Board Game Based Meta-Games

I feel like you're greatly overselling a lot of checks. First of all, almost every Kyogre check you listed gets Ohko'd by either ice beam or thunder; the only ones that don't are Amoonguss, which is outsped and 2hko'd by Origin pulse + Ice beam, and Kyurem-B and Ferrothorn, which both hate burns. It should also be noted that Breloom is Ohko'd by Origin pulse after Stealth Rock, so they don't even have to predict; the best it can do is revenge kill.

Most of the listed Salamence checks don't work either; Rotom-Wash is complete setup fodder for Mega Salamence with Facade or Refresh, Thundurus is Ohko'd by Return and Salamence can use Refresh, and Zapdos can only check it if it's physically defensive and it has HP Ice and Stealth Rock isn't up. Unaware Clef is 2hko'd by Return, Landorus can be used as setup fodder, Slowbro is setup fodder for Refresh variants, and Ice Shard from banded Weavile and Adamant Mamoswine are a roll in Mence's favor even if they don't run any bulk, which most do.

Bottom line, Chessmons isn't a balanced meta, and it's not meant to be. If we banned everything that couldn't be reliably checked, we'd end up with a worse version of OU. Instead, we should accept the premise that Chessmons was built on: Making the queen as OP as possible while still maintaining a playable tier. And while these mons are able to beat many teams with very little support, the tier is still far from unplayable, and for a tier like Chessmons, that's all we need.
 
KingaKazam (Alakazam) @ Alakazite
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Shadow Ball
- Energy Ball
- Focus Blast

Queenys (Deoxys-Attack) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psycho Boost
- Dark Pulse
- Thunderbolt
- Energy Ball

Tapu RookRook (Tapu Lele) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Energy Ball
- Shadow Ball

MetaBishop (Metagross) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Zen Headbutt
- Iron Head
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch

PawnKay (Inkay) @ Eviolite
Ability: Contrary
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Superpower
- Knock Off
- Psycho Cut
- Rock Slide

KnightAMar (Malamar) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Contrary
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Superpower
- Psycho Cut
- Knock Off
- Rock Slide

 
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King (Metagross-Mega) @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Earthquake
- Bullet Punch

Rook (Tapu Lele) @ Psychium Z
Ability: Psychic Surge
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Psychic
- Psych Up
- Protect
- Frustration

Queen (Salamence) @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Fly
- Outrage
- Earthquake

Bishop (Empoleon) @ Icium Z
Ability: Defiant
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpA
Brave Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Blizzard
- Swords Dance
- Frustration

Pawn (Ferroseed) @ Eviolite
Ability: Iron Barbs
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Protect
- Thunder Wave
- Spikes

Knight (Ferrothorn) @ Shed Shell
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Power Whip
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball
 

MZ

And now for something completely different
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King (Metagross-Mega) @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Earthquake
- Bullet Punch

Rook (Tapu Lele) @ Psychium Z
Ability: Psychic Surge
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Psychic
- Psych Up
- Protect
- Frustration

Queen (Salamence) @ Flyinium Z
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Fly
- Outrage
- Earthquake

Bishop (Empoleon) @ Icium Z
Ability: Defiant
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpA
Brave Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Blizzard
- Swords Dance
- Frustration

Pawn (Ferroseed) @ Eviolite
Ability: Iron Barbs
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Protect
- Thunder Wave
- Spikes

Knight (Ferrothorn) @ Shed Shell
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Def
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Power Whip
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball
I'm not sure if this is intended to be a sample submission but there's no way this can be accepted due to some of the sets. There isn't really a chessmons metagame or a standard chessmons setup, but I'm fairly certain if there was it wouldn't include things like Frustration Tapu Lele, multiple Z-moves on one team, and non-Mega Salamence as Queen. In general it might help you to check out some analyses for the Pokemon used since the Pokemon themselves seem alright if they had optimized sets even if all the Steel-types are a bit redundant.
 

inactive

In a Movie Scene~
is a Top Smogon Media Contributoris a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
Due to the popularity of the Chessmons tours, they will now take place Monday nights at 8:00 PM EST, in addition to thier usual Thursday night timeslot!

Here's another sample team submission:



King (Metagross) @ Life Orb
Ability: Clear Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Power-Up Punch
- Agility

Kyogre @ Blue Orb
Ability: Drizzle
EVs: 180 HP / 252 SpA / 76 Spe
Modest Nature
- Origin Pulse
- Calm Mind
- Ice Beam
- Thunder

Tapu Koko @ Life Orb
Ability: Electric Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam
- Roost
- Volt Switch

Knight (Scolipede) @ Leftovers
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Protect
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Megahorn

Venipede @ Focus Sash
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 0 HP
- Spikes
- Toxic Spikes
- Protect
- Endeavor

Bishop (Mandibuzz) @ Leftovers
Ability: Overcoat
EVs: 172 HP / 216 Def / 120 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Foul Play
- Roost
- Defog
- Whirlwind
 
There has been a lack of interest in chessmons lately, and some of the current players could use a little help with teambuilding (no offence). For these people in general, and for anyone new who wants to try chessmons, I made a list of generally good Pokémon for each position (Queen, Rook, Bishop, Knight/Pawn, King) here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1o7yDwIM4JcKcrnxNHkSrdtkDg-YxoEffLrPB3P_2rSY/edit?usp=sharing. Thanks to DDDon for a ton of help, I wouldn't have judged over 60% of the mons on there correctly by myself. You can find me on forums, on PS! or on Discord (Yvel<!--tal321-->#7713) if you think something on the document is wrong.
 
I also updated Viability Rankings for Gen 7, but I'm not great at ranking Pokémon and I don't have a great way to test all of these out because there are few players:

Queen: https://pastebin.com/vRZFb0Xr
Rook: https://pastebin.com/rptDzV32
Bishop: https://pastebin.com/qymHWeNv
Knight/Pawn: https://pastebin.com/tS5aGJ53

I left some Pokémon alone cause I haven't used many of them and don't know all their uses, especially in the Bishop and Knight/Pawn categories. Anyways, here are my thoughts on some changes/new Pokémon:

Queen Pokémon
-Lunala gets moved to A because of Z-Hypnosis+Calm Mind, plus it's already good with Scarf or Specs. It is weak to dark, though, especially Sucker Punch, and scarf Yveltal outspeeds it after Z-Hypno anyways, but I think it's good at A.

-Mewtwo Y gets moved to A as it can be revenge killed more easily than other mons in A+. But mostly, it stands out as the only Pokémon currently in A+ which loses to Rock Polish PDon immediately after set-up (though M-mence loses to HP Ice, but Mence is OP anyways). It's still great, and one of my personal favourites, but I'm not completely sure if it still deserves A+, though I think Lele+MM2Y could be a pretty dangerous combination (sadly, Mewtwo's +1 Psystrike in Psychic Terrain only has a 12.5% chance to OHKO PDon). I'll move it back if it proves to be a big threat.

-Lugia gets moved to B+ cause I think HO is so far the most successful strategy in chessmons, plus it hates Toxic. With pawns like Vullaby or Mareanie, Lugia probably won't have a great time in gen 7. If I have to move it, right now I'd move it down some more, but I'm not sure how it would work out in battle. Lunala's already a big problem for it, though...

-Darkrai was always frail and its niche was Dark Void, which gave the user a chance against Primal Groudon and Xerneas; however, the accuracy nerf crippled Darkrai too much. It has a great speed tier and special attack, but Yveltal can fill those roles, has a secondary STAB move in Oblivion Wing, and is bulkier so it can actually run different sets. It's not great... I'll put it at C for anyone who wants to try their luck with the 60% accuracy of Hypnosis, but it's trash this gen.

-Mega Kangaskhan didn't appreciate the Parental Bond nerf, and now its Adamant Sucker Punch doesn't even have a chance to OHKO Lunala. It doesn't really have much of a place any more, so for now I'll put it at C.

-Arceus-Poison got moved to B- as it's not anything other than a Xerneas check. The best rooks that aren't immune or don't resist it are Tapu Koko and Lele, as far as I know. (Clefable's meh now with Lunala around, plus Celesteela hurts pretty bad with Heavy Slam as a standard move.)

-Latios is pretty obvious; the Soul Dew nerf made it OU at best, so I took it off the chart completely. Why use it as a queen when it's a legal rook?

-I didn't move Gira-O because I don't really know much about it; however, Lunala's presence probably won't help too much. I'll keep it where it is until I can test it.

-Landorus is bad, honestly. Sure, it checks Primal Groudon, but so does its Therian forme, which is probably better at checking it (Intimidate and no necessity for Life Orb make a bulky set on Lando-T possible opposed to offensive Lando in ubers). Do something better with your queen slot, please.

-Latias, like Latios, got hurt pretty badly with the Soul Dew nerf. Besides, it's one of the best Healing Wish users, so it's better as a bishop anyways.

-Kyurem-White gets moved to B- because scarf Turboblaze can break through some stuff; however, its dependence on Draco Meteor and Xerneas' high usage are detrimental and I might have to move it down. It does check Mega Salamence before setup though, and if you bluff scarf you can take out some Pokémon like Ferrothorn with Fusion Flare.

