Metagame Frantic Fusions (New resources @ Post #387)

[zastra]

random meta post

- Toxic Debris+Good as Gold

gag / debris arent rly broken imo cuz 1. youre forced to run like 3 mons for it to work effectively 2. these mons would love using some other ability, like regen for tusk 3. all game youre realistically going 4v6. great tusk is imo the best debris mon cuz it can spin and take physical hits well. zapdos is the go-to gag mon cuz of its ability to pressure corviknight. pdef ghold@latios owns tusk / treads and is near mandatory.

debris is a nice way to punish common full-regen cores and even common offense structures reliant on tusk. it kinda struggles vs boots / semi-regen spam tho so there's that. theres also the occasional poison-types clod / pecha / fezan. and vs those, well, good luck. GaGbris offense likes strong knockers like roaring moon / trick mons like azelf.

overall, it's a good playstyle that is good at punishing common structures but at times feels really underwhelming. not really worth taking action rn imo.

- Raging Bolt ETerrain Spam

raging bolt lowkey feels broken. if it didnt have that horrible speed tier it would be on the BL rn probably. eterrain voltage is amazing and its dragon stab is good vs most grounds (except treads). but its not just that, bolt also enables other (otherwise low speed) surge surfer attackers such as ursaluna / iron hands etc. overall a v nice strategy.

- SkarmLu

a v nice defensive core, skarm deals w physical mons like ogerpon / rmoon / sneasler etc. tinglu handles special ones, most notably the monster named latios. both are good at stacking up hazards.

- Other terrains

Ogerpon-W / C@Rillaboom and Azelf@Indeedee are also commonly seen and very good options in the current metagame. Ogerpon especially can just SD and heal itself with Horn Leech like fuck LOL. azelf can eforce past everything and a good trick / gleam into the dark and youre finished.

Ice Spinner stuff like Great Tusk and Treads and maybe Dragonite...? seem like great options in the current metagame.

- Archaludon

eshot idef bp is a nightmare to deal with at times.
pelipper (Archaludon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Drizzle
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Iron Defense
- Electro Shot
- Body Press
- Rest / Substitute
this is a set ive been enjoying a lot. u dont see a lot of bu tusks and idef bp just rolls grounds like treads / tinglu / even pert. rest ensures u stay healthy, but sub can be run for garg salt cure-->6-0 stall. eshot is enough to deal w stuff like ghold. has issues with like latios but what fucking doesnt lol.

- Gouging Fire

mad bulky and can set up to outright crush teams like buzz off lol. run gfire@clef w dd / msun / blitz / filler (usually eq / stedge / dclaw) and ure done. gg. not even alomomola wins. max pdef tusk checks if no balloon at least, i suppose.

On Regenerator / Stall:

the meta is not friendly to big stall with trick spam / rbolt / gagbris / archaludon / physical setup.... and so on heavily pressuring regen-heavy cores. def viable still but don't expect any action soon.

overall, i think the meta is in a decent spot rn with a LOT of viable playstyles. im interested to know what the community thinks about the current brokens (if you think there are any). personally i think the meta doesnt need any immediate bans but i will decide after playing some more games.

 

[zezaktest]

I haven't seen anyone else share their personal VRs, so I might as well.

correct takes within

upper ranks are also going to get their fusions listed, with more niche options being unbolded.

S rank (ordered by viability)
Latios (Porygon-Z / Espeon)
Swampert (Hydrapple / Slowking)

I don't think Swampert or Latios are bad by any means but those are the S tiers??? I personally don't think this meta is mature enough for even an S tier ranking. Neither of those seem particularly strong vs your S- ranks which I do think are comparable. I'd say Swampert is an alright choice for a regenvester, not the top tier one, with bulk worse than A-Muk, Manaphy and other 6 100s, Raging Bolt, better than Treads at least.

 

[Glory]

I don't think Swampert or Latios are bad by any means but those are the S tiers??? I personally don't think this meta is mature enough for even an S tier ranking. Neither of those seem particularly strong vs your S- ranks which I do think are comparable. I'd say Swampert is an alright choice for a regenvester, not the top tier one, with bulk worse than A-Muk, Manaphy and other 6 100s, Raging Bolt, better than Treads at least.

