Project SV PU Research Week

[asa]

This mon never does anything when you're trying to show it off, I swear..

Because I'm a Huge Coward, I avoided a lot of the cooler movepool options Red Bull has and mainly used slight variations of its standard sets. I didn't get quite as far on ladder as I initially wanted to, but I might do some more laddering before the week is over.

Eject Pack

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Eject Pack
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake

This set is pretty fun, though it is held back some by how common opposing Fauros (and Qwilfish-H) are. Still, Eject Pack is nice for turning the tables on physical walls and other Fighting checks as they switch in. You can use it to instantly get in frailer teammates, possibly spinblock, and just reposition yourself in general, which is cool on something that forces as many switches as the bull.

​

Here, EPack Tauros-F serves as a physical wallbreaker that can get Indeedee or a Terrain sweeper in safely once. Other than that, the team is just basic Psychic Terrain cheese. The only other thing that stands out is the Dudunsparce, which was Calm Mind until gum recommended using Coil. It's fat and can potentially absorb TSpikes, which are a huge issue for this team, if it Teras. Honestly, though I can't say Tauros-F is necessary for this team to function, it definitely made a lot of games easier just by chipping things down, spreading Intimidate, and pivoting.

​

This game is probably the best display of what Red Bull does on this team. It helped me get Spikes up as well as keep them up, chipped two Pokemon, and eliminated a possible AV Hariyama, which could have Tera'd to stop Garticuno from winning.

​

The bull was nice in this game, too. It got rid of Roar Houndstone, which could have easily used up all my Psychic Seeds and walled everything, got Sceptile in safely, and chunked multiple other Pokemon.

Substitute + Bulk Up

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 52 HP / 200 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bulk Up
- Close Combat
- Raging Bull
- Substitute

Bulk Up Fauros is obviously fine on its own, but Substitute + a nice defensive Tera type can help it turn walls like Sandslash and Sandaconda (and even some offensive Pokemon) into setup fodder. You don't get to use Intimidate + your Dark resistance quite as liberally with this set, since Knock Off basically OHKOes you, and no Trailblaze is a bit sad in some matchups. Essentially, you trade flexibility against both offense and balance for a much stronger balance matchup. This sort of set is probably at its best alongside teammates that can spread poison/paralysis. That way, you don't have to fish quite as hard for setup chances and you can cheese past stuff like Tera Regirock and Sableye.

​

Here, Fauros is paired with several teammates that excel at forcing chip damage, which can give it an easier time winning. With three relatively fast pivots on its side, Fauros also gets a lot of chances to play its game. Past that, it's a fairly simple hazard stack team.

Red Bull was faster than 5/6 foes, and the Lycanroc was only a Stealth Rock lead. As soon as Sableye was poisoned, the bull was almost impossible to stop.

There was another game I was in where I lost, but Tera Fairy Fauros was briefly in a position to win if I made the right play on a certain turn. I was a little upset I let that game slip away and didn't save the replay, though I think the game was still a good example of SubBU Fauros being a huge nuisance for balance builds anyway.

Bonus Team (Choice Scarf)

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

​

Choice Scarf Tauros-F has a juicy Speed tier that puts it above +1 Oricorio as well as opposing Choice Scarf users like Bruxish and Rotom formes, and that's pretty cool. It also hits pretty hard for a scarfer, which is also pretty cool. This team isn't really built around the bull, it was just nice to have. It + CB Sneasel is a ferocious wallbreaking core, and Future Sight alongside it makes up for its now lackluster matchup against fat teams.

 

[FlamingoPokeman]

I didn't use an SVRW account because I was unfamiliar with this tier and didn't even know this was happening... but I did play some PU this week using a team with as my main form of speed control and breaking potential and would like to drop my opinion:

While Fire Bull is incredibly strong and has great STAB's, plus Earthquake and Stone Edge, to hit most of the tier for huge damage, it remains reliant on predictions when running any Choice item and can be tricky to get in without a slow pivot or sacrifice. Fighting Fire also is pretty lackluster defensively and makes it susceptible to getting killed fairly easily if something is willing to commit a Tera to remove your Bull, such as Flying types avoiding kills from Stone Edge or things popping Tera Ghost on a CC.

