Metagame National Dex - On the Radar [update post #20]

[Zed Thom]

Ok. Let me be honest with this thread, we do have some lefts, rights and in the middle but I am going to give an analytical say so into this

G-Darmanitan: This mon is something to be feared and watched out for? But is it suspect worthy? Not exactly but it does have the potential because of a mechanic that literally breaks the mold of competitive pokemon. Gorilla tactics is a great ability, don't get me wrong. Its a free choice band after all. But when you give a mon the ability to hold an item such as a choice scarf and a choice band, this does break the mold of balance within a metagame. At the same time, G-Darm is an ice type and its weak to stealth rocks along with hazards which is a very common thing to run on every team. When it comes to offensive checks, we have every steel, fire, fighting and rock type that is faster then this mon. But the main issue lies in the defensive apartment. If G-Darmanitan couldn't hold an item, that is one thing. But since it can hold an item, its another issue entirely. Because of this, G-Darmanitan can hold a choice band or a choice scarf in addition to a choice band like ability. I even faced Z Sets which allowed it to switch up moves and that is crazy yet it can be very effective if used correctly. Because of Choice Band, the only real wall that can consistently check the mon is physically defensive Alomomola and Rotom-Heat unless G-Darm is Stone Edge and it will kill Rotom Heat too. Its a strange option but people who run a G-Darm will know that if they can make it work, they can do it. With a choice scarf, G-Darm becomes a fast and destructive mon with a Free Choice Band and a choice scarf that can be knocked off but most of the time, it won't happen. I know its odd that I bring up Z G-Darmanitan but it can switch up moves for one turn because of this. Breaking away from its special ability in return for a tactical nuke. Now is G-Darm worth suspect testing? For the sake of balance, maybe. Its a lot more controversial in my own view due to people both loving and hating this mon. But since it still has a means of being able to kill mons outside of using Gorilla Tactics while using the said ability. I am going to suggest a Suspect test. A mon that can use its ability like this and still has an additional way of switch up moves besides using Zen Mode instead. Counts as something worth being debated and looked into.

Mega Metagross: This boy is Strong! Mega Metagross is a mon with great stats, a great typing along with a nasty movepool and having moves that can enforce hax and power up its physical attack to nasty levels of damaged after 1 Meteor Mash. That is right, it just takes one to get the pain train with four arms to get going. Along with coverage moves such as Ice punch, Thunder Punch, Earthquake, Hammer Arm and other such moves. Mega Metagross is the very definition of the National Dex Metagame. A hard hitting mon with priority moves in general don't do much against and having near perfect coverage for most teams along with great stab moves and a nice special ability to top it off. We even have it as the image of our discord but that is a personal thing. But back to the topic, Mega Metagross as mon is very effective and dangerous at what it does when facing it. Even if you have consistent walls, all it takes is one move and poof. Things can start falling apart. Even though Mega Metagross has no way to heal itself. Why would it? It wouldn't need to with the team support it gets and the damage its going to give. This mon needs a suspect test. It can be dealt with but one move can change it all.

Ash Greninja: I got a confession, I like Ash Greninja. This mon highly rewards players with a powered up anime exclusive mon that is actually really good. The only major downside is that this mon does get hurt with spikes and stealth rock along with being a mon that does its best with Special Damaging moves. However, Ash Greninja is predictable and if played right along with taking care of your defensive answers, you will win. But the real problem now is the core that it has with Mega Metagross which does the denting and Ash Greninja cleans up. As simple as I put it, we all know how effective this core really is and its results speaks volumes. As a mon, Ash Greninja isn't broken. Its best set is a choice spec and we have multiple mons that can deal with it! Even unviable mons such as Tapu Bulu can wall this with no problem unless its ice beam. other then that, this mon isn't a problem. Unless you let your foe hazard stack you that is. But in general, Ash Greninja isn't broken. Its a good mon only when it gets the kill! Its the players fault for not being prepared for this mon because there were just as much and even less options when facing it in Generation 7. But as a mon in this metagame, is it worth suspect testing? To be honest, I see Dracovish being more worth the time for a suspect test then this mon. In other words, no. This mon isn't worth the suspect test.