-Marshadow was put in B because I think it's broken and I hate it because I haven't really seen it used much (I don't really play ubers that much though, and low-ladder is evidently really bad). It only has 125 Attack, which many viable queens can either dwarf or increase quickly with moves like Swords Dance or Dragon Dance (Mence). It relies on Life Orb for damage, and this is pretty bad for a queen; the only viable queen that uses it is Yveltal, which is still only B+, has Oblivion Wing and Roost for recovery, and can actually run other sets (e.g., scarf and specs) because of Dark Aura. If it runs band, it can't really hit Pokémon like Landorus-Therian unless it runs HP Ice, and barely 2HKOs Primal Groudon with Close Combat (with Band), while Groudon can Rock Polish and OHKO with Prec Blades. Besides, Marshadow with band needs to switch out and back to KO Xerneas (Spectral Thief+Shadow Sneak) which is actually still a roll in Xern's favour. However, it does check Lunala with Spectral Thief (and Shadow Sneak once Lunala takes damage), and Mega-Mence has to be careful for Hidden Power Ice. I don't really think it has enough of a presence as a queen, but it does check two top tier ubers, so it's usable.

-Moved Arceus-Psychic to C; it's not that great and Mewtwo is better in most ways.

-Solgaleo gets put in B- for now as it's not really good, loses to PDon, Lunala, Mence with EQ, Marshadow, Primal Kyogre with Origin Pulse, Yveltal, etc. Plus its main STAB move only hits Xerneas, Lele and Clefable afaik, and Primal Groudon is better at hitting pretty much everything else.

-Moved Genesect down some more, I usually don't see much more than Ice Beam and U-turn. While Ice Beam can hit Mence and kings, Primal Groudon is too much and it can't really hit anything, especially with 120 base attacks and Download being inconsistent.

-Greninja is now in OU; it was too frail anyways. Don't use it as your queen, and it's not the greatest rook anyways (it's still viable though).

-Scizor-Mega is in C-; it's pretty bad due to having very little speed, being 4x weak to fire in Primal Groudon's turf, and being susceptible to Magnet Pull (it does get U-turn, but Magneton outspeeds and has a 75% chance to KO and Magnezone can KO as well, being able to outspeed standard Scizor with just a bit more speed EVs than usual).

-Removed Gothitelle; it has Shadow Tag but can't really do much with it. If I had to put it back on, I'd probably just put it at D. Not sure if I'm missing something though, if it has an actual niche then feel free to point it out.

-Deoxys-Defence is moved to D as its role isn't much more than hazard support and maybe screens. Taunt and Defog are pretty common though, and it becomes setup fodder for pretty much anything that can set up.

-Pheromosa is in D for now as it's just Deoxys-Normal with worse stats (barring speed and HP, both of which are near-negligible in difference).

[EDIT] Some other ubers:
-Zygarde-Complete to B+; it has considerable bulk and can also deal reasonable damage after a Dragon Dance. Thousand Arrows is really good. Not completely sure where to put it though, but I'll keep it here for now.

-Metagross-Mega to B as it can check Mega Salamence before Dragon Dance with Ice Punch, and can beat every king as far as I'm concerned. It can also hit Lando-T pretty hard with Ice Punch and switch into Tapu Lele with ease, so I think it has some use.


Rook Pokémon
-Clefable got moved down to A- as I don't really think it's that great. It has to run Unaware if it doesn't want to get run over by queens, but it already takes heavy damage from Mega Salamence and Pokémon like Celesteela and Ferrothorn (the latter applies if it doesn't run Fire Blast, which I assume it doesn't). It's susceptible to Taunt, and some Pokémon can force their way through. Most notably, Lunala's signature move (and Solgaleo's) ignores Unaware, allowing it to set up with Z-Hypnosis+Calm Mind and potentially sweep from there. (Lefties Solgaleo's Sunsteel Strike OHKOes special Clefable.)

-Landorus-Therian is the best rook in my opinion, and I think it deserves S. First of all, Choice Scarf and Band can be used to scout or hit incredibly hard, the latter being capable of OHKOing Primal Groudon (50% chance to KO standard RP Primal Groudon). Landorus can also run bulky sets; standard Lando-T in OU can actually beat Rock Polish Groudon lacking a special move (believe it or not, Fire Punch doesn't even 2HKO), and Intimidate + U-turn can temporarily keep Mega Salamence from sweeping. Landorus does lose to Primal Kyogre and ice type moves, but given that it beats Primal Groudon without special moves, I think it really deserves S.

-Celesteela is probably A+, being able to check two huge threats in Mega Salamence and E-Killer Arceus. Though it does worry about Magnezone and Magneton, neither can OHKO, and are KOed back by Earthquake (or you can switch the next turn after Volt Switch) and I suppose Shed Shell might work (or not, cause Celesteela doesn't have Roost like Skarmory). It can also do significant damage to Xerneas, Tapu Lele and Clefable with Heavy Slam.

-Dugtrio is probably A+ as well, as it can trap a lot of Pokémon. Sash Dugtrio can beat Primal Groudon that hasn't RP'ed yet as long as it (Dugtrio) doesn't switch in, and can also take care of threats like Tapu Koko.

-Tapu Koko is A+ because Specs Thunderbolt in Electric Terrain at its speed tier is just insane, and some other sets can also hurt a lot. It does have trouble against Primal Groudon like everything else though.

-Tapu Lele is also A+ because Scarf Lele is a great revenge killer, can sweep teams that lack resistances, and sets Psychic Terrain up for Pokémon with Psychic STAB (aka Mewtwo Y) or Pokémon weak to Priority (like Lunala is to Sucker/Shadow Sneak, or Salamence to Ice Shard if it's not at full HP). Specs Lele hits like a truck, too. Besides, it has super effective STAB against two of the best pawn/knight combinations, Pex/Mareanie and Mandi/Vullaby.

-Moved Keldeo down to A- because with Lele and Koko, it needs scarf to beat them, loses to Toxapex/Mareanie unless it runs HP Electric (which makes it lose really badly to Groudon and Salamence, the latter in fact taking more damage from the ineffective Hydro Pump), and scarf Hydro Pump gives Mence and PDon a free turn. I'm not really comfortable moving something down more in general (except for what I feel is trash), but I'm not completely sure if Keldeo remains a relevant threat.

-Latias is in UU now, try it as a bishop instead of a rook.

-Manaphy... loses to Primal Groudon. Besides, Tapu Koko beats it before Z-Rain Dance, which is countered by PDon anyways. If Manaphy doesn't run Psychic, it's walled by Pex, which forces it to switch against Pokémon like Ferrothorn, losing its one shot at sweeping as well as wasting a Z-Move. Because of this I'm moving it to B+ as it can still sweep unprepared teams. EDIT: It doesn't have great coverage with Z-Rain Dance, only able to run 2 attacks (if it runs 3 attacks it can't wallbreak). Probably down to B for now but again I might change this.

-Serperior is meh, and loses to most queens. It's also beaten by Celesteela and scarf Lele/specs Koko, so I'm moving it to B+, same as Manaphy. EDIT: anyways it's probably a better knight/pawn so I'm moving it to B, it's still usable but not great.

-Weavile is UU like Latias, I'd say it's a pretty good bishop.

-Skarmory for A: It can check E-Killer Arc and Mega Mence with Whirlwind, after hurting them with Rocky Helmet (or it can hold Shed Shell for the Magnets).

-Magnezone in B+ for now: It has super effective STAB against two of the best pawn/knight combinations in Electric, can hurt a third pair in the Ferros with HP Fire, and can hit Celesteela and Skarmory, so I think it would work well with Mence. However, Magneton does the same thing and doesn't take up a rook slot, so Magnezone isn't in A.

-Amoonguss got moved to UU and is a check to Xern, but watch out for Tapu Lele

-[EDIT] Moving Tornadus-Therian down to B, maybe B- later. Relying on Hurricane for STAB doesn't help it, and neither does the presence of Tapu Koko and Lele.

-EDIT: Kyurem-Black back in A, I forgot about Icium Z which can do a ton of damage. For explanation for why I had it in A-:
Took Kyurem-Black out of A as it can't do too much choice locked and with only 120 SpA; unlike Lando-T, it can't switch out with U-turn. Anyways it's beaten by the Tapus, Celesteela (I don't think Fusion Bolt KOs) and... well, idk what else from the rooks, unless it's choice locked into Ice Beam or something and Magnezone comes in. Anyways I don't really know about this, but I don't feel confident about it being A. Maybe it does belong in A, but I want to test it a bit first.


-Rotom-Wash isn't all that great honestly, I don't really know what it can beat. Anyways the top two physical attackers in ubers don't care about burns anyways so... well, it's like a worse Magnezone so I'll put it in B-. EDIT: C+ now cause I really don't see this doing anything. The two main Pokémon it checks are Celesteela and Skarmory which can both just switch out on it in most cases, and Toxapex can recover Volt Switch with Recover unless you're running specs or Special Attack EVs which means you'd just die to any queen (even worse than you already do).

-Chansey moved down to B+, I get how it's a special wall but it can't really do much in HO.

-Moved Excadrill from A- to B-. Excadrill isn't that great this gen from what I've heard, but it's still usable in chessmons. Mainly I moved this because it's a great pawn/knight as Drilbur gets Rapid Spin and EQ, as well as Mold Breaker to break through troll sets like Sturdy Pineco (which shouldn't be all that common with Lunala around anyways). I'd much rather use this as a knight (actually I used to use it on most of my teams as a knight).

