that I feel are meta-defining currently. Just want to spark some discussion, so here goes!
Clefable: This fairy type is the best mon in the tier at the moment in my opinion, and I believe it is too much for UU. It combines great natural bulk, terrific coverage options capable of bopping it’s usual counters or supporting it’s teammates, two excellent abilities that are both viable and invalidate some ways to beat it, decent special attack stat without boosts allowing it not be terribly passive (especially not the offensive LO set), and one of if not the best typing in the game. I’ve heard people compare it to Suicune of past generations, but I think it’s more impactful than that. Suicune of past generations was exploitable for the most part if you ran a water immune Pokemon like Toxicroak or Heliolisk, or by boosting alongside it with something like Celebi or Cresselia or Slowking. Compared to Suicune, Clefable has a full immunity to take advantage of, better recovery in the form of Softboiled vs Rest/sleep talk, and better coverage options to hit usual counters. Additionally, the Magic Guard set prevents it from being worn down with hazards and status, and the Unaware set prevents you from boosting through its natural bulk. For example, Clefable lives an adamant Life orb Scizor Bullet Punch with ease (252+ Atk Life Orb Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 244-291 (61.9 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery) and can OHKO in return with Flamethrower (0 SpA Clefable Flamethrower vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Scizor: 296-352 (105.3 - 125.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO). Not all Clefable run flamethrower, but the fact that you have to be wary of coverage options and scout forces you to stack Clefable checks and that’s not easy to do in a metagame where every Pokémon on a team already has to cover multiple threats. Yes, a lot of Clefable’s checks are among the viable ones in the tier like Cobalion, Bisharp, Scizor, Gengar, Magneton, and Entei. But how many of them like eating a flamethrower or getting crippled with T-wave. The Nidos are arguably the best answer to Clefable, but they lack recovery and are Pursuitable by the likes of Mega Aero and Krookodile. Clefable just puts so much pressure on opposing teams, and it’s perhaps too splashable. Here’s a game against Rodri where after I haxxed him early game (sorry!), Clefable goes off late game and beats Amoongus, Whirlwind Hippo, Mega Aero, and Z-move Keldeo.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-540920147. And here is another on stall where playerW17 uses Clefable to wall Sacri numerous times and then CM sweep late
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7uu-531782356.
I haven’t even talked about the Unaware set on stall which makes that playstyle overpowered imo in a ladder game setting. You could see it in ULT laddering, a bunch of the qualifiers were using stall or semi-stall to great success on the back of Clefable blanket checking a ton of threats. It eats up powerful attacks including some of the most powerful Z-moves from the likes of Decidueye, Mew and so much more. Now stall got beaten down in playoffs, yes, but there were good players preparing for it using things like SD LO Pangoro to specifically break through it. It’s not always easy to fit a dedicated stall breaker on a team for ladder play. Stall ladder players know this and take advantage of common builds. Clefable answers so many mons for stall teams and makes a ton of regular builds unable to break through. Ban Clefable.
Mega Sharpedo: Definitely one of the biggest threats in the tier as a late game cleaner, this thing has become a nightmare for a lot of teams to face. Access to psychic coverage in the form of Psychic Fangs allows Mega Shark to get by some of its previous checks/counters from last gen and limits its counter play. That in addition to the mega speed change give it much more ease in getting into battle safely and wreaking havoc. To me though, I don’t think its ban worthy because it requires a ton of support to successfully accomplish its goal. It needs chip damage on a lot of Pokemon to KO, so hazard support or effective team support are vital. It also is reliant on Protect to get a safe speed boost and outspeed a number of Pokémon, that creates a bunch of 50/50 situations. Protect is an opportunity for the opponent to safely switch in a check for free but sometimes you can attack with your Mega Sharpedo right away to get chip damage on a check while risking your opponent staying in and attacking. Protect can also be taken advantage of by the likes of sub-CM Raikou and other substitute users. Mega Shark also suffers a bit from 4MSS as it wants all of Waterfall, Crunch, Psychic Fangs, Poison Jab, and even Ice Fang to hit all its usual switchins in addition to the essential Protect. So you have to pick what Pokémon you want to beat with Mega Sharpedo. Lots of mons live a hit and fire back and KO thanks to Mega Sharpedo’s lackluster defensive skills. It is also weak to fighting priority with is pretty common with Bisharp around. Point is, Mega Sharpedo needs support and to be played just right to get the most out it’s potential in a lot of matches, and that shows it has lots of counter-play and therefore not broken.