I like the idea of Bulk Up sets but I do think this will likely remain a Choice abuser (Band or Scarf) for most of the month. I feel like it's also pretty obvious that it will run at least STABs + Earthquake or Stone Edge at a minimum so you don't feel pressured in matchups against them trying to guess anything other than the item.

In my 25 games on ladder (first time playing PU in any serious capacity) I went 20-5 largely due to Fire Bull coming in clutch with its awesome speed and power. I'd argue it's an A/A+ level mon in this meta.

 

[gum]

laddered with both this week!

custap curse lax + bu redbull

Snorlax @ Custap Berry
Ability: Gluttony
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 Atk / 136 Def / 120 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Curse
- Double-Edge
- Hammer Arm
- Heat Crash

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bulk Up
- Close Combat
- Raging Bull
- Trailblaze

this was the core i had the most fun with, and it worked pretty well on ladder too! curse lax was the main star of the show, almost always finding a way to be useful as most people didn't expect custap berry. even if they did, it wasn't very easy to stop a boosted snorlax anyway. as for redbull, i was a bit underwhelmed with it in all honesty but it wasn't bad, it just felt like a set that would work better on balance / bo, rather than full on heavy offense, so i'd like to give it a try on a different playstyle one day

https://pokepast.es/4522f69f8f75e903
this was the team i used with these sets, it's just a very standard looking ho for the most part; you set hazards up, go into something and setup, and then win eventually if it all works out. guno probably won more games than the rest combined i think, but snorlax was felt like the super important centerpiece in that it held everything together

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2056453182 - scyther does most of the work so that redbull can clean without too much difficulty
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052783455?p2 - curse lax claiming two!! and then guno being dishonest
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052744512 - the only other replay i have of redbull doing something, but this time it won on preview so i'd say that's pretty noteworthy
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052564370 - redbull could have won if i was more patient with it, which again supports what i was saying about it not feeling super good on ho. though the main take away here is that custap snorlax saved me once again
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052437698 - more custap snorlax

i built other teams but didn't really ladder with them, but i'll say that the sets i've had the most success with this week were choice band redbull and custap berry snorlax! - here's the cb redbull team if you're interested

 

[AlolanSpheal]

Tauros Time

​

The Basics
For this entire RW, I used a scarf tauros set. My original plan was to try to diversify my sets, use a BU set, a band set, whatever else came to mind, but life happens and I wasn't able to go that intense.

The set itself is a duplicate of the scarf set I used when I would spam P!Tauros back before it was outclassed by so many fighting types.

Flaming Derby (Tauros-Paldea-Blaze) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- Earthquake
- Iron Head

CC-Flare-EQ are a pretty standard trio of moves that gives Tauros a good amount of coverage, while Iron Head was purely for hitting fairy types (although I think I used iron head a grand total of 3 times during my research). As for nature and EVs, I personally believe that Jolly is the best nature to run, as it allows Tauros to outspeed threats (namely most +1 sweepers). Running Jolly over Adamant does leave you wanting for more power, however in my testing, the speed has been much more helpful. For tera I initially ran steel, thinking I'd use it more in order to get a jump on fairies. However, I switched to tera fire to get that fat FB damage.

TEAM + ANALYSIS

https://pokepast.es/a0b3b2f58b2393f8

This team went through some slight changes throughout this week. At the start of the week, I ran AV Spinner Toed in place of Conda, and double dance Garticuno in place of Torn. Toed was promptly switched out when I realized I was running double hazard removal (which can be good, but Toed wasn't gelling with the team). Garticuno faced a similar situation as Toed, since in most battles I never really found an opportunity for it to be helpful. I'm sure it would've been beneficial in certain cases, however it never really found the opportunity. I went with Conda because it had annoyed me in a fair amount of my matches, and I figured I needed a rocker, and Conda has been a key factor in a good amount of my success this week. Torn was brought in because I still wanted a sweeper just in case Tauros couldn't get everyone, or I wanted to punch some holes for Tauros.