-Moved Heatran to B+. What are you doing putting a mon that loses to Primal Groudon, Primal Kyogre, and EQ Mence in A? Besides, Lando-T is probably the best rook. Sure, it walls the Tapus, but Ferro does the same thing and is a great knight.

-Starmie's a bishop now.

-RIP Smogonbird, Psychic Terrain+Dazzling+Gale Wings nerf+Queenly Majesty+Brave Bird recoil+Stealth Rock+no more switch-ins=OU→RU. Worse than Staraptor now.

-Greninja-Ash is probably something around A-, it can deal quite some damage with specs. Better than Keldeo imo cause it can actually hit stuff like Pex and PDon (2HKO on the latter after Battle Bond, so no switch-ins).

-Azumarill down to B-, it can't really touch any ubers or even OU mons until after a Belly Drum, some of which can take it. PDon walls it hard, and Mence can OHKO with Double-Edge. E-Killer out-prioritizes it, and Tapu Lele annoys it with Psychic Terrain. It can't always set up easily, either, so... idk, B- might've been a big drop, but Azumarill doesn't seems as good this gen; it's in BL now anyways.

-Moved Bisharp to B+: Pursuit trapping/Sucker Punch is great with Lunala, and having toxic immunity is great. Besides, Defiant discourages Landorus-Therian and Defog.

-Greninja (regular) is B- imo, it can do damage but can't hit very very hard, and relies on Life Orb, which is dangerous for a Queen or Rook in chessmons.

-Breloom isn't that good imo, but I guess it's fighting type so I'll just bump it down to B for now.

-Gliscor does pretty much what Landorus-Therian does but not as well; I don't really know what to do with it so I'll keep it at B+ just for now.

-Slowbro's in... NU now, iirc. If you're using it at all, it's a valid bishop.

-Same deal with Volcanion (it's not in NU of course).

-Dragonite is weak to Stealth Rock and isn't a great sweeper with ubers around, so I put it at C+. It's probably better as a king anyways.

-Why would you use Garchomp as a rook? It's the best king. B- to Garchomp, nothing personal as I love Garchomp.

-Ferrothorn from B to B-; it's a better knight than rook. This was already mentioned last gen anyways so

-Hippowdon's UU.

-Jirachi to B+, Healing Wish is really good as a last-resort move and flinch hax can be annoying. Also outspeeds scarf Lele with its own scarf.

-Raikou's in UU.

-Scizor's in UU.

-Tyranitar to B-, having a ground weakness is bad enough and adding fighting to that is even worse. Pursuit trapping is done better by Bisharp which has Defiant and Sucker Punch, and sand setting can be managed with a bishop in Hippowdon.

-Diggersby to B, it can actually do a lot to Primal Groudon (68.8% chance to OHKO with Band) as well as Xerneas (like Marshadow, it can KO if it attacks, switches, then uses priority).

-Marowak-Alola to B as well, in Trick Room it's great and it's like a mini-primal Groudon that loses to E-Killer Arc and Mence. And Primal Groudon itself.

-Tangrowth to C+ as it loses to a bunch of ubers, and I don't really see a spot for it as a rook. I don't really know much about Tangrowth though, it might be pretty good but idk.

-Scolipede's BL iirc, but without Baton Pass it's not that good any more. Took it off the VR, but if at all I'd put it at C- tbh.

-Thundurus-Therian looks like it might be able to do some stuff if PDon isn't on the opposing side; besides, it gets multiple chances to set up. I put it in B+ for now.

-Terrakion is in UU.

-Togekiss is in UU.

-Zygarde is pretty bulky and Thousand Arrows is nice cause you can finally hit Skarmory and stuff. B for now.

[EDIT] If you're wondering about other mons in Gen 7 OU, here are the rest of the non-megas:

-Hoopa-Unbound is B as scarf seems pretty nice, and the psychic immunity is helpful against Lele. However, I'm not sure how good it would be with Lele also being faster and having Moonblast as well. I might drop this to B- or C+ if it turns out to be bad.

-Kartana to A as it has a reasonably good speed tier and can deal serious damage to a lot of Pokémon, breaking past non-defensive Primal Kyogre and E-Killer Arceus with Leaf Blade and Fightinium Z, respectively. If it holds Grassium Z instead of Fightinium Z, it can actually OHKO standard RP P-Groudon with +1 Bloom Doom (Leaf Blade) (and OHKO P-Ogre, of course). Groudon can't switch into a Leaf Blade and take the Bloom Doom anyways unless Kartana gets 2 low rolls.It might have some trouble with Mega Mence and Celesteela and some other rooks but it can hurt.

-Magearna to A- for now, but get this: +2 252+ SpA Xerneas Focus Blast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Magearna: 255-301 (84.7 - 100%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO. It is a Xerneas counter as it lives that and proceeds to use Heart Swap and (probably) sweep. It can also run Assault Vest or Shift Gear, and can check Mega Salamence as long as it hasn't already set up.

-Mimikyu to actually just C+, it can clean I guess but it can't really touch any of the viable Pokémon except for maybe Mandibuzz/Vullaby, and Lunala which doesn't care about Disguise and wins from full HP anyways. Oh, well I guess it hits Mewtwo Y, but it's not like Mimikyu can Pursuit trap.

-Nihilego... is 4x weak to ground, and with Primal Groudon it's probably going to have a bad time. Besides, Mega Mence with Earthquake lives the Power Gem and can Dragon Dance and KO back. It hits Xerneas which just Geomancies in its face and sweeps, though Sludge Wave can do quite a bit. It's weak to Primal Kyogre, Mewtwo Y, E-Killer Arc (because of Earthquake), and that's about it. It hits Yveltal but so does Tapu Koko. Sorry, putting a UB in C+.

-Pelipper is trash with Primal Groudon around to take away its rain, as well as Primal Kyogre. Might as well run Manaphy, cause that actually can do damage outside of rain. C- for Pelipper.

-Smeargle is C for now just cause it can't really do much other than set hazards (and most people run Defog or Spin) or use Spore which can be bypassed by sending out your pawn to take the spore, after which the Sleep Clause will activate, or by running Tapu Koko to avoid sleep. Besides, Baton Pass is banned, so Smeargle can't really do as much now.

-Tapu Bulu is in B as Grassy Terrain is very helpful and this can be used for team support while Bulu can still hit considerably hard.

-Tapu Fini is in C+ (rip) because it can't really do anything. Without reliable recovery, it's easily worn down, especially by queens, and if it doesn't run Haze, or is Taunted, becomes setup fodder or gives a free turn to the Taunter, respectively.

-Toxapex is in B- as it has recovery, unlike Tapu Fini, has Regenerator, and can Haze and run Toxic Spikes. However, it's so much better as a knight.

-Xurkitree probably to somewhere around B+; like Manaphy it has Tail Glow, and Xurkitree can also sweep. Notably, it breaks past Primal Groudon with a +3 Grass Knot. However it does lose to scarfers, and with scarf Garchomp being the best king, this may be a problem.


Bishop Pokémon
-Alomomola should be A+ cause of Wish support.

-Now that Latias is in UU, it's A+ if not S.

-Mamoswine stays A+.

-Weavile is A+ as well, Pursuit and Knock Off are great for Lunala, while ice moves, most notably Ice Shard, can hit kings and Mence.

-Porygon-Z has Z-Conversion now, I'd say A+ for now.

-Cresselia to A, it's good for Trick Room and Lunar Dance.

-Gyarados is in BL now, so...

-Magneton to A. This is actually better than Magnezone imo because it misses out on the same KOs but gets everything else with specs (cause that 12.5% chance to OHKO Ferrothorn with specs Magnezone is a TOTALLY big difference from the guaranteed 2HKO with Magneton).

-Porygon2 to A. Milotic is a great bishop that I've been using for a while, but it's not as bulky as Porygon2. Sure, Porygon2 doesn't have Haze, but Toxapex/Mareanie's a better Haze user. I'm not completely sure about this one tbh.

-Terrakion to A, Double Dance is actually pretty scary.

-Amoonguss to A, It can check Xerneas. Besides, it can spore P-Ogre and other stuff.

-Chesnaught to B+, idk what it even beats.

-Mienshao in A- tbh. scarf HJK isn't that good with Landorus-T, Tapu Lele and Tapu Koko as rooks, not to mention Lunala as a queen and Mareanie/Pex is a pawn/knight pair. Not as viable any more, I'd assume.

-Mandibuzz to B+ because it's so much better as a knight.

-Empoleon to B- because I don't really know what you get out of it: it doesn't beat anything, Latias gets Defog, etc.

-Sylveon to B. It's okay, but I don't see why you'd use it when it doesn't really hit anything except for Mence, which OHKOes with Double-Edge anyways, and the Vullaby/Mandi pair which can just switch out and aren't OHKOed anyways.

-Whimsicott to B+. The prankster nerf was annoying, but it's still usable so I didn't drop it much.

-Starmie in B+, Rapid Spin is nice as well as Scarf + Trick.

-Ninetales-Alola in A-, Aurora Veil is great.

-Galvantula to B-; I really don't know what its niche is especially with Defog and Rapid Spin so common.

-Arcanine to B+; it's got some bulk + Intimidate so it's actually a pretty nice bishop.

-Espeon to B- as I don't really see a reason to use it when Tapu Lele exists. If you run both you'll just get run over by something like Mence, unless you run PDon. And in that case Lele+MM2Y might be better anyways.