If you're gonna judge a mon off of surface level observations such as having lower stats than pokemon that fill a similar role, then you're bound to miss the full picture. It's the whole package that makes a mon good. Swampert is better than its competition because it has a better movepool and typing than its competition. The most comparable is Manaphy, as they are both bulky water types with access to Knock Off and pivoting. The key difference is in Swampert's secondary typing, Ground.
The Ground-type gives Swampert three key advantages over Manaphy. The first, and most obvious, is that Swampert is immune to Electric rather than weak to it, meaning it can comfortably check Raging Bolt and Archaludon, whereas Manaphy would need to pack a teammate to handle them. The second is that Swampert resists Stealth Rock, which is a small but very major difference between the two. Swampert is able to switch into a lot more attacks with rocks up than Manaphy can. Finally, and maybe the most crucial, is that Swampert has STAB Earthquake. Earthquake is able to put out very respectable damage against a wide range of targets, greatly alleviating passivity issues (130 base attack is nothing to scoff at.)
Swampert simply has an insane amount of role compression for one pokemon. Playing a lot has only reinforced this opinion, cementing Swampert among the very elite in terms of viability.



You didn't elaborate whatsoever so I'm not sure what I need to further explain for Latios. In case you just missed it the first time I'll repaste my explanation, which is quite succinct and accurate.

Latios is not only the most threatening wallbreaker in the metagame, but it's the most splashable too. Even with only one Fusion it can easily catch all of its checks off guard with plenty of different options. Choice Specs, Choice Scarf, and Calm Mind are all incredibly effective no matter the team or matchup.

Latios fits on every team, and it's good in every game. It's as simple as that.

 

[Gambit_Gamin]

I think this can be countered somewhat easily with cautious steps, obviously, the first copycat could be unexpected but afterwards you gotta play around it, and use context clues to figure out that something might have Scrappy, which means you should save the ghost type, that being Sinistcha.

Why doesn't Raging Bolt have Pincurchin as one of the viable fusions?

 

[Gambit_Gamin]

I might just be going out on a limb here, but I have an idea. Just wanna say, I don't play Frantic Fusions very often, but I've seen a lot of people complaining about this. My idea is that for certain abilities, you could restrict those abilities to once per mon. An example of an ability that could be restricted is Regenerator. I've seen plenty of people complaining about having to deal with two or three Regenerator mons and I think this might be a solution to this problem. This allows for less viable abilities that should be allowed on multiple mons to be able to be used. This also means you don't have to allow all abilities to ability stack and you don't have to add a clause allowing only different abilities.

 

[Railroader17]

I might just be going out on a limb here, but I have an idea. Just wanna say, I don't play Frantic Fusions very often, but I've seen a lot of people complaining about this. My idea is that for certain abilities, you could restrict those abilities to once per mon. An example of an ability that could be restricted is Regenerator. I've seen plenty of people complaining about having to deal with two or three Regenerator mons and I think this might be a solution to this problem. This allows for less viable abilities that should be allowed on multiple mons to be able to be used. This also means you don't have to allow all abilities to ability stack and you don't have to add a clause allowing only different abilities.

While I sort of agree with this (mostly that I think Regen needs to be nerfed a bit in this meta), I'd offer an alternative solution.

Restrict certain abilities to their native users

Idea being that while you don't completely eliminate teams comps like Regen cores from existence, you instead make them more predictable, and easier to counter as a result.

Say for instance Regenerator winds up restricted in this manner, and someone wants to fuse Great Tusk with Hydrapple.

New Stats: HP: 115, Atk: 151, Def: 158, SpA: 83, SpDef: 73, Spe: 98

Abilities: Protosynthesis, Supersweet Syrup, Sticky Hold, Regenerator

Because Regen is now restricted to native mons, Tusk can't click Regenerator anymore.

But Hyrapple can

New Stats: HP: 106, Atk: 112, Def: 142, SpA: 133, SpDef: 93, Spe: 65

Abilities: Supersweet Syrup, Sticky Hold, Regenerator, Protosynthesis

While not as physically bulky, it still has much better Special bulk, and can still click Regenerator, making it a solid Regenvest Pivot. But with a glaring weakness to Ice.

So now Regenerator would be limited to the Slow family, Alomomola, Amoonguss, Hydrapple, Torn-Therian, Mienshao, Reuniclus, Klawf, and Cyclizar. And while the donors and the stats gained can vary, it's easier to slot in coverage to deal with the now more predictable Regen cores.

 

[hidin]

we do not plan on restricting abilities in any way, we’ve had this discussion in the past and came to that conclusion; it doesnt help that the discussion was pretty heated as well. no meta changing rule will be added to the ruleset, and especially ones that change the tiers whole identity, so i would prefer we dont go down that rabbit hole. also regenerator is beatable once you truly realize how strong offensive tools are in this meta

on an unrelated note a VR, role compendium, and donor compendium and more are on the way, so stay tuned for that

 

[big miike]

Regenerator stall legitimately isn't beatable if your opponent knows what they're doing. It really should be restricted in one form or another

I think it should either be restricted to one pokemon or to the pokemon that already have regenerator

 

[zezaktest]

While I sort of agree with this (mostly that I think Regen needs to be nerfed a bit in this meta), I'd offer an alternative solution.