Scyther is there to do what it does best: Defog and U-Turn.

Snorlax is there because I needed some special walls on my team. The absence of AV Toed definitely led to a reliance on Lax to be a special wall, however I didn't pivot towards an AV set because CurseLax is just too much fun.

Skuntank my beloved. The one true staple on my teams since the moment it arrived in PU. I really like Skun for its, while not as top tier as others, utility. Taunt to deal with the (surpisingly numerous) sticky webs, hazards, set-up and what not, Knock Off to deal with leftovers and choice, and Aftermath to stop some beat up physical sweepers.

Replays

I'm gonna be real, I didn't save enough replays. And even when I did save the replays, there were just games where "Oh, Tauros did a lot" or "Oh, Tauros 1v3'd. The first three are simply "Tauros go brr", however the third one actually saw me using Tauros's steel tera to live a +1 Tera Normal QA from Scyther (I think Tauros survived anyway but I wanted to be safe).

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052783192?p2

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2053369127

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055686180?p2

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055678299?p2

This fourth replay is sort of a mixture of "Tauros go brr" and Tauros putting intimidate to good use.

Conclusion
This mon kicks ass. I think it's the right combination of hard-hitting and hardly hitting. Flame Tauros has carved a p solid niche in terms of being a fast, hard hitter and I believe it'll keep that title for a hot minute (inb4 Emboar comes back)

 

[ViZar]

Servus! I played a lot of games since my post in the main thread, but I sadly couldn't make any exotics sets work since all my teams for them sucked ass. Therefore I run standard sets. The sets I've an are: Standard CurseLax and ChestoRest for Snorlax and 3 Attacks Bulk Up, Scarf and 4 Attacks + Boots for Tauros-Blaze.

First I'd like to talk about Tauros-Blaze. My opinion has changed since last time. Now I wouldn't call it clearly broken but while playing I've faced different sets that gave me trouble like Choice Band, which is ridiculous, and some sets that run Cud Chew. For me, Bulk Up and Scarf were the most consistant sets and the ones that gave me the most success.


Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Lum Berry / Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Rock / Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Raging Bull
- Close Combat / Will-O-Wisp
- Rock Slide / Trailblaze / Subsitute
- Bulk Up

Lum Berry is a nice item for Tauros-Blaze since it is already immune to burn, so it can use it to be immune to Paralysis and Poison once. Obviously, a burn immunity doesn't make setting up on Houndstone and Weezing easy since they can just attack it constantly and the latters STAB can easily make you consume the berry. This set also struggles with faster revenge killers, since you cannot use Trailblaze easily, if you choose to run it anyway. If you go with Rock Slide, you're only hope is Tera Rock against Oricorio, Tornadus and Scyther.

The general weakness of this set is that you just the lack of speed and power, it is better when the opponents team is weakened or when you have moves like Memento or Healing Wish which make setting up easier. Using Raging Bull instead of Flare Blitz also hurts this set since you give up on more power.



Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Rock / Grass / Electric
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Close Combat
- Rock Slide / Wild Charge
- Earthquake

I honestly had great success with this set. There were many situations where faster Pokemon got OHKOed trying to deal with Tauros. However, the lack of power and longevity was really noticable. Now longevity isn't a huge deal, but since this set relies on its defensive utility and it keep switching in and out, hazard damage can really rack up alongside Flare Blitz recoil. The power issue is way more significant though. There were situations where slower teams had no issue with this Pokemon.

Offensive teams struggled against this Pokemon and a lot of Scythers and +1 Speed threats like Oricorio, Rotom among others were caught off guard by its speed. While still lacking in power, it is still crazy strong and it picks up weakened teams and there were games were I won thanks to the extra speed it has. Being walled more easily really sucks and you need hazard pressure in order to break through some stuff.



Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Rock / Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Close Combat
- Trailblaze
- Rock Slide

Compared to Bulk Up sets and Choice Scarf sets, this set has the worst of both worlds. The idea was to get more longevity and maximize coverage but it has some obvious issues. The lack of power and speed really sucks and unlike Bulk Up, you cannot increase your strength and you can get outsped easily. Trailblaze obviously helps here and you have Rock Slide in order to deal with Oricorio, Tornadus and Scyther but it is really hard to get value with. You are reliant on a good defensive core to switch into Pokemon that threaten Tauros-Blaze and you need a good breaker on your team since Tauros-Paldea cannot fullfil that role. I think this set isn't worth, unless you cannot fit a good hazard remover.


I think that the Tera options for all sets fullfil different roles and I'd like to briefly touch on them:
Cactus Fruit Flavour - Tera Grass
Obviously resisting Ground and Water is nice for a Fire-type and you can more easily set-up on Rhydon, Regirock, Floatzel and Bruxish while resisting revenge killing moves from the latter two. The power boost that Trailblaze gets can also be useful. Obviously, it does nothing against Tornadus, Oricorio and Scyther so it is more used for slower sets like Bulk Up but Scarf can still utilise it well.

Organics Ginger Ale - Tera Rock
This was mainly for Scyther and Tornadus revenge killing you and the extra on Rock Slide really helps, especially if you manage to get a flinch. Now, you only get a good match-up against 2-3 Pokemon but keep your crucial weaknesses to Ground and Water but also gaining weaknesses to Fighting and Steel which are relevant against Hariyama and Hitmonchan (run too much into that)

Tropical Flavour - Tera Electric
This flavour sucks btw. The main idea I had was gaining a immunity to paralysis and keeping your Lum Berry against a Dudunsparce for example. Now, this Tera is really situational but not really worth it.

Watermelon & Strawberry-Apricot Flavour - Tera STABs
These ones are obvious. Gain more power and get damage rolls in your favour, when a move does not 2HKO or OHKO. I think that Tera Grass, Tera Rock or other offensive/defensive Teras are better though.



Right now I'm burned out, so I will talk about Snorlax a bit later, but I'll share some teams and replays.
Aight, break over. Now onto a Pokemon with a much cooler name in german: Relaxo aka Snorlax. In all honesty, it's good this guy didn't get banned because it helps check certain threats in the tier and it isn't overbearing and rather easy to deal with. Regirock, Bronzong and to lesser extends Sandaconda and Weezing check it well. More niche options like Houndstone and Sableye can give it trouble.

It still has great traits with its bulk and this is its main selling point. With Thick Fat it has effectively resistances to Ice and Fire and this makes it a great check to Pokemon like Oricorio, Tornadus, Charizard, Typhlosion, Articuno-G, Braviary-H, Rotom-Mow and Hoopa, among others. Obviously, they can break through Snorlax with hazards, good coverage or Snorlax's inability to OHKO them.



Snorlax @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Impish Nature
- Body Slam
- Earthquake
- Curse
- Rest

This is the standard set that you think of first when you hear Snorlax. It maximizes its bulk and gives it a solid chance at checking as many Pokemon as possible. Thick Fat alongside Tera Ghost make it great at checking Typhlosion, Pyroar, Glastrier and Tauros-Blaze alongside aforementioned threats. The main issue I had with this set is that it cannot check multiple Pokemon and once it Curses, it gives oppossing Special Attackers many chances to break through it. It is still great and it uses Special Attackers as a way to set-up on. Also, skill issue on my side, but I always switched out on Houndstone. In hindsight, you could just set-up on it and beat it with EQ.

Anyways, as you might've seen in the replays section, Tera Ghost Curse can be helpful as well. You have to be careful with it since it can easily loose you the game. Not by cutting your HP in health, though this is also a reason, but because it also removes set-up on Snorlax, thus you won't win games where you need the set-up to win.