[EDIT] Now to include all non-megas from UU:

-Togekiss has Thunder Wave, and even though it's not priority, this can be very annoying when paired with Serene Grace Air Slash. It has reasonable bulk and special attack. Besides, it has Metronome Defog, Wish, Roost, Aura Sphere... For now, I'll put it in A.

-Muk-Alola to A- as it's a good Pursuit trapper and has fair bulk.

-Raikou is like Xurkitree in that it can boost its Special Attack, but it can't boost it as quickly and is easier to beat with ubers as it can't increase its speed, not even 1 stage. A- as it can still do damage to teams with Primal Groudon, and at +1 can OHKO Lunala with Never-Ending Nightmare (Shadow Ball).

-Volcanion, like Raikou, can do damage. However it's not as good so I'll put it in B+ for now.

-Gliscor is now in UU! Gligar was B, so I assume Gliscor would be better as it can hold Toxic Orb now. Putting it in B+ then.

-Klefki is also in UU now. Even though it can't touch dark types with Prankster, Thunder Wave still works on a lot of Pokémon, and dual screens is still usable. B+ for now.

-Zygarde-10% to B+ as banded Thousand Arrows seems like it can hurt.

-Hawlucha to B as Unburden + Swords Dance is still a thing. It just has to watch out for the Tapus before setting up and priority afterwards.

-Hippowdon has good bulk and recover, and can set sand. Sand isn't great with Primal Groudon, but Hippowdon has Whirlwind/Roar and Stealth Rock. Putting it in B but I think it could be B+.

-Scarf Hydreigon can check Salamence-Mega and Lunala, though the former is only checked before setting up. Dark Pulse isn't widely resisted but Hydreigon doesn't have fantastic special attack and being choice locked into Dark Pulse/Draco Meteor generally isn't going to be helpful with two Tapus common. However, it does get Iron Tail and Earth Power, which are worth noting. This deserves a B probably.

-Decidueye has the best physical ghost move in the game other than Marshadow's Spectral Thief, and gets Swords Dance. Though it has trouble against ubers, it can wallbreak with SD+Sinister Arrow Raid or Leaf Blade. Sucker Punch is also nice against Lunala.

-Metagross can switch into Tapu Lele and beat it from there. It also beats Toxapex/Mareanie... that's about it really. B- probably suits it for now.

-Primarina... loses to a bunch of ubers. However it does have good bulk and can stand up to mons like Tapu Lele and Landorus-Therian I guess. B- but might be moved down.

-Scizor has Defog, Roost, U-turn and Bullet Punch, all of which are great. However, it's not the best Defogger with Latias in the same tier with Healing Wish additionally, as well as having mediocre speed, allowing it to be outsped and KOed by specs Magneton's HP Fire.

-Tsareena has Rapid Spin but nothing else really. It doesn't really do anything else. Just including it because it's in UU.


Knight/Pawn Pokémon
-Mareanie/Toxapex to A+, Toxapex is a great wall and everything. Pretty self explanatory, has Haze, Recover, Regenerator, Toxic Spikes, clears T-Spikes upon entry... sure, it's weak to PDon, but pretty much everything else is.

-Cottonee/Whimsicott to A, Prankster nerf can bump it down some but not a lot. I might have to put it back in A+ some time, Stun Spore's really useful.

-Smogonbird got nerfed so hard RIP

-Venipede/Scolipede to B, Baton Pass is banned and T-Spikes isn't really a good niche with Pex around.

-Small change; Azumarill 10→9 because it can still sweep but it's not as good.

-Same deal with Clefable; except it went from B to B-

-Slowpoke/Slowbro to B-; Lunala and Electric types aren't helpful

-Cubone/Marowak-Alola to B-; Cubone is still 1 but Marowak-Alola is reasonably good and I'd give it around an 8 for now


I might've missed something, plus I need help ranking these anyways so feedback is very much appreciated

EDITS:
2017-08-25: Updated Rooks to include all non-mega Pokémon in OU; added Zygarde-100% and M-Metagross to ubers VR; updated Bishops to include all non-mega Pokémon in OU.
2017-08-28: Kyurem-Black back in A.
2017-09-04: Xurkitree in Rooks; it's in BL.
 
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I still think Manaphy shouldn't be in A+, at least move it to A or A-. It can do damage, but:
1. Can't OHKO all queens. Mega Salamence can live a +3 Surf in the rain, Dragon Dance and Return/Double-Edge. Primal Groudon shuts down Manaphy's rain, and though it is 2HKOed by Psychic, can leave Manaphy at low health and, after sacrificing a Pokémon, send in a fast scarf user, such as Garchomp (even if it's king). Lunala's Shadow Shield allows it to live and (maybe) set up or nearly KO with (Specs) Moongeist Beam, again leaving Manaphy prone to revenge kills. Kyogre, needless to say, tanks Surf and OHKOes with Thunder (and if not, it lives another Surf). E-Killer Arceus and Xerneas are beaten by it but only in the rain.

2. Loses to some knights/pawns. Ferrothorn lives 2 Surfs (in the rain) and can use Leech Seed and whatever. Specially defensive Toxapex actually isn't OHKOed by +3 Psychic and can Haze in return. Surf isn't a guaranteed OHKO against Mandibuzz (31.3% chance) and Mandibuzz has Whirlwind, and Vullaby lives as well.

3. It needs two turns to set up and if either turn is missing then it can't sweep. This leaves it helpless against stronger queens like Groudon or Mewtwo-Y.

Xurkitree again is a Tail Glow sweeper, but if you're wondering why I'd keep it in A+ and bump down Manaphy at the same time: [EDIT: no longer applies, Xurkitree is in BL]

1. Amazing power. OHKOes Primal Groudon with Grass Knot after a Tail Glow, what can't it KO? Maybe Ferrothorn/Ferroseed, and Magnezone which can't do a thing to it. Besides, specially defensive Toxapex barely lives a Thunderbolt, even with Wacan Berry which is situational. Anyways, most Pokémon that don't resist it lose.

2. Z-Hypnosis forces the opponent to either switch or wait out the sleep. This gives Xurkitree a free turn in most situations, which it can use to set up Tail Glow. Note that if the opponent has Mega Mewtwo Y or Tapu Koko, this is prevented by Insomnia or Electric Terrain, respectively.

3. Super effective STAB against two pawn/knight combinations; 173 Special Attack can get it somewhere. Grass Knot/Energy Ball/HP Ice for ground types.

4. Doesn't take a rook slot like Manaphy. (Might change cause I'm pretty sure it's going to get banned to BL.)

I really think Manaphy should be moved down, hope you're convinced. Keldeo has the same problems but it's even weaker to common outspeeds (i.e., Tapu Koko and scarf Lele). At least it has HP Ice for Mence...? Which outspeeds and KOs, and can set up if it's choice locked into another move. And it's even weaker to Primal Groudon, with Secret Sword hitting Groudon's high 160 Defence instead of its 90 Special Defence. So... that should probably be moved down, too. Also don't forget to put Tapu Koko on the VR as well, I'd put it in A+ or at least A.


EDIT: Oops, maybe should've looked at the entire VR before posting. Anyways, here's what I think of the rest of the VR:
1. Rotom-Wash is in A, and I don't really understand this. What does it do that Magnezone doesn't? And for that matter, why is it ranked higher than Magnezone? Magnezone, I think, has better utility as it can trap steel types and it loses to only a few like Excadrill, Magearna and Heatran. Excadrill beats both with Mold Breaker EQ, Magearna lives everything Rotom tosses at it, and Heatran is the only one Rotom beats that Magnezone doesn't, which I expect isn't hard to beat with a 4x ground weakness anyways. Will-O-Wisp is good on Rotom, but having an uber mon is very different: the top three physical threats are now Primal Groudon, Mega Salamence and Arceus-Normal. Groudon is fire type and is immune to it (as well as both of Rotom's STAB moves, courtesy of Desolate Land), Mega Salamence has Facade and Refresh, and Arceus-Normal somewhat-commonly has Lum Berry and has access to Refresh as well. Nothing else really hates burns. If you're looking for a bulky Pokémon, go to Pokémon like Celesteela or Suicune, or just run Toxapex as your knight or something. Move this to A- or lower imo.

2. Some Pokémon on the Rook VR are in UU. This includes Starmie, Breloom Hawlucha and Gliscor; I'm not sure what else but you should probably double-check.

3. (Another edit) Mega Salamence didn't appreciate the Aerilate nerf and is now checked by knights such as Mandibuzz (Foul Play + Roost) and Toxapex (if it lacks Earthquake). Double-Edge is the preferred STAB move as Return misses out on KOs, but this wears Salamence down extremely quickly, having to use Roost quite frequently or having to switch. It can function less as a sweeper now, I think, as it is also weak to scarfers like Tapu Lele. This deserves some testing to see if it still belongs in A+, or if it should be moved down to A.


I will probably update this as I go along.
 
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Chessmons. A long dead game.

But wait. It's been revived! Anyways am pending the viability rankings to be shown at the front of the page so people can see it easier. I'm starting with the queens (https://pastebin.com/vRZFb0Xr)

Necrozma-Ultra --> S. The thing can sweep. I run Autotomize, Photon Geyser, and then two coverage moves. It works like a charm. The early steel typing allows it so that pawns can't just toxic me, and then after one autotomize, I completely sweep their team. And theoretically, there are no counters since Necrozma could run a physical set, in which I am pretty sure Z-Move Photon Geyser one shots Chansey (like pretty much the only thing that hardwalls special Necrozma). Either way, this thing DOES define the meta, and should be moved up there.