 

[Guard]

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I believe the main issue we ought to solve in this tier is the fact that teambuilding is so centralized, and this is quite frankly a result of the contemporary centralizing trinity. This issue should be the starting point as well as the base of our reasoning when assessing these threats, and hopefully, this sentiment is reflected in my reasoning as well.

To be frank, it is my belief that Mega Metagross is the epicenter of current issues. Its griphold on the defensive metagame is marginally more severe than Galarian Darmanitan's, as it is more flexible and harder to pivot around due to the latter always being Choice-locked. Along with Galarian Darmanitan's personal effect on the teambuilder, this inherently results in a metagame that is often focused moreso on physically defensive Pokemon rather than specially defensive ones (e.g. Rocky Helmet Tangrowth over Assault Vest in Mega Metagross's case, physically defensive Toxapex over specially defensive in Galarian Darmanitan's case, the absence of Tapu Bulu etc.), and Ash-Greninja is the main profiteer of this trend.

Mega Metagross is quite frankly the more guilty culprit compared to Galarian Darmanitan when it comes to amplifying Ash-Greninja's prowess, as the latter two do share at least one splashable check in Tapu Fini, meaning that Galarian Darmanitan does not restrict Ash-Greninja counterplay in all instances. I absolutely do believe removing Mega Metagross shall free up the teambuilder to the point where Ash-Greninja counterplay will be incentivized. Whether this counterplay will be adequate to keep Ash-Greninja in line, however, is something I cannot gauge exactly, as I will fully expect dangerous Psychic-, Fairy-, and Steel-types like Tapu Lele, Mega Lati@s, Mega Mawile, Magearna, Kartana, and perhaps even Melmetal to rise in prominence after Mega Metagross's au revoir, and I cannot tell with certainty to what extent these threats will condense the teambuilder. I cannot deny however that removing Mega Metagross will at least be a short-term net positive for the development of Ash-Greninja counterplay, and therefore an overall net positive in the endeavor to make the teambuilder less centralized, and that for me is satisfactory to warrant a Mega Metagross suspect test first and foremost.

 

[Zneon]

Okay, to be honest I don't think my thoughts are really different from anyone elses and I'm not really adding anything to these arguments, but I might as well get my thoughts out as quickly as possible.

Mega Metagross

So right of the bat, I agree that Mega Metagross is the biggest issue in the metagame right now. Now, wallbreakers that are good at what they do has always been a thing, we literally have 3 Pokemon who do that function. The problem in Mega Metagross's case is the fact that it can pretty much overwhelm its own checks with the fact that the secondary effect all its required moves give skew the matchup more into Metagross's favour than the opponents. The reason why I think this is a bigger problem than Galarian Darmanitan and Ash Greninja, is due to its ability to switch in multiple times during the game and chip of the opponents team bit by bit cause of its typing and speed. The fact that it can cheese its opponents however through a attack boost or paralysis significantly makes it harder, or even nigh impossible to deal with a Pokemon that has very few checks and counters to begin with, alongside with how flexible its 4th move slot is, it is not a good look. With all this I would like to see Mega Metagross be suspected first.

Galarian Darmanitan

With the biggest problem out of the way, lets move onto Galarian Darmanitan. The biggest issue with Galarian Darminitan in my opinion is how hard it is to switch into, alongside with how splashable of a Pokemon it is. But to be honest I don't think it is banworthy, at least for now, though it does warrant a suspect. It is worn down very easily, and can even be prediction reliant in some cases. Not to mention the fact that it can be revenge killed much easier because of its low bulk and terrible defensive typing makes it much more manageable in practice than it is on paper. CB Darm is a really powerful wallbreaker with little to no switch ins, but that is incredibly easy to deal with offensively as base 95 speed is incredibly awkward for a metagame with many fast Pokemon. With this I feel this Pokemon is excellent at what it does but I don't think it has a large enough chokehold to warrant a ban.

Ash Greninja

And lastly Ash Greninja, this is easily the most balanced out of the 3 since I do not think it is banworthy or even warrants a suspect, since the pressure given is specifically because of how well it pairs with Mega Metagross, the problem doesn't really come from Ash Greninja itself, since in conjunction with Mega Metagross it can wear down its checks incredibly easier than it would on its own. Tapu Fini and AV Tangrowth are incredibly good Pokemon on their own and they check Ash Greninja really well. As a result I don't think this Pokemon warrants a suspect right now.