Snorlax @ Chesto Berry
Ability: Thick Fat
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 4 Spe
Careful Nature
- Body Slam / Double-Edge
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Rest

My main idea with this set was to use it on offensive teams without giving up too much on momentum and maximizing coverage and damage output. It struggles with bulkier Pokemon and without set-up you cannot threaten a lot in return. It was mainly used as a buffer for faster and more offensive teammates and it is just used for checking special attackers. ChestoRest allows you to play more recklessly, absorb status and take more damage here and there and then get a second chance at life. I will say, Curse is probably better than this or it needs a far more skilled player than me to get the most out of it.


Lastly I'd like to mention Tera Fairy. This is more theorymoning since I haven't put it in practise but I think it has potential on becoming a standard. Tera Fairy's advantages over Tera Ghost are gaining a Knock resistance which is nice for opponents expecting a Tera Ghost and you keep an advantage against Fighting moves. Most importantly, you can still set-up with Curse. Obviously it depends, sometimes Ghost Curse can be useful in winning a game but at the same time, clicking Curse in the face of Fighting-types and setting up is more benefitial. Although being able to heal or set-up with low health in the face of Fighting coverage or STAB is also useful.


Here are the teams I used:
- BU Red Bull + CurseLax
This is the team I had the most success overall but it can still be improved. I think that a Physical Toxicroak and Memento Skuntank would fit better on this squad.

- ChestoLax + ScarfBull
This team tries to keep the pressure on and thus I chose to ran ChestoLax to keep its defensive utility and not be a passive blob after Resting. This team really relies on predictions and good resource management but I liked using it.

- SD Slash + Rocky Skunk
I wanted to experiment with other Pokemon while also keeping Tauros-Blaze and Snorlax. This team is really slow and rather passive. CB Tauros would've been great here but on the other hand, Scarf Tauros won a lot of interaction that where crucial in winning or even giving a chance at winning.

- SD Sneasel + AoA Tauros
I used this team on my main account. I wanted to try out some Pokemon and while at it, I gave AoA Boots Tauros a chance but this team really struggles with power. The main source of power is SD Sneasel and obviously that needs set-up. I initially run this with hazard control but I really struggled to make it fit, thus it has 3 boots users.

Replays

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2053002727 (Opponent used DrumLax with ChestoRest, gave me some trouble but can be played around)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055309549?p2 (Snorlax checked stuff and Tauros was a menace for the opponent)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2056151831 (AoA won this game for me)

CurseLax doing good in/against TR
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2053829424 (CurseLax is amazing against TR here)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054964439 (revenge killed Hoopa and won against Regirock)

Tera Ghost Curse Snorlax
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054964439 (Won the Game late game)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054958556 (Was played poorly by me and Ghost Curse helped me loose the game)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055312069?p2 (Played poorly again, but Ghost Curse put opponent in bad positions)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055339479 (Tera Ghost Curse and Tauros won this game)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054591493

Scarf Tauros-Blaze doing well
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054517714 (Scarf Tauros making progress and letting CurseLax win)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054950606 (Just Tauros catching people off guard)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2054520435 (Same as above)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055335051 (Didn't win but Scarf gives Web teams headaches)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2055337092 (Without Scarf, this game would've been more difficult)

Verdict:
- I think I focused on the wrong sets here. While I think Scarf, LumBU and AoA have good traits, CB is hard to pass up and I've used it before writing this and it is so much better easier to play. I honestly think it should be looked at, if not banned since it can easily win a game depending on the set it is running. Even with a suboptimal set, it still gets immense value.

- This guy can stay and I think it is a healthy part of the meta. Curse is probably its best set and it helps check some threats while being a threat that isn't hard to check, since it is rather set-up reliant, lacks good recovery and is slow.

 

[Morge]

I tested 1 lax set and 2 redbull sets this week. Had a lot of fun with them, cool mons.

Redbull gives you wings (neither of these sets are tera flying)

Sub BU
Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Leftovers
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bulk Up
- Close Combat
- Raging Bull
- Substitute

Dammit asa had the same idea as me. But yeah, sub bulk up pauros is cool for turning a lot of walls into setup fodder, especially with tera. Not having trailblaze restricts your endgames somewhat since you need to get rid of or at least cripple faster stuff like scyther that can potentially ruin your day but in exchange you have a lot more midgame utility vs balance, while still having the potential to sweep lategame.