Restrict certain abilities to their native users

Idea being that while you don't completely eliminate teams comps like Regen cores from existence, you instead make them more predictable, and easier to counter as a result.

Say for instance Regenerator winds up restricted in this manner, and someone wants to fuse Great Tusk with Hydrapple.

New Stats: HP: 115, Atk: 151, Def: 158, SpA: 83, SpDef: 73, Spe: 98

Abilities: Protosynthesis, Supersweet Syrup, Sticky Hold, Regenerator

Because Regen is now restricted to native mons, Tusk can't click Regenerator anymore.

But Hyrapple can

New Stats: HP: 106, Atk: 112, Def: 142, SpA: 133, SpDef: 93, Spe: 65

Abilities: Supersweet Syrup, Sticky Hold, Regenerator, Protosynthesis

While not as physically bulky, it still has much better Special bulk, and can still click Regenerator, making it a solid Regenvest Pivot. But with a glaring weakness to Ice.

So now Regenerator would be limited to the Slow family, Alomomola, Amoonguss, Hydrapple, Torn-Therian, Mienshao, Reuniclus, Klawf, and Cyclizar. And while the donors and the stats gained can vary, it's easier to slot in coverage to deal with the now more predictable Regen cores.

Objectively a bad idea. Regen is at least needed for vesters and almost none of the pokemon with regen right now are particularly good at being regenvesters in this meta.

Why doesn't Raging Bolt have Pincurchin as one of the viable fusions?

Because Pincurchin is a bad pokemon. Also for example; in AAA, what broke Raging is Hadron Engine, not Electric Surge, the extra spatk made a world's difference. Pincurchin does offer valuable Spatk, around 20, but compared to other special attacking donators like Porygon-Z, damage output is unmatched.

 

[Byleth]

I heard people hated regen stall so here's a regen stall that let me top 3 the ladder so awesome so cool

Standard 3 regen 2 unaware 1 bounce core I took a similar idea from another team because it was so stupid but yeah this team if not pressured correctly with spikes and proper ways to keep tsareena from spinning kind of just wins pretty easily it could be improved a little more honestly but I'm lazy.

Turning the 2nd half of this post into a personal team hub of ones that do good on the ladder on my various alts all teams can be considered for samples don't really care.

Rain


Electrode Spike Stack


CM Latios Balance


Scarf Infernape Life Orb Primarina (this one might be the worst)


Edit: This stall got me to 1500 for free on my actual acc I believe its much better than the showcased 3 regens since Unaware is super important and wish alola can act as regen for the whole team + spinblocker + unblockable spinner 2nd comp runs better into lati and is dual spinner but puts more pressure on chansey vs special setup




Hyper Offense 1450+ on ladder

 

[Katz89]

Been running mono poison for a long time in this meta and I'll be honest it's not good but it's usable. It took a lot of optimizing and the ban of Iron Moth hurt because it was a funny Mareanie sweeper but Pecharunt is by no means a bad replacement. Could definitely be optimized further but I've already spent a lot of time optimizing it so it should be in a decent state for a mono team, especially of a pretty bad type in general play. The double defense/special defense core is nice, and while Glimmora(the one nicknamed Tornadus-T not the one that is nicknamed Glimmora) isn't contributing that much I really have gotten to appreciate the other 5 mons a lot. I wish there was a better poison type spinner so I could be clearer with why I would use Glimmora but it's still been fun overall
https://pokepast.es/c19ceb2b3df75d32

 

[hidin]

Resources are here!
Me and the rest of council have taken some time to make some resources for Frantic Fusions, and they are finally ready! As such, we now have a Viability Rankings, a Donor Compendium, an Ability Compendium, a Set Compendium, and a work-in-progress Role Compendium! Hopefully these resources can help you out when building in this metagame and lessen confusion as well. They are all viewable on this post, but for ease of access I will put them here too. Enjoy!

Resources

Viablity Rankings

Viability Rankings
Welcome to the first edition of the Generation 9 Frantic Fusions Viability Rankings! In this thread, we as a community, overlooked by a unique council, will attempt to rank every viable Pokemon in various ranks. Please be encouraged to post your thoughts on the viability of Pokemon in this thread!

Ranks
Pokemon will be ranked in descending order; there is no divide in viability inbetween ranks. There is no differentiation in offensive and defensive Pokemon. Corviknight may be A+ for its defensive utility, while Gouging Fire may be A+ for its capabilities as a wallbreaker.

VR Council
The VR Council is made up of respected and active users in Frantic Fusions. They will have the final say on where Pokemon get ranked. Here is the current VR Council:

• hidin
• zastra
• Orangex
• Hiusi guy
• TaxFraud

S Rank
Top of the top. Rulers of the metagame. These Pokemon fit on most playstyles and need minimal support to function, if any at all.