Necrozma-Dusk-Mane --> B. It's better than Solagaleo and has some purpose (I guess), but really is outclassed by Ultra. Use ultra if your going to use Necrozma.

Necrozma-Dawn-Wings --> B-. Countered by a lot of stuff, has a worse typing than dusk mane, and really no niche over ultra (base form dusk mane).

Arceus --> A. Arceus has gotten worse after gen 7, due to more viable sweepers (pdon/necrozma/xerneas), the much increased use of Landorus (which does check arceus), ferroseed and ferrothorn duo, and Tapu lele (which makes espeed useless). Other new pokemon such as toxapex (which can run haze) and celesteela just make arceus worse. I wouldn't be too mad if it was moved down to A-, but A seems ok for now since it CAN sweep with the right teammates (maybe magnet pull Magnezone).

Salamence-mega --> A. Basically the same thing as Arceus, except I wouldn't advise this to be moved down to A- as opposed to Arceus.

Deoxys-attack --> B+. It really doesn't do anything anymore and has no niche. Pdon can just set up on it/ko it, necrozma same, xerneas same, and there are just much better set up sweepers (which are the best uber mons). I mean basically any priority attack basically beats in, and the chances your gonna sweep with SD extreme speed is like nil (and in that case just use arceus then lol)

Arceus-Water --> A-. I don't see it anymore. It's typing is extremely meh (it doesn't resist pdon/necrozma/xerneas), and really it can't do anything to them except toxic. the main issue is that there are more mons, such as tapu koko, that can counter arceus-water. really, arceus-water just cannot be seen as a really good queen imo, but is still half decent due to the fact it semi-checks some of the pokemon in the tier.

Gengar-Mega --> B+. It's good as an uber pokemon where it can trap any weak mons or stall mons, but in chessmons thats far from reality. If I see megagar on the other team, I am very happy, as that is a wasted opportunity for my opponent to completely sweep me. On the other hand, it's niche is still decent (shadow tag), but it really doesn't belong in the A rank.

Mega-mewtwo-y --> B+. Yeah, this thing really has no niche over necro-ultra, and can't really sweep teams, while also being very easy to beat in a sweep (pdon, xerneas all easily destroy it). Similar to deo-a, in which the niche is higher defense, but deo-a has extreme speed. I think they deserve to be in the same tier.

Arceus-Ghost --> A. Haven't used this thing at all, but not sure why it's ranked at A- when it seems like a formidable threat.
+2 252 Atk Arceus-Ghost Shadow Force vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Groudon-Primal: 246-289 (72.1 - 84.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Groudon-Primal Precipice Blades vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Arceus-Ghost: 237-279 (62.2 - 73.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
I mean Sforce/sd/eq/espeed seems very solid and that it could be alot of teams. Just watch out for the mandibuzz/vullaby core, but I think less and less people are using it now, which makes arceus-ghost all the more powerful. Also, its ghost type (which means it beats necrozma-ultra if it runs sclaw).

MMX --> B. It's utter garbage. I shouldn't need to explain

Kyogre --> B+. Honestly, I'd rank it B, but I see the niche. Scarf Kyogre beats basically every mon except for other kyogres and PDON. But pdon basically hard walls it, and you can forfeit if you play a team with pdon (which shouldnt be what the queen does). Pending change to B+, even though I'm happy with a change to B too.

I'm running out of time here, so I'm just going to pend remaining changes and if anyone wants me to elaborate I will
Yveltal --> A-
Zekrom --> B-
Zygarde-C --> A
Aegislash --> B-
Arc-Ice --> B-
Marshadow --> A-, pending A
Megagross --> B+
Arc-Poison --> C+
Rayquaza --> B
Remove Wobb
Maw-mega --> C+
Arc-Psychic --> Blacklisted
Kangaskhan-Mega --> B-
Blaziken-Mega --> C+
Arc-Fire --> Blacklisted
Deoxys-Defense --> Blacklisted
Deoxys--> Blacklisted
Nagadanel --> C

Thanks guys I hope chessmons continues to grow ;)
 
And just a couple of the OU changes
Dugtrio --> Unranked (why is it here?)
Gengar --> B+
Skarmory --> A-
Keldeo --> B
Magerana --> A
Bisharp --> B
Chansey --> A
Gliscor --> Unranked (why is it here?)
Heatran --> B
Serperior --> Unranked (why is it here?)
Zygarde --> B+
Azumarill --> Unranked
Ferrothorn --> D (who ever uses ferro as rook)
Garchomp --> D (who ever uses chomp as rook)
Tyranitar --> C+ (use as rook then though I see the niche in pursuit)
Toxapex --> D (really? who uses it as rook)
Volcarona --> B
Blacephalon --> B+
Lycanroc --> C
Buzzwole --> C-
Gyarados --> C
Weavile --> C+
Xurkitree --> B
 
UU probably fix stuff like dugtrio, which is RU?
Before then I won't really say anything, though suicune should not be S rank
Nidoking --> A+
alomomola shouldnt be A+ either
this needs a lot of work before I look at it
 
pawns look ok tbh;
i think there are some more combos that are missed, but way too lazy to go through all of them. Really all you need to know for a combo is ferro/marenie/vullaby, though i think chesnaught should be up a little higher (fireeee destroyed me with it)
 
Chessmons. A long dead game.

But wait. It's been revived! Anyways am pending the viability rankings to be shown at the front of the page so people can see it easier. I'm starting with the queens (https://pastebin.com/vRZFb0Xr)

Necrozma-Ultra --> S. The thing can sweep. I run Autotomize, Photon Geyser, and then two coverage moves. It works like a charm. The early steel typing allows it so that pawns can't just toxic me, and then after one autotomize, I completely sweep their team. And theoretically, there are no counters since Necrozma could run a physical set, in which I am pretty sure Z-Move Photon Geyser one shots Chansey (like pretty much the only thing that hardwalls special Necrozma). Either way, this thing DOES define the meta, and should be moved up there.

Necrozma-Dusk-Mane --> B. It's better than Solagaleo and has some purpose (I guess), but really is outclassed by Ultra. Use ultra if your going to use Necrozma.

Necrozma-Dawn-Wings --> B-. Countered by a lot of stuff, has a worse typing than dusk mane, and really no niche over ultra (base form dusk mane).

Arceus --> A. Arceus has gotten worse after gen 7, due to more viable sweepers (pdon/necrozma/xerneas), the much increased use of Landorus (which does check arceus), ferroseed and ferrothorn duo, and Tapu lele (which makes espeed useless). Other new pokemon such as toxapex (which can run haze) and celesteela just make arceus worse. I wouldn't be too mad if it was moved down to A-, but A seems ok for now since it CAN sweep with the right teammates (maybe magnet pull Magnezone).

Salamence-mega --> A. Basically the same thing as Arceus, except I wouldn't advise this to be moved down to A- as opposed to Arceus.

Deoxys-attack --> B+. It really doesn't do anything anymore and has no niche. Pdon can just set up on it/ko it, necrozma same, xerneas same, and there are just much better set up sweepers (which are the best uber mons). I mean basically any priority attack basically beats in, and the chances your gonna sweep with SD extreme speed is like nil (and in that case just use arceus then lol)

Arceus-Water --> A-. I don't see it anymore. It's typing is extremely meh (it doesn't resist pdon/necrozma/xerneas), and really it can't do anything to them except toxic. the main issue is that there are more mons, such as tapu koko, that can counter arceus-water. really, arceus-water just cannot be seen as a really good queen imo, but is still half decent due to the fact it semi-checks some of the pokemon in the tier.

Gengar-Mega --> B+. It's good as an uber pokemon where it can trap any weak mons or stall mons, but in chessmons thats far from reality. If I see megagar on the other team, I am very happy, as that is a wasted opportunity for my opponent to completely sweep me. On the other hand, it's niche is still decent (shadow tag), but it really doesn't belong in the A rank.

Mega-mewtwo-y --> B+. Yeah, this thing really has no niche over necro-ultra, and can't really sweep teams, while also being very easy to beat in a sweep (pdon, xerneas all easily destroy it). Similar to deo-a, in which the niche is higher defense, but deo-a has extreme speed. I think they deserve to be in the same tier.

Arceus-Ghost --> A. Haven't used this thing at all, but not sure why it's ranked at A- when it seems like a formidable threat.
+2 252 Atk Arceus-Ghost Shadow Force vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Groudon-Primal: 246-289 (72.1 - 84.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Groudon-Primal Precipice Blades vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Arceus-Ghost: 237-279 (62.2 - 73.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
I mean Sforce/sd/eq/espeed seems very solid and that it could be alot of teams. Just watch out for the mandibuzz/vullaby core, but I think less and less people are using it now, which makes arceus-ghost all the more powerful. Also, its ghost type (which means it beats necrozma-ultra if it runs sclaw).

MMX --> B. It's utter garbage. I shouldn't need to explain

Kyogre --> B+. Honestly, I'd rank it B, but I see the niche. Scarf Kyogre beats basically every mon except for other kyogres and PDON. But pdon basically hard walls it, and you can forfeit if you play a team with pdon (which shouldnt be what the queen does). Pending change to B+, even though I'm happy with a change to B too.