Band Bull
Tauros-Paldea-Blaze @ Choice Band
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz
- Stone Edge
- Lash Out

This set goes all in on the midgame wallbreaking. CB pauros is a menace to switch into while being much faster than other wallbreakers like hoopa or clawitzer. Lash out hits tera ghost lax, its not great and I never actually used it but I wasn't really sure what else to use, your other options for the last slot are either raging bull for no recoil fire stab, EQ for tera poison lax or just a general decent midground button, or iron head for the very occasional dachsbun, whatever you want probably works stabs + stone edge pretty much covers everything relevant anyway.

I really wanted to find an excuse to run wisp on this mon but I never actually got round to it. I was this close to running it on band for some reason but talked myself down from that thankfully.

This thing can't learn slack off but Infernape can ok sure

2 attacks restalk tank
Snorlax @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 12 HP / 136 Atk / 252 Def / 100 SpD / 8 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Double-Edge / Body slam
- Heat Crash

Restalk 2 attacks lax is my favourite lax set personally. Its really good at just 1v1ing most stuff with its huge bulk and attack and makes for a really splashable special tank for teams. I think I got this spread from the discord (don't remember from who) I wish I was smart enough to make spreads like this but it works. I tried both double edge and body slam but ended up settling with double edge since the damage is better and the recoil is mostly negligible with lax's huge hp, although the recoil can still be annoying sometimes and that 30% bodyslam para comes into play much more than you would think.

Teams

BU redbull balance

Balance team featuring sub BU redbull. Scarf guno is funny and actually surprisingly effective since its got a good speed tier that puts it above gatekeeper electrode-h with scarf and still hits very hard and has a pivot move.

Band redbull + NP torn

Band redbull helps break for NP to sweep lategame. This team I kinda threw together and could definitely be improved but its worked well enough, but skuntank could probably be swapped out for some sort of special scarfer (Maybe scarf mismagius?)

 

[Melt Gibson]

a very big thanks to everyone for participating! had a much bigger turnout this week and some great posts to go along with it :) also, congrats to gum for topping the ladder this week! welcome to the hall of fame!

thankfully the most recent voting slate didn't take much, only banning articuno-g, so we've still got plenty of research to do! that said, and without further ado...

RESEARCH WEEK 3
Welcome to Research Week 3! This week we'll be focusing on Mesprit and Tornadus.


Mesprit and PU may just be the greatest pair of forbidden lovers to ever exist... until now! After finishing the last generation at the top of its class, this versatile and powerful Pokemon is back and still in great form. With all the options you could ever dream of, including Stealth Rock, Knock Off, Thunder Wave, and U-Turn, as well as a massive breadth of setup moves and great coverage, there are plenty of sets to explore. How will you put it to work this week?


A newcomer to PU this generation, Tornadus has been a hot topic, most recently appearing on the latest ban slates and having an even split of votes each time. Critics do have a lot of strong points to cite: It comes with Prankster, all four weather setting moves, Tailwind, and Nasty Plot, as well as the coveted Knock Off and U-Turn, and its STABs are powerful and somewhat lacking in resistances. However, a good many of its moves can be rather inconsistent, leading to deadly mishaps. Are you going to take the gamble and wish on this genie?