S
Latios (Greninja, Porygon-Z, Tauros, Yanmega)

S-
Corviknight (Deoxys-Defense, Houndstone, Scrafty)
Great Tusk (Decidueye-Hisui, Garganacl, Klawf, Lycanroc-Dusk)
Roaring Moon (Lokix, Lycanroc-Dusk, Rampardos, Tornadus-Therian, Hydrapple)
Swampert (Hydrapple, Slowking)


A Rank
Meta defining, but not to the extent of the Pokemon in S Rank. These Pokemon need minimal support to function.

A+
Dragonite (Cinderace)
Gholdengo (Clefable, Deoxys-Defense, Latias, Yanmega)
Gouging Fire (Clefable, Orthworm, Uxie)
Ogerpon-Wellspring (Basculin, Haxorus, Lokix)
Raging Bolt (Latias, Latios, Pincurchin, Politoed, Porygon-Z, Slowking-Galar)
Skarmory (Deoxys-Defense, Gholdengo, Glimmora, Hatterene, Houndstone, Scrafty)
Sneasler (Flamigo, Jirachi, Lycanroc-Dusk)

A
Azelf (Braviary-Hisui, Indeedee)
Goodra-Hisui (Hydrapple, Slowbro)
Ogerpon-Cornerstone (Basculin, Bombirdier, Lokix)
Samurott-Hisui (Basculin, Haxorus, Tornadus-Therian)
Zapdos-Galar (Flamigo, Lycanroc-Dusk, Tornadus-Therian)

A-
Alomomola (Deoxys-Defense, Regirock, Regice)
Cinderace (Clefable, Ninetales, Rampardos, Roaring Moon, Tornadus-Therian)
Deoxys-Defense (Dondozo, Gholdengo, Goodra-Hisui, Hatterene, Houndstone, Tornadus-Therian)
Iron Treads (Hydrapple, Tornadus-Therian)
Kingambit (Basculegion, Hatterene, Hydrapple, Lycanroc-Dusk, Rampardos)
Manaphy (Braviary-Hisui, Basculegion-F, Hatterene, Iron Jugulis, Slowking-Galar)
Pecharunt (Deoxys-Defense, Gholdengo, Glimmora, Houndstone, Salazzle, Uxie)
Ting-Lu (Glimmora, Hydrapple, Regice)
Zapdos (Clefable, Regirock, Politoed)

B Rank
Solid Pokemon, but they don't shape the meta like S and A Rank. They have a defined role which is often applicable and usually quite valuable. These Pokemon always need some support to bring out the best in them.

B+
Archaludon (Hydrapple, Pelipper, Politoed, Regice, Tornadus-Therian)
Barraskewda (Cinderace, Rampardos)
Blissey (Dondozo, Hydrapple, Ting-Lu, Wo-Chien)
Ceruledge (Basculin, Kleavor)
Garchomp (Ambipom, Hydrapple, Tornadus-Therian)
Garganacl (Deoxys-Defense, Regice)
Heatran (Clefable, Hydrapple, Latias, Uxie)
Iron Crown (Archaludon, Clefable, Indeedee, Slowking-Galar)
Scream Tail (Hatterene, Skeledirge, Sylveon)

B
Clefable (Deoxys-Defense, Regirock)
Dondozo (Regice, Slowking)
Enamorus-Therian (Archaludon, Braviary-Hisui, Hatterene, Hydrapple)
Electrode-Hisui (Clefable)
Excadrill (Lokix, Tornadus-Therian)
Gengar (Braviary-Hisui, Greninja, Tauros)
Iron Hands (Barraskewda, Clefable, Dragonite, Tornadus-Therian, Ting-Lu)
Landorus-Therian (Houndstone, Feraligatr, Greninja, Tornadus-Therian)
Mandibuzz (Hatterene, Houndstone, Scrafty, Slowking-Galar)
Meloetta (Slowking-Galar)
Meowscarada (Inteleon, Lilligant-Hisui, Rampardos)
Mew (Clefable, Glimmora, Greninja, Klefki, Tornadus-Therian, etc.*)
Primarina (Braviary-Hisui, Hatterene, Politoed, Thundurus-Therian)
Ribombee (Hawlucha)
Sinistcha (Hatterene, Gholdengo)
Slither Wing (Barraskewda, Lycanroc-Dusk, Lokix)
Slowking-Galar (Hoopa, Regirock)
Ursaluna (Barraskewda)
Ursaluna-Bloodmoon (Hatterene, Hoopa)
Zoroark-Hisui (Heracross, Tauros)

*etc. is said because of how customizable Mew is as a Pokemon.

