Alright so the lot of us in charge of these rankings, as well as a few members from the council, got together over IRC tonight to finalize the XYUU Viability Rankings.
As the undisputed king of good TL;DR I have the honors of posting what we changed and updating the OP. Keep in mind I really didn't go nuts with the descriptions.
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S-Rank to A+-Rank
Lucario finds itself in a bulkier metagame right now than it did when it first rose to S-Rank. The recent rise in Gligar and the general lack of usability in Ice Punch has shafted its viability as a Swords Dance sweeper. The Nasty Plot set is still a very Potent Pokemon, probably why it is still able to maintain A+ status.
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A+ Rank to A Rank
Another rise in bulky Water-types is really starting to hamper Mega-Aerodactyl's effectiveness in the tier, as teams are becoming increasingly prepared for other strong threats (ie; Zygarde, Machamp). While Mega-Aerodactyl is insanely fast, Choice Scarf users still get the best of it, and Mega-Alakazam's arrival has prompted an increase in general Choice Scarf usage, which equally hurts Mega-Aerodactyl.
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A+ Rank to A Rank
Alakazam has seen a similar fate to Lucario, as the upward trend of bulk in the XY Underused metagame has made Alakazam less threatening than it used to be. Faces competition from its mega forme for dominance as a Special Attacker too.
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A+ Rank to A Rank
With Victini having been banished into BL, Krookodile has seen a decline in viability as there's less things to Pursuit trap. It sits at a really awkward Speed tier too, which prevents it from being truly threatening.
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A+ Rank to S Rank
This one is fairly obvious. Zygarde, fresh off its suspect test, is already threatening the metagame. Thanks to its insane bulk, it's capable of setting up on a lot of the defensive Pokemon in the tier with either Dragon Dance or Coil, then proceed to break or beat opposing teams.
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A Rank to A- Rank
Mega-Ampharos is extremely slow and it's beginning to show. The rise in Gligar's usage is also keeping it from aimlessly spamming Volt Switch.
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A Rank to A+ Rank
Machamp has proven to be a really good walbreaker in this metagame. It has an excellent balance of bulk, two solid abilities (Guts or No Guard), and has lots of versatility when equipped with an Assault Vest or Choice Band. It's only real flaws are its terrible Speed and the drawbacks of its STAB (low PP, Close Combat defense drops).
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A Rank to A- Rank
Here's a debate that refuses to quit. The final verdict on Nidoking is that it is generally outclassed by Nidoqueen. I think this thing only hits harder than its bulkier counterpart by a few percentages at most, which isn't enough of a trade-off to give Nidoking an edge over Nidoqueen. It's faster too, but Nidoqueen is a much more viable Pokemon in today's metagame thanks to its bulk and equal power.
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A- Rank to B Rank
Most of the tier uses Blissey as setup bait, or as utility bait. Putting one onto your team almost forces you into running stall or mediocre balance.
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A- Rank to A Rank
Celebi's increase in viability is due to a few things. The rise in Whimsicott and Water-types has made it as useful as ever, and it has an excellent Weakness Policy Pass set that just does work on the tier since there's so many great recipients. It's a generally good Pokemon too.
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A- Rank to A Rank
Sacred Fire. SubCM Suicune fears having to take a burn and Crocune is pressured by Zygarde, making this thing significantly better.
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A- Rank to C Rank
The biggest movement on the final revision, Espeon has lost whatever viability it used to have. Between the Baton Pass nerf and Mega-Alakazam outclassing it, it's only real niche is
maybe subpassing and maybe some unexplored gimmicks. Nobody has ever made a good team with this thing either. It's basically a liability.
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A- Rank to B Rank
Forretress really doesn't have any offensive or defensive merit anymore. It does provide decent support, but it has a huge issue with 4MSS and overlap with bulky Water-types that do its job better. Must take a hit in order to use Volt Switch, which sucks.
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B+ Rank to A- Rank
This thing should have never dropped in the first place. Fast Stealth Rock, Explosion, and some decent offensive sets. Cornerstone for modern HO teams.
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B+ Rank to A- Rank
Yanmega finds itself in a position where it is extremely anti-meta right now. The new sound move mechanics means it can bypass Substitutes and Speed Boost makes it very hard to keep pace with after a couple turns. Stealth Rock still bugs it
see what I did there? and it needs teams to be weakened before it can really take hold of a match.
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B- Rank to B Rank
A minor adjustment here, but Fletchinder is another Pokemon that performs excellently when paired with something capable of keeping Stealth Rock off your side of the field. Access to Will-O-Wisp helps teams break down Water- and Steel-types, and priority birdspam helps cleans teams in the later stages of a match.
and
(x)
Removed from rankings
Both Chatot and Cinccino have been removed from the XYUU Viability Rankings. Neither Pokemon is effective in the current metagame nor are they equipped to compete in it.
These were the major changes that were discussed tonight. Everything else was seen as okay where it was, or simply not worth discussing. Feel free to bicker about our decisions, don't expect them to change. If you think we've missed anything, speak up. I'll edit the OP tomorrow, I'm dead tired right now.