I'm running out of time here, so I'm just going to pend remaining changes and if anyone wants me to elaborate I will
Yveltal --> A-
Zekrom --> B-
Zygarde-C --> A
Aegislash --> B-
Arc-Ice --> B-
Marshadow --> A-, pending A
Megagross --> B+
Arc-Poison --> C+
Rayquaza --> B
Remove Wobb
Maw-mega --> C+
Arc-Psychic --> Blacklisted
Kangaskhan-Mega --> B-
Blaziken-Mega --> C+
Arc-Fire --> Blacklisted
Deoxys-Defense --> Blacklisted
Deoxys--> Blacklisted
Nagadanel --> C

Thanks guys I hope chessmons continues to grow ;)
Just to clarify before I begin: I'm Somebody Fortytwo (as above), I don't know why I have two forum accounts, I think I forgot about one (I initially thought I forgot about this one and made another, but the join dates say otherwise so now I'm just confused). A bit after I posted here regarding the viability rankings for chessmons, I was alerted by DDDon to the presence of this forum account, and I posted in the Name Changes thread (with the other account). I'm just going to stop using the other account.

Anyways, so I can definitely see Necrozma-Ultra going in S. I haven't updated these recently.

So, my thoughts:

Queen
Necrozma-Ultra → S. I agree with Ironic on this, it has a lot of potential and can sweep as easily as PDon once set up.

Necrozma-DM → B-. It has much better bulk than Solgaleo, but I mean this isn't really that much better. You're kinda still wasting a slot here, steel/psychic is a pretty bad type. I guess it can arguably be pushed to B but definitely no higher than that, unless it gets some new niche or something.

Necrozma-DW → B-. Same bulk as Necrozma-DM on the other side, or something like that. Well, 4x Ghost and Dark weaknesses aren't getting it very far. At least Lunala has Shadow Shield. Don't argue Tran or Ferro with here, they have other niches and I rarely see Heatran in chessmons (actually, have I ever seen it in chessmons?).

Arceus → A/A-. Yeah, I can agree with this. Usable but not the best choice.

Salamence-M → A. I'm not sure exactly why this would be moved down because it can still sweep, but I also don't see it as much, and I think it might miss out on some KOs, maybe that's why. Okay.

Deoxys-A → B-. Why not just move it here? It does like nothing now that I think about it, except for maybe a bit of wallbreaking (which can be outdone by other queens or Kyu-B) or hazards (easily accomplished with a pawn). Also has pretty bad coverage afaik. Extreme-Speed could be used for revenge killing or something but I really doubt this is that helpful. As Ironic also said, Lele's terrain just shuts this down. Besides, there are usable scarfers for other slots.

Arceus-Water → B+. Yeah, I can see this. It's lost a lot of its usefulness I saw in the past, which wasn't that much now that I think about it (mostly just toxic stall, and Arceus itself can be toxic stalled). I guess it can Ice Beam Mence, and stuff like that, but I don't remember that well.

Gengar-Mega → B+/A-. I slightly disagree. Gengar can run Taunt/Destiny Bond, which may not seem very good but it can save you from something your team is otherwise weak to. Sure, I see how it's a bad use of a queen slot. It's very situational and very gimmicky, but it's still somewhat usable.

Mewtwo-Y → B+. This can sweep with Calm Mind, I guess? Its problem being slower than scarfers like Chomp, and missing out on KOs like Xern. It can probably do well once its targets are weakened, but sure, it doesn't have the same sweeping capability as like PDon.

Arceus-Ghost → A. I agree with this as well. I used it once or twice, also you can run Ghostium S-Force which hits really hard (I think it OHKOs PDon at +2). Also it gets E-Speed so it can function as an E-Killer as well.

Mewtwo-X → B. Haven't really used this much but I can't really think of anything this does other than get KOed. I'll go with what Ironic said.

Kyogre → A-. This is actually really strong against anything that isn't Kyogre or PDon or Palkia. Sure, PDon beats it, but it's still usable, especially since it beats most non-scarfers in chessmons that isn't a queen or Ferro, etc.

Yveltal → A. Hey, if Necrozma is going to S then this should probably be A. It gets Taunt to shut down must pawns (and knights like Mandibuzz lacking U-turn), a powerful Dark Pulse, and can easily take an unboosted Dragon Pulse from Necrozma after rocks, and Life Orb/Specs sets can get a KO (scarf can KO after Necrozma is like 95% or so) with Dark Pulse. Besides, it can beat Ghost Arc and Lunala (the latter after slight damage so that Shadow Shield is not intact). It doesn't have the same sweeping potential but I think it has a fairly useful niche.

Marshadow → B+/A-. Okay, I disagree with this. It doesn't really have sweeping capability (unless you steal with spectral thief, and you probably need sash for that) and easily loses to priority or even outspeeds. I guess it's not bad, but it's a bit frail and kinda depends on Spectral Thief for a good boost.

Pretty much fine with anything else, I don't really understand Zygarde-C but I don't think it's bad at the same time, I haven't really used it in ubers or chessmons.


Rook
Dugtrio → Unranked. Yeah, last I updated this was when Arena Trap was legal.

Gengar → B+. Umm, okay...? I haven't really seen this and this doesn't really hit as hard as I had expected, so B+ makes sense. It's not trash on the level of like Staraptor though.

Skarmory → A-/A. I don't really see why this should be lower; it has fairly good typing and gets reliable recovery, hazards, etc. I guess it loses to Koko and stuff but it also has toxic immunity.

Keldeo → B+. Okay, sure, it's definitely not as good now, but I don't think it's worse than Gengar. I'm okay with moving both to B though.

Magearna → A/A+. This is actually a really good rook, it can counter Xerneas (+2 252+ SpA Xerneas Focus Blast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Magearna: 255-301 (84.7 - 100%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock) and it can definitely take hits from anything it's not weak to. Steel/Fairy's also a nice typing with only 2 weaknesses, and it has a good movepool as well.

Bisharp → B/B+. I think Defiant still has a nice role and all, especially now with like half the meta getting Defog. Like, if you set webs and switch to Bisharp on their Defogger, I think that might be useful.

Chansey → A. This is better than I thought. Sure, it loses to Primal Groudon—but what rook doesn't? I walled Ironic's Necrozma-Ultra the other day with this; it literally took less than 20% from Photon Geyser (and unless I changed the set, I had 248 HP and 8 Sp. Def). It also gets Heal Bell/Aromatherapy which is really nice, and even Stealth Rock.

Gliscor → Unranked. This is just outdated, Gliscor's in UU now.

Heatran → B+. Toxapex/Mareanie is a really common, viable pawn/knight combination. However, I think Heatran still has some use; it can beat the Ferros, is immune to Toxic, has Rocks, can do fairly well against Xern (Roar for Geomancy, but dead if +2 Focus Miss hits, or if they have HP Ground), and has good defences. Its ground weakness is crippling, but I don't think it's unviable. Ferroseed/Ferrothorn is still a viable pawn/knight even with Magneton/Magnezone's existence.

Serperior → Unranked. Outdated, it's in UU now.

Zygarde → A-. DDance isn't bad and Thousand Arrows is a really good move. SubCoil also works to avoid Toxic and stuff, I haven't really seen this but I think it could do fairly well.

Azumarill → Unranked. With Serperior and Gliscor

Ferrothorn → C-. D is pretty much unranked. Ferrothorn is still usable as a rook (though much worse, because Ferroseed/Ferrothorn is actually a good pawn/knight) and Pelipper is probably just as good as a rook (though I managed to build a usable team with Pelipper with an active part as my rook).

Garchomp → Blacklisted? First of all, this is the best king. Second, if you don't want to run Garchomp king, Garchomp as a knight is better than Garchomp as a rook! Gible's a good(ish) pawn!

Tyranitar → B-. Pursuit can't really do well against other rooks, most of which don't seem to be weak to dark, or take much from dark, but Necrozma-Ultra lacking a super effective move might actually lose to this (if predictions work out and all), and Latias, my personal favourite bishop, loses to this as well. I do feel like Bisharp could also use Pursuit though.

Toxapex → C-. See Ferrothorn

Volcarona → B-. Honestly, I don't see this is that good. It heavily depends on rocks not being up and can be forced to switch by a fair amount of Pokémon, like Toxapex if Volcarona lacks Psychic (and it needs Psychium Z to get the KO against 252/64 Pex even at +1) and is weak to scarfers. Keeping it here.

Blacephalon → B+. Same stuff as Gengar, except it doesn't get the fun gimmick moves like Destiny Bond or Disable.

Lycanroc-Dusk → Unranked. I don't expect this to stay in OU, and I think most people can see why I'd think so, so I won't rank it yet. If it is viable I'll come back and re-evaluate.

Buzzwole → C-. I haven't used this really at all except for maybe once or twice a scarf set in random battles. Bug/Fighting is trash for chessmons, especially scarfed.

Gyarados → C. SubDance? I guess it's usable. Water/Flying isn't that good though.

Weavile → C+/B-. Not as viable now because there are better options in OU than a revenge killer. In UU it was fine because that was often a support slot, or at least for me.

Xurkitree → B+. It might not be the easiest mon to set up, perhaps, but Z-Hypnosis+Tail Glow can sweep a lot of stuff. A big problem is Garchomp—Garchomp outspeeds with scarf, and Z-Hypnosis is a one-use move, of course.