B-
Entei (Cinderace, Clefable, Jirachi)
Greninja (Politoed, Thundurus-Therian)
Goodra (Hydrapple, Slowbro)
Haxorus (Cinderace, Roaring Moon)
Mamoswine (Ambipom, Basculin)
Milotic (Dondozo, Slowking-Galar)
Moltres (Clefable)
Muk-Alola (Hydrapple)
Sandy Shocks (Braviary-Hisui, Pincurchin)
Skeledirge (Regice, Uxie)
Smeargle (Klefki)
Thundurus-Therian (Politoed, Tauros)

C Rank
Niche Pokemon that have little to no effect on the metagame, being rarely applicable, highly specific or simply not that valuable in the current meta. Using these Pokemon requires you to focus most of the team on supporting it. Oftentimes when a Pokemon only fits on one specific archetype, they'll reside in this tier.

C+
Chansey (Dondozo, Regirock)
Clodsire (Deoxys-Defense, Regirock)
Cloyster (Ambipom, Rampardos)
Cobalion (Jirachi)
Empoleon (Clefable, Slowking-Galar)
Fezandipiti (Hydrapple)
Hippowdon (Houndstone, Hydrapple)
Hydreigon (Clawitzer, Greninja, Scream Tail)
Kommo-o (Klawf, Toxtricity)
Latias (Hatterene, Porygon-Z)
Moltres-Galar (Yanmega, Slowking-Galar)
Necrozma (Hatterene)
Ninetales-Alola (Electrode)
Noivern (Greninja)
Polteageist (Sylveon, Tsareena)
Quaquaval (Basculin, Haxorus)
Scizor (Haxorus, Tornadus-Therian)
Sneasel (Ambipom)
Suicune (Deoxys-Defense, Tornadus-Therian)
Thundurus (Tauros)
Volcanion (Braviary-Hisui, Clefable)
Zarude (Lycanroc-Dusk, Rillaboom)

C
Arcanine-Hisui (Clefable, Rampardos)
Blastoise (Clawitzer)
Conkeldurr (Haxorus)
Florges (Dondozo, Skeledirge)
Infernape (Tauros)
Iron Jugulis (Clefable, Tauros)
Jirachi (Slowking-Galar)
Lilligant-Hisui (Lycanroc-Dusk)
Rotom-Wash (Deoxys-Defense, Tornadus-Therian)
Snorlax (Hatterene, Hydrapple)
Talonflame (Clefable, Reuniclus)
Terrakion (Basculin, Lycanroc-Dusk)
Tornadus-Therian (Galvantula, Hoopa)

VR History

Initial Rankings

reserved until next vr slate

Donor Guide

Donor Guide
Here's a guide to what donors are good in Frantic Fusions; this will be sorted by stats first, and then abilities after. Pokemon rankings are found above this list, so if you want to truly see what goes well with what you can look there!

Note - Any Pokemon listed after a | is considered a niche, but usable options that can be backup / extra options when you already have a good donor on your team.

Attack
|

Defense
|

Special Attack
|

Special Defense
|

Speed
|

Last updated February 4th, 2024

Ability Guide

Ability Guide
Here's a guide to what ability donors are good in Frantic Fusions; if you want to see what Pokemon would be best for stats, you can look at the above list. Pokemon rankings are above below this list, so if you want to truly see what goes well with what you can look there!

Note - Any Pokemon listed after a | is considered a niche, but usable options that can be backup / extra options when you already have a good donor on your team.

Adaptability
|

Compound Eyes
|

Defiant
|

Drizzle


Drought
|

Earth Eater


Electric Surge


Filter


Flame Body
|

Fluffy
|

Galvanize
|

Good as Gold


Grassy Surge
|

Guts
|

Hustle
|

Intimidate
|

Levitate
|

Libero
|

Magic Bounce
|

Magic Guard
|

Mega Launcher


Misty Surge


Mold Breaker
|

Moxie
|

Multiscale


Natural Cure
|

No Guard
|

Pixilate


Prankster
|

Prism Armor


Protean


Protosythesis
|

Psychic Surge
|

Purifying Salt


Quark Drive
|

Queenly Majesty


Regenerator
|

Rock Head
|

Rocky Payload


Rough Skin


Sand Rush
|

Sand Stream


Scrappy


Serene Grace
|

Sharpness
|

Sheer Force
|

Slush Rush


Sniper
|

Snow Warning
|

Solid Rock
|

Stamina


Steely Spirit


Strong Jaw
|

Sturdy
|

Supreme Overlord


Tablets of Ruin


Technician
|

Tinted Lens
|

Tough Claws
|

Toxic Chain


Toxic Debris
|

Unaware
|

Vessel of Ruin


Volt Absorb
|

Water Absorb
|

Well-Baked Body


Last updated February 4th, 2024

Set Compendium

Set Compendium
Here you will find viable sets of all Pokemon that are on the viability rankings; this will be updated as new Pokemon rise and drop on them as such. Feel free to comment or suggest a set to be added!