Bisharp: Perhaps a controversial opinion, but I feel that Bisharp is low-key broken in this meta, really stemming from its ability Defiant. On its own, Bisharp is a slow but strong attacker with a pretty good offensive and defensive typing helping its meh defensive stats. But Bisharp has a big niche as one of the few viable Defiant users in the tier, being able to deter Defog users from clearing entry hazards as coming in on a defog gives Bisharp a +2 attack raise. Not to mention other means of acquiring that Defiant boost like simply coming in on sticky webs (Webs aren’t the most viable strategy but it is pretty well unviable now with Bisharp around) or even getting a special attack drop from a Clefable Moonblast. Not many Pokemon in the tier enjoy eating a +2 Bisharp attack. What makes it tolerable in UU right now is that it has a lot of checks and counters that beat it easily 1v1 and therefore it can be revenge killed fairly easily from the likes of Keldeo and Cobalion and dark types like Krookodile and Hydreigon. Bisharp does get coverage to catch usual switchins on the switch like Low Kick for Cobalion and other Bisharp, but it struggles to find a place for it with the value of Sucker punch, Knock off, Iron Head, and SD/Pursuit depending on item choice. Bisharp beats every defogger in the tier except for defensive foul play Mandibuzz, making it one of the premier team supporters in the tier for hazard stacking squads. Yes, Sucker Punch creates a lot of 50/50’s, but I think Bisharp still finds consistency and is one of the biggest threats in the tier. I would lean towards banning Bisharp but I think it’s close to being okay in the tier and it’s not the most broken thing right now.
Scizor: When people ask what is good in UU right now in the UU room, Scizor is always my first answer. I think it’s probably the 2nd best mon in UU at the moment behind Clefable, combining great defensive typing with instant recovery, SD to boost its attacking presence, useful priority enhanced by Technician, and the ability to generate momentum with U-turn. I think it’s a great mon for the tier, using it’s typing to blanket check a bunch of Pokemon and keep things in order. What makes it fit well imo, is that the bulky roost set isn’t threatening offensively without out setting up, and the offensive sets like CB or Life Orb/Iron Plate with max Atk and Spe can’t perform the same defensive responsibilities and gets worn down. So it can’t do everything at once. I also think it’s an easier mon to adjust to as well as it’s 4x weakness to Fire is easy to prepare for. Do not ban as I believe it’s healthy for the tier.
Amoongus: Another controversial topic I’m raising, note that I do not think it’s broken or deserves a suspect as I see it’s value in blanket checking a ton including the scary Keldeo, just wanted to say that Amoongus impacts the tier immensely thanks to guaranteed sleep with Spore and it can change games like the some of the UU tier’s best. Incapacitating a Pokémon on your opponent’s team is huge, turning the game into a 6-5. Those teams without a sleep absorber are always at risk as a sleeping Pokémon is useless, and in a tier where every Pokémon on a team already has to cover multiple threats, it really pressures teams. I have been a part of and seen a ton of games lost because Amoongus makes something go night-night and the sleeping Pokémon doesn’t wake up when needed and the game is over. It’s so splashable too, capable of being run on everything from full stall to bulky offense. In addition to Spore, it has a fantastic ability in regenerator which lets it come in time and again and heal back up which is great against Volt-turn Strategies. It also has access to moves like Foul Play for physical attackers and Giga Drain for Stab and healing, Clear smog to eliminate stay boosts, as well as HP Fire to lure Scizor and opposing Amoongus. That combined with its above average bulk means it’s not dead weight after it has incapacitated an opposing Pokémon with sleep. Do not ban, but note its impact on the tier is immense.
Togekiss: Finally, everyone’s favorite/most hated UU Pokemon depending on what side of the field it’s on. It is among the, if not the most annoying mon to face in the tier at times. Nothing makes you want to smash your computer more than Togekiss haxxing you out the server as it floats there smiling haha. Honestly, I think it’s okay in this metagame thanks to it’s mediocre speed tier allowing it to be revenged relatively easily by the likes of Raikou and Mega Aero, but it’s one of the most consistent mons in the tier and I wouldn’t say no if it were to get the boot. Serene Grace + Air Slash makes flinching very common, and it can hax through would be counters with luck. There are 2 sets with those moves that are both extremely viable, first with Nasty Plot to hit harder and Heal Bell + Roost ensure Togekiss cannot be worn down or statused into the ground. This set is one of the premier stallbreakers in the tier. The other set can be more frustrating, it involves T-wave to further up the chances of your counter not being able to break through and hit Togekiss. I’ve recently also seen Z-Yawn become a bit more popular on Togekiss which gives it a boost in speed and makes the opposing Pokémon drowsy. Something to look for more in the future. Overall, I don’t think it’s ban worthy as there’s enough out there to combat Togekiss offensively, but it’s ability to break through bulky builds with hax can be infuriating and I think it deserves some discussion.