Bishops
Suicune → A+? Okay, it's weak to Leech Seed and PDon, and the queens. It's not unusable though.

Alomomola → A? To be honest, I like Wish support from this. Chansey/Blissey does it better though, I guess, but Regen is good so I'm not moving it lower for now.

Latias → A+/S. My personal favourite, it has Defog, Trick, good defences and special attack, a fairly good speed tier, and it has Healing Wish. Healing Wish is probably what I use this most for, since it lets Primal Groudon (or whatever the queen is) get another shot at sweeping or whatever its role is. Also scarf Latias outspeeds +2 Xerneas with less than 116 Speed EVs (neutral nature) and +2 Groudon with less than 188 (neutral nature).

Porygon-Z → unranked. It's in BL now, RIP

Nidoking → A+. Incredible damage with Sheer Force, and good coverage. I agree with Ironic here.


Well, that's pretty much it. I'll find some time to update my VRs and I'll update this post to include them.
 
"Gengar-Mega → B+/A-. I slightly disagree. Gengar can run Taunt/Destiny Bond, which may not seem very good but it can save you from something your team is otherwise weak to. Sure, I see how it's a bad use of a queen slot. It's very situational and very gimmicky, but it's still somewhat usable."

Sure it can. Taunt. Only beats stall teams (which aren't used in chessmons). Destiny bond. Was nerfed, +Gengar has ridiculously low bulk to the point where it's going to be one shotted anyways? Plus it's weak to pokemon like Pdon (which it cant even do 50% to iirc), Kyogre, Necrozma-Ultra, etc. It's way too situational and that spot could be used for something much better, hence the reduction to B+.

"Marshadow → B+/A-. Okay, I disagree with this. It doesn't really have sweeping capability (unless you steal with spectral thief, and you probably need sash for that) and easily loses to priority or even outspeeds. I guess it's not bad, but it's a bit frail and kinda depends on Spectral Thief for a good boost."

It does have the sweeping capability due to yes, spectral thief, as well as a great moveset that can really compliment itself. Shadow sneak (priority), spectral thief, close combat, and hp ice is a great moveset that has the capability to do damage. It is somewhat situational, however, hence why I have argued for it to go to A-.

"Pretty much fine with anything else, I don't really understand Zygarde-C but I don't think it's bad at the same time, I haven't really used it in ubers or chessmons."

I used it in a troll squad, and it's actually sort of good since when it goes to complete form, its bulk is massive. Rest/talk/coil sets or rest/talk/dragon dance or dragon dance or basically anything is very scary for the meta, and as long as the user has something that can resist ice and fairy (like tentacruel), Zygarde is a great mon. (I'm going to go test it out more in detail right now).

"Skarmory → A-/A. I don't really see why this should be lower; it has fairly good typing and gets reliable recovery, hazards, etc. I guess it loses to Koko and stuff but it also has toxic immunity."

/me cough *celesteela* cough

"Bisharp → B/B+. I think Defiant still has a nice role and all, especially now with like half the meta getting Defog. Like, if you set webs and switch to Bisharp on their Defogger, I think that might be useful."

still cant ohko pdon *cough*

"Heatran → B+. Toxapex/Mareanie is a really common, viable pawn/knight combination. However, I think Heatran still has some use; it can beat the Ferros, is immune to Toxic, has Rocks, can do fairly well against Xern (Roar for Geomancy, but dead if +2 Focus Miss hits, or if they have HP Ground), and has good defences. Its ground weakness is crippling, but I don't think it's unviable. Ferroseed/Ferrothorn is still a viable pawn/knight even with Magneton/Magnezone's existence."

ANDDDD lose to pdon and pgore. yes.

"Blacephalon → B+. Same stuff as Gengar, except it doesn't get the fun gimmick moves like Destiny Bond or Disable."

and much more powerful and a much better typing and a much better moveset.

"Volcarona → B-. Honestly, I don't see this is that good. It heavily depends on rocks not being up and can be forced to switch by a fair amount of Pokémon, like Toxapex if Volcarona lacks Psychic (and it needs Psychium Z to get the KO against 252/64 Pex even at +1) and is weak to scarfers. Keeping it here."

It's not THAAT good, but it is a viable sweeper that can do some stuff. I guess B is probably a reasonable range, not sure what I said earlier.

"Lycanroc-Dusk → Unranked. I don't expect this to stay in OU, and I think most people can see why I'd think so, so I won't rank it yet. If it is viable I'll come back and re-evaluate."

Swords dance/accelrock is somewhat scary for any team that doesn't run pdon

"Suicune → A+? Okay, it's weak to Leech Seed and PDon, and the queens. It's not unusable though."

It's weak to pdon.
Also a main issue really is that to get rid of pdon, you would have to run dugtrio. and to run dugtrio, you would have to run it as a knight. interesting schematics though not sure how it would work.


Also suggestion, tentacruel --> A+, great typing and rapid spin is really nice utility
 
Also, about mega evolution:

There are pretty much no viable mega evolutions, making chessmons nearly a mega-less metagame. Maybe some are usable like M-Lucario, but for the most part there's very little reason to use them over Pokémon like Primal Groudon, Xerneas, Necrozma-Ultra, et cetera, unless you're running a trick room team or something, where Primal Groudon is still usable actually. (The only two legal mega kings, Ttar and Garchomp, are pretty bad anyways.) So this rule is very limiting on teambuilding, and I was thinking about if the knight was allowed to mega. The rules could be different for this: maybe it still has to be linked to the pawn, which would honestly not help much, because a lot of the mega-evolutions don't really have great pawns. Out of the usable mega evolutions, I don't think that many would be viable, or many would just be outdone by the current pawn/knights. However, if we let the knight be separate from the pawn (the pawn is just a Pokémon that is LC, or maybe even NFE now that they're separate), then we could have a rule such as "the knight's base form must be from [insert tier(s) here]" which would still continue the concept of the knight being potentially better than the bishop (because the mega form could be in OU) but also potentially being worse/equal.

Base Form in PU:
OU:
Mawile
Lopunny
Pinsir
Sableye
UU:
Aggron
Altaria
Beedrill
Manectric
Pidgeot
BL2:
Absol
RU:
Abomasnow
Ampharos
Banette
Camerupt
Glalie
NU:
Audino


Base Form in BL4:
OU:
Charizard
Medicham
BL:
Gallade


Base Form in NU:
BL:
Houndoom
Slowbro
UU:
Sceptile
RU:
Steelix


Base Form in RU:
OU:
Diancie
Venusaur
BL:
Gardevoir
UU:
Aerodactyl
Blastoise


Base Form in BL2:
Sharpedo (UU)

Base Form in UU:
OU:
Scizor
Swampert-Mega
BL:
Heracross
Latias


Of course this is just a suggestion, but I'm just pointing out that right now chessmons is pretty much a mega-less metagame right now.
 
"Gengar-Mega → B+/A-. I slightly disagree. Gengar can run Taunt/Destiny Bond, which may not seem very good but it can save you from something your team is otherwise weak to. Sure, I see how it's a bad use of a queen slot. It's very situational and very gimmicky, but it's still somewhat usable."

Sure it can. Taunt. Only beats stall teams (which aren't used in chessmons). Destiny bond. Was nerfed, +Gengar has ridiculously low bulk to the point where it's going to be one shotted anyways? Plus it's weak to pokemon like Pdon (which it cant even do 50% to iirc), Kyogre, Necrozma-Ultra, etc. It's way too situational and that spot could be used for something much better, hence the reduction to B+.

"Marshadow → B+/A-. Okay, I disagree with this. It doesn't really have sweeping capability (unless you steal with spectral thief, and you probably need sash for that) and easily loses to priority or even outspeeds. I guess it's not bad, but it's a bit frail and kinda depends on Spectral Thief for a good boost."

It does have the sweeping capability due to yes, spectral thief, as well as a great moveset that can really compliment itself. Shadow sneak (priority), spectral thief, close combat, and hp ice is a great moveset that has the capability to do damage. It is somewhat situational, however, hence why I have argued for it to go to A-.

"Pretty much fine with anything else, I don't really understand Zygarde-C but I don't think it's bad at the same time, I haven't really used it in ubers or chessmons."

I used it in a troll squad, and it's actually sort of good since when it goes to complete form, its bulk is massive. Rest/talk/coil sets or rest/talk/dragon dance or dragon dance or basically anything is very scary for the meta, and as long as the user has something that can resist ice and fairy (like tentacruel), Zygarde is a great mon. (I'm going to go test it out more in detail right now).

"Skarmory → A-/A. I don't really see why this should be lower; it has fairly good typing and gets reliable recovery, hazards, etc. I guess it loses to Koko and stuff but it also has toxic immunity."

/me cough *celesteela* cough

"Bisharp → B/B+. I think Defiant still has a nice role and all, especially now with like half the meta getting Defog. Like, if you set webs and switch to Bisharp on their Defogger, I think that might be useful."

still cant ohko pdon *cough*

"Heatran → B+. Toxapex/Mareanie is a really common, viable pawn/knight combination. However, I think Heatran still has some use; it can beat the Ferros, is immune to Toxic, has Rocks, can do fairly well against Xern (Roar for Geomancy, but dead if +2 Focus Miss hits, or if they have HP Ground), and has good defences. Its ground weakness is crippling, but I don't think it's unviable. Ferroseed/Ferrothorn is still a viable pawn/knight even with Magneton/Magnezone's existence."