Here is the set compendium!

Role Compendium (WIP!)

Role Compendium

The purpose of this section is to provide a visual list organized by roles to see what Pokémon do what. This will help new and experienced players alike in finding Pokémon that fit their teams when looking for specific roles. Each Pokemon that is here is viable in the Frantic Fusions metagame, and as such, it will change as the viability rankings get updated. If you feel there is a Pokemon viable for the roles mentioned below and it hasn't been added to the group, then recommend it in your post with solid explanations. The order of roles will be organized in the following way:

1. Utility (hazard setters and removers, screen setters, offensive utility)
2. Offensive roles (wallbreakers, choice item users, and setup sweepers)
3. Defensive roles (walls)
4. Weather (snow and sand), Electric Terrain, Grassy Terrain, Psychic Terrain, and Trick Room

Note - Pokemon listed to the right of a | are considered niche options in that given role, or niche options in general.

Utility
Entry Hazards
Ceaseless Edge - |
Stealth Rock - |
Spikes - |
Toxic Debris - |
Toxic Spikes - |
Sticky Web - |

Suicide Leads
|

Hazard Control
Rapid Spin - |
Defog - |
Court Change -
Magic Bounce - |
Mortal Spin -

Offensive Utility
Knock Off (Offensively) - |
Knock Off (Defensively) - |
Encore - |
Taunt - |
Trick - |
Switcheroo - |

Offensive Roles
Wallbreakers
Physical -

:barraskewda: :ceruledge: :cinderace: :dragonite: :excadrill: :gouging-fire: :iron-hands: :kingambit: :landorus-therian: :meowscarada: :ogerpon-cornerstone: :ogerpon-wellspring: :roaring-moon: :samurott-hisui: :ursaluna:

Special -
Mixed -

Choice Users
Choice Band -
Choice Specs -
Choice Scarf -

Set-Up Sweepers
Agility -
Bulk Up -
Belly Drum -
Calm Mind -
Cosmic Power -
Clangorous Soul -
Curse -
Dragon Dance -
Electro Shot -
Iron Defense -
Meteor Beam -
Nasty Plot -
Quiver Dance -
Shell Smash -
Shift Gear -
Swords Dance -
Tail Glow -

Priority
Aqua Jet -
Bullet Punch -
Extreme Speed -
First Impression -
Fake Out -
Ice Shard -
Mach Punch -
Quick Attack -
Shadow Sneak -
Sucker Punch -
Vaccum Wave -

Pivoting
U-turn -
Volt Switch -
Flip Turn -
Parting Shot -

Speed Control

Defensive Roles
Walls
Physically Defensive -
Specially Defensive -
Mixed -

Clerics
Wish -
Heal Bell / Aromatherapy -
Healing Wish -
Lunar Dance -

Status Afflicters


Weather, Terrain, and Trick Room
Snow
Snow Warning -
Slush Rush -
(Note - Snow is considered a niche playstyle, and therefore all of its setters and abusers are considered niche options)

Sand
Setters -
Abusers -
(Note - Sand is considered a niche playstyle, and therefore all of its setters and abusers are considered niche options)

Grassy Terrain
Setters -
Abusers -

Electric Terrain
Setters -
Abusers -

Psychic Terrain
Setters -
Abusers -

Trick Room
Setters -
Abusers -
(Note - Trick Room is considered a niche playstyle, and therefore all of its setters and abusers are considered niche options)

Last updated February 4th, 2024

I'll make sure the Role Compendium is finished in the next coming days as well, so stay tuned for that! Also here's the VR sheet that we ranked Pokemon on.

 

[Schpoonman]

I thought Poison Puppeteer failed to activate on non-Pecharunt, is it a viable Ability to donate?

 

[InkyDarkBird]

I thought Poison Puppeteer failed to activate on non-Pecharunt, is it a viable Ability to donate?

It has very few options. Toxapex is banned, so the only good Pokemon that could use this are Mandibuzz and Umbreon.
Using it on Glimmora or Slowbro-Galar is just wasting their original abilities.

 

[quagsirefan888]

Roaring Moon (Zapdos-Galar) @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
EVs: 108 HP / 148 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bulk Up
- Close Combat
- Acrobatics
- Knock Off

This is a pretty good lategame sweeper, I thought gapdos could learn swords dance but bulk up still works fine

 

[Talpr0ne]

I thought Poison Puppeteer failed to activate on non-Pecharunt, is it a viable Ability to donate?

You're right, it doesn't work if the user is not Pecharunt.

 

[PQRDG]

A+
Gouging Fire (Clefable, Orthworm, Uxie)
Raging Bolt (Latias, Latios, Pincurchin, Politoed, Porygon-Z, Slowking-Galar)

Just a couple thoughts on these specific Pokemon in the VR. There are two particular donors that I think are being overlooked that make these Pokemon very good.

() Mold Breaker, as well as the massive attack from Haxorus, allows Gouging Fire to be an amazing offensive attacker, able to break through walls such as Well-Baked Body Corv/Skarm who would otherwise wall its STABs and usual coverage of Earthquake (which can also now hit Pokemon that thought they were safe with Levitate/Earth eater).

() This one surprised me, but is surprisingly good. Using another Pincurchin fusion to enable other Pokemon on your team to benefit from the Terrain (which admittedly would basically just be Quark Drive Pokemon) gives Raging Bolt a fun option: outspeeding most of the meta and popping off terrain-boosted Rising Voltage or already strong Draco Meteors (as well as having priority in Thunderclap for anything that manages to outspeed it at this point). I have been defeated by the Surge Surfer variant a couple of times, and I think it is warranted in being considered viable.

Honorable mention to Archaludon, sitting nicely in B+, who I think deserves recognition for Clawitzer, making Aura Sphere/Dragon Pulse hit really hard and still being in a solid speed tier for Scarf sets, while also having solid bulk that it can survive hits from things it doesn't outspeed if you don't want to run Scarf.

 

[Schpoonman]

Just a couple thoughts on these specific Pokemon in the VR. There are two particular donors that I think are being overlooked that make these Pokemon very good.

() Mold Breaker, as well as the massive attack from Haxorus, allows Gouging Fire to be an amazing offensive attacker, able to break through walls such as Well-Baked Body Corv/Skarm who would otherwise wall its STABs and usual coverage of Earthquake (which can also now hit Pokemon that thought they were safe with Levitate/Earth eater).

() This one surprised me, but is surprisingly good. Using another Pincurchin fusion to enable other Pokemon on your team to benefit from the Terrain (which admittedly would basically just be Quark Drive Pokemon) gives Raging Bolt a fun option: outspeeding most of the meta and popping off terrain-boosted Rising Voltage or already strong Draco Meteors (as well as having priority in Thunderclap for anything that manages to outspeed it at this point). I have been defeated by the Surge Surfer variant a couple of times, and I think it is warranted in being considered viable.

Honorable mention to Archaludon, sitting nicely in B+, who I think deserves recognition for Clawitzer, making Aura Sphere/Dragon Pulse hit really hard and still being in a solid speed tier for Scarf sets, while also having solid bulk that it can survive hits from things it doesn't outspeed if you don't want to run Scarf.

Ooh, I'd been using Sandy Cheeks as my Surge Surfer, Rising Voltage backed up by Dragon STAB is probably way scarier, if I wanted to be a freak (I might) I could even run weather to get Weather Ball and possibly Solar Beam.

 

[Glory]

More thoughts and teams.

Choice Specs Latios + Choice Band Dragonite Bulky Offense

Very good BO that really showcases how crazy Latios can be. Band Dragonite is another great breaker and revenge killer with a lot of different applications. The Samurott-H set is pretty customizeable, I like Tornadus-T fusion because it gives a lot of longevity so it can get hazards repeatedly over the course of the game, but you could certainly fuse with Lycanroc-Dusk for the extra power of Tough Claws (obviously run Liquidation if you do.) Smack Down on Swampert lets it threaten Corviknight, Skarmory, and Levitate Gholdengo directly.

Adaptability Cornerpon + Scrappy Tusk Balance

Cornerstone is a great breaker with Spikes support from Skarmory. Scrappy Tusk is great consistent removal and helps Cornerstone by threatening Gholdengo and weakening Intimidate Corviknight/Skarmory. Archaludon checks opposing Gouging Fire and opposing Ogerpons and backs up Skarmory against a lot of physical threats. Roaring Moon is the team's speed control and can further break down physical walls with Cornerstone and Tusk.



If there's anything I think is unhealthy and should get the boot, it's Gouging Fire. Very restrictive in terms of what can check it and way too bulky for how strong it is. Defensive checks are extremely limited and offensive checks are non-existent.


How many times will I have to repeat myself? It's frankly ridiculous that this argument is still going on. Regenerator is not broken. Period.

Let me ask you a question. How does regen core break another? Hazards and item removal, right? So riddle me this: what prevents you from also using hazard stack to beat it? I'm not even going to bother detailing all of the other ways that you can break through regen cores because it's been said time and time again, and it obscene that the message hasn't gotten across yet.

Another thing, as hidin said already, the council has discussed the idea of introducing restrictions, but ultimately decided against it. Stop asking for them, you're just wasting your breath.