ANDDDD lose to pdon and pgore. yes.

"Blacephalon → B+. Same stuff as Gengar, except it doesn't get the fun gimmick moves like Destiny Bond or Disable."

and much more powerful and a much better typing and a much better moveset.

"Volcarona → B-. Honestly, I don't see this is that good. It heavily depends on rocks not being up and can be forced to switch by a fair amount of Pokémon, like Toxapex if Volcarona lacks Psychic (and it needs Psychium Z to get the KO against 252/64 Pex even at +1) and is weak to scarfers. Keeping it here."

It's not THAAT good, but it is a viable sweeper that can do some stuff. I guess B is probably a reasonable range, not sure what I said earlier.

"Lycanroc-Dusk → Unranked. I don't expect this to stay in OU, and I think most people can see why I'd think so, so I won't rank it yet. If it is viable I'll come back and re-evaluate."

Swords dance/accelrock is somewhat scary for any team that doesn't run pdon

"Suicune → A+? Okay, it's weak to Leech Seed and PDon, and the queens. It's not unusable though."

It's weak to pdon.
Also a main issue really is that to get rid of pdon, you would have to run dugtrio. and to run dugtrio, you would have to run it as a knight. interesting schematics though not sure how it would work.


Also suggestion, tentacruel --> A+, great typing and rapid spin is really nice utility
Gengar—yeah, sure it gets OHKOed. Taunt/Destiny Bond is more predicts because PDon might go for "free" Rock Polish...? Okay, it's not that good I guess.

Marshadow—hm, okay, but still loses to scarfs that resist Shadow Sneak, or scarf Lele. Might move this, I'll see how it does.

Skarmory—at least this gets Roost? I'll look into this more, I can see why Cele can be considered better but I want to see why.

Bisharp—and other rooks can?

Heatran—Landorus-Therian is like the only thing that can check PDon, and if mixed PDon gets in a Rock Polish, Landorus is dead. I'll try this out a bit or something. Besides, Air Balloon lets you do something to PDon probably

Blacephalon—it's not THAT much more powerful and it has a worse movepool than Chandelure. Also it's slower and has literally no bulk.

Lycanroc-Dusk—uhh, Lycanroc (regular) is faster and also gets Swords Dance and Accelerock, I guess Dusk gets Tough Claws and 2 more base attack, but I don't think that's enough to justify a 4-tier difference (Lycanroc's in PU)

Also, Arena Trap is banned on knights too. Nice Dugtrio knight.
 
scarf lele = very situational, it is like never used (first of all, you have to hope your opponent uses lele, and then they have to pick scarf out of the items lol).
skarmory < celesteela because celesteela has more bulk, leech seed, and fire coverage/heavy slam
bisharp = like it really cant ohko anything it's just stuck in that land where it gets ohkoed but doesnt really ohko anything in turn. More testing probably needed.
Heatran = yes but pgore also beats it (along with like zygrade-c hooh etc.), and its so weak it really has no good use as a rook at all.
Blacepahlon = scarf blacephalon where it just stacks up +1 spa is pretty mean. it's faster than chandelure??? also why does bulk matter when it's speed tier is godly?
Lycanroc = dusk is better? what i dont get what your saying

Ikr
 
Queen (Arceus-Ghost) @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Force
- Swords Dance
- Stone Edge / Brick Break
- Extreme Speed / Brick Break

Rook (Landorus-Therian) @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 116 Def / 140 SpD
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- U-turn
- Stealth Rock

Bishop (Nidoqueen) @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 HP / 108 Atk / 148 Def
Relaxed Nature
- Earthquake
- Poison Jab
- Ice Beam
- Fire Blast

Pawn (Ferroseed) @ Eviolite
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Thunder Wave
- Spikes
- Protect

Knight (Ferrothorn) @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 212 Def / 44 SpD
Impish Nature
- Leech Seed
- Toxic
- Power Whip / Gyro Ball
- Protect

King (Tyranitar) @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Ice Punch
- Stone Edge
- Pursuit
- Earthquake

Arceus-Ghost is very powerful after a Swords Dance, being able to OHKO common queens such as Primal Groudon (though some only, if with Never-Ending Nightmare if the queen has not taken chip damage). However, because it is limited to four moves, Arceus-Ghost cannot deal with every situation: if it carries Stone Edge, then it can 2HKO Yveltal and Mandibuzz (the latter only after Stealth Rock damage) but not Chansey and Ferrothorn; likewise, carrying Brick Break can 2HKO Chansey and Ferrothorn at +2 but leaves Arceus powerless against a healthy Yveltal or Mandibuzz. Both moves may be run, sacrificing Extreme Speed; however, revenge kills will be much harder, most notably KOing Xerneas. Running 216 Speed EVs allows Arceus to outspeed Pokemon with 100 base Speed and full investment, and, better yet, standard Dragon Dance Mega Salamence (which runs 212 Speed EVs).

Landorus-Therian with a Careful nature and 140 Special Defense has a 50% chance to live an unboosted Fire Blast from mixed Rock Polish Primal Groudon after Stealth Rock and no other damage; however, a +2 Fire Punch from physical Rock Polish Primal Groudon will OHKO after Stealth Rock. Landorus-Therian can also check Mega Salamence as its Intimidate neutralizes the Attack boost from Dragon Dance and can proceed to take a boosted Facade and do enough with Hidden Power Ice to allow Arceus to secure a KO with Shadow Force or Stone Edge.

EDIT 2018-02-18 15:24 UTC-5: Changed to Nidoqueen. Nidoqueen plays the same role as Nidoking but lives attacks better, and though its Poison Jab will not OHKO Xerneas, it puts Xerneas into a range at which Arceus-Ghost's +0 Extreme Speed will KO. Nidoqueen does not miss out on any benchmark KOs otherwise.

Nidoking has just enough bulk to live Xerneas' +2 Moonblast from full HP or after Stealth Rock and either OHKO with Poison Jab or allow Arceus to finish with Extreme Speed, if Xerneas has not taken any chip damage. It does lose to Hidden Power Ground, however, so an alternative set of 252 HP / 168 Atk / 88 SpD allows it to (hopefully) live a +2 Hidden Power Ground, provided it has not taken any prior damage, including Stealth Rock. It also threatens Toxapex/Mareanie with Earthquake. Fire Blast is used to 2HKO standard defensive Celesteela and OHKO Ferrothorn even without investment. Ice Beam can OHKO the likes of Mega Salamence—whose +0 boosted Facade is more likely than not going to 2HKO Nidoking from full HP—and Gliscor, as well as Landorus-Therian after Stealth Rock.

Ferroseed can live +3 Origin Pulse from Primal Kyogre, as the team, other than Ferroseed and Ferrothorn, has no safe switches into Primal Kyogre (Arceus-Ghost will more likely than not faint from an Origin Pulse if Stealth Rock is up, and hates Scald burns from defensive Kyogre). Thunder Wave can stop Mega Salamence, Lunala or other Speed boosting sweepers—other than Primal Groudon—from a full-on sweep. Spikes can help discourage the opponent from switching if they do not have a reliable defogger or spinner.

Ferrothorn is able to tank general moves, and most notably a +1 boosted Facade from Mega Salamence. It can't live a +3 Origin Pulse from Primal Kyogre but can still act as a decent check with Power Whip. Gyro Ball can be opted for to hit Mega Salamence, Yveltal, and Xerneas harder, but Power Whip is somewhat better due to the team's general weakness to Primal Kyogre otherwise. Protect is used for Toxic/Leech Seed stalling and can also be used to scout moves.

Tyranitar with Shuca Berry lives Earthquake from Garchomp (and Precipice Blades from Primal Groudon), and can OHKO Garchomp in return with Ice Punch. Pursuit traps the likes of Latias. Stone Edge and Earthquake are otherwise its STAB and coverage move, respectively.

I'll make more sample teams when I have more time.
 
Last edited:

pulsar512b

ss ou fangirl
is a Pre-Contributor
Hello my friends. This is 100% a scrabblemons post. Viable mons for each letter here:
A: Alakazam (mega and not), amoonguss, Azumarill, (suicide leads: aerodactyl & archeops)
B:barbaracle (shell smash sweeper), beedrill-mega, blissey, blacephalon, breloom, buzzwole
E: Excadrill, Alolan Exeggutor (sorta in tr, probably not worth choosing very niche)
I: Infernape
O:Couple suicide leads sorta, dont use tho
Z:Zapdos
Y: none
X: Xatu, but esp xurkitree
W: weavile
U:umbreon & suicide lead uxie
T (best letter lol): All tapus, tangrowth, thundurus (therian and not), tornadus-t, toxapex, ttar, ttar mega
This is WIP, and please feel free to add more.

In the meantime here's a couple samples for the road my friends: https://pokepast.es/0ed519d24970243e https://pokepast.es/9ab257cab1faabaa

There's two ways to build a team in this meta: pick a word and build within the limitations, or build like normal in OU, hope that it spells a word, and fuck with it until it does if it doesn't. I think the latter's better. Note that both samples above were built with the first, although the one with the tapus had the word picked deliberately for being a good word.

Also, I propose a new scrabblemons format. 6v6, bring a team that fits by the regular rules, no fancy shit like random words.
 

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