 

[Hiusi guy]

Hey look

Got top 3

:jigspin:

I would go for #1 before posting this but I have a feeling I'ma lose my next game so I'm here before that happens

Anyways here's the team I've been using:

It's a funny offense team using dual weather which works weirdly well, especially with the solar beam jumpscare on Raging Bolt which OHKOs Swampert as well as weather ballin to hit treads when it appears (and the speed evs is to outspeed the fastest Regen Swampert with 0 speed ev). The one thing that I will say I could've ran into more is the fact that I'm using knock off and polter on the same team but it barely ran into that problem.
Pretty fun meta tbh

Edit:

I didn't lose!

Took me almost 36 hrs but that's cause ladder is kinda dying :(, though I didn't lose the 2 games I played and ladder decay helped ig

 

[InkyDarkBird]

Terrakion should be banned from Frantic Fusions due to it being able shred stall teams with Swords Dance, Adaptability (Basculegion), and Life Orb.
Since Stone Edge is not a contact move, Fluffy Pokemon, Rocky Helmet, Spiky Shield, Flame Body, and Burning Bulwark are all nullified.
Only Palossand or Dondozo can reliably switch into it, and both are unviable in this meta.

+2 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk (fused with Hydrapple): 406-478 (93.5 - 110.1%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo (fused with Uxie): 199-234 (52.6 - 61.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight (fused with Scrafty): 289-341 (72.2 - 85.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Unaware Alomomola (fused with Skeledirge): 273-322 (51.1 - 60.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Pecharunt (fused with Regirock): 281-333 (73.9 - 87.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Palossand (fused with Archaludon): 183-216 (48.9 - 57.7%) -- 54.7% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Stone Edge vs. +1 252 HP / 252+ Def Palossand (fused with Archaludon): 122-144 (32.6 - 38.5%) -- 3.1% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 Atk Life Orb Adaptability Terrakion Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Unaware Dondozo (fused with Regirock): 198-234 (39.2 - 46.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

 

[cinnasaur]

okay, this one's been my main team:



I've given Archaludon Swift Swim and Meteor Beam to catch unsuspecting mons on the switch-in and sweep, the Power Herb can even double as insurance for Electro Shot. Invested in Attack so Swampert can hit harder in the rain too. Sneasler can probably be swapped out for pretty much anything, but I like how it functions as a scarfer that can outspeed things outside of rain or annoy passive mons with Switcheroo, and Mandibuzz has decent type synergy with it also.

 

[cosmogii]

yeah im just gonna say it, gouging fire needs to be banished already.

i'm not gonna go too in depth, but:
magic guard means setup is 10 times more dangerous on the thing

it gains the exceptional defensive typing of fire/dragon without having to fear hazards

nothing is able to comfortably wall it, and you NEED a check for it. you run the risk of losing on the spot when it comes in, and it most likely will come in due to how powerful and common it is.
ban the triceratops, its not healthy to have around.

 

[Jrdn]

Used a fun defensive regen core to top the ladder. Rocks + Spin + 2x momentum. Switch ins to tusk (and gknot to pressure!), sneasler + plenty of special hitters.

Defensive Core

Threats

Threats to the core that you want to patch up: OGERPON-WELLSPRING IS A BAD BAD MON (for this core). Rain teams with Wellspring especially, but phsyical water types in general are scary too. Stuff like Raging bolt can be scary, tho Blastoise can live 1 hit and turn if it's head to head. Honestly the core manages to a do a lot, but extremely strong physical neutral attacks are a problem.

Misc

I like the core because as a balance addict, it compresses so many roles that it allows for a lot of team creativity outside of these 2. Hell, my team used a Swift Swim (via Barraskewda) Meowscarada and all the rain teams that caused me nightmares disappeared, and the team still did great. Give it a shot

 

[hidin]

Gouging Fire is now banned!

	hidin	TaxFraud	zastra	Hiusi guy	Orangex
Gouging Fire	Ban	Ban	Do not ban	Abstain	Ban

When it comes to how Gouging Fire functioned, it was often always going to do something in a game due to the sheer power it has with Magic Guard + Life Orb sets when fused with Clefable or even nicher sets like Tough Claws with Lycanroc-Dusk and Mold Breaker with Haxorus to beat Fire-immune Steel-types like Gholdengo. Defensive counterplay outside of Unaware Pokemon and the aforementioned Fire-immunes were quite limited, as even Great Tusk fused with Klawf and Swampert in general as a Pokemon could be beat since Flare Blitz in the case of the former and other moves like Dragon Claw, Outrage, and even Earthquake in the case of the latter. Offensive counterplay was only reliable by playing aggressive with Pokemon like Roaring Moon and Latios, both of which had to hope it didn't have its Dragon STAB on its set. While you could say most of these arguments are on paper, the pressure that Gouging Fire puts on the builder and in play is something we don't need right now; as such, it is now banned.

Tagging dhelmise to implement