The ladder tag for this week is SVRW03. Good luck, and happy researching!​

 

[asa]

SVRW03 a
both

 

[Corvy]

SVRW03 Corby
both

 

[ViZar]

SVRW03 ViZar
both
sorry, had a lot to do this week, don't have the time to do a research post

 

[M0onStarr]

SVRW03 M0onStarr
Both

 

[FlamingoPokeman]

SVRW03 FlamPoke
Both

 

[Morge]

SVRW03

Both

 

[Code_Error_]

Sorry I'm a bit late, was in Dortmund Regionals and went 2-7 (pretty good for my first one and it was with Typh H)
Week 2:
Tauros-Paldean-Blaze
Team 1: Tailwind Team
Hypothesis: Worn down by hazards but if I can get kills quick enough this should be easy victory
The team: https://pokepast.es/fbde03003f6ef012
Game 1: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052372790-p9h2hwuh13doubxk9svnybezpnpum7wpw didnt have the speed I needed to outspeed perrserker, but they randomly left for some reason so ig I get the win. Changed the evs tho: https://pokepast.es/e2b9030f821e9859
Game 2: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2052375447-vfw8ndcvdplv1cx77bruuh4p8onewzkpw I hate stall so much! But we PULL THROUGH. Body slam paras sucked but tauros put in work killing qwilfish h.
Game 3: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2056438069-9tsnsjtf0dedhz2y9srk0u24rh0cp3fpw just played vgc regionals so my singles brain is so fried. Glad to move on from this team
Snorlax
Team 1: Facade Toxic Orb Lax + Sneasel H and Zorua
Hypothesis: Will die if knock off spam, but should have more longevity than the tauros team
The team: https://pokepast.es/96dbe081c434f0f9
Bonus Game 1 bc not on acc: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2057128839-lgs31lffqr5ifl3fpjlt6opnygimh00pw
Game 1: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2057767838-8296p9nwjvmgambvs2icby6nzktyvvdpw played against a weak team and still made so many errors lol. But the facade crit popped off on arboliva and wasted strength saps! It also genuinely threatened houndstone bc it cant will o and If I tera fairy I prob 2hko or maybe 3hko.
Game 2: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2057774876-7d9vctig73ipum4fw1dks1glms46ytspw no words
Game 3: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9pu-2057779268-qpzkbkcv6w1knnufzyn60n1td1517f8pw I dont wanna talk abt it im too tired

 

[Karcoal]

SVRW03 wta
both

 

[Melt Gibson]

Leaving this open for Mesprit and Tornadus posts for another 24 hours! Also, congrats to asa for the highest ladder ranking this week!
Since March tier shifts are coming soon, we'll be taking a one week break after this week to allow things to settle down before we jump back in. To be absolutely clear, after this week ends on February 25th, Week 5 will start on March 3rd. That said...

RESEARCH WEEK 4
Welcome to Research Week 4! This week we'll be focusing on Virizion and Bronzong.


Virizion in SV PU needs no introduction. Immediately taking the tier by storm and holding its own with respectable speed, bulk, and power, the Grassland Pokemon has established a good many sets. While it's calmed down due to the introduction of new threats over the past months, there's no denying that Virizion is still a strong presence. Will you stick with tried and true sets like Swords Dance or Calm Mind, or carve out your own trail this week?


A newcomer to the tier, Bronzong quickly established itself as something that SV PU had lacked for a while - a bulky, reliable Steel-type. Don't be fooled, though! Give it the chance and this bell will ring you right back with a powerful Body Press, or plod through with consistent damage through Night Shade. Perhaps you could even get away with a less common option like Iron Defense. Only time will tell!

The tag for this week is SVRW04. Good luck, and happy researching!​

 

[Corvy]

Svrw04 Corby
Zong

 

[ViZar]

SVRW04 ViZar
both

 

[E4 Bruno Mars]

SVRW04 E4BrunoMars

Bronzong
Virizion

 

[E4 Bruno Mars]

Look to the left... See my avatar? That's what virizion's portion of the research week did to me... So Here's my research on Virizion early... because I give. I can't find a creative set that does anything much better than the standard SD or CM sets.

Here are a couple sets I tried and my thoughts on them:

Virizion @ Focus Sash
Ability: Justified
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Reversal
- Vacuum Wave/Leafstorm
- Trailblaze
- Taunt

This set was a nice try at being the ultimate anti-lead. Someone better than me would have to pilot it to find good use. Usually does a good job of catching the opponent off guard though. Because why would ANYONE expect THIS? Reversal at 1 hp / 200 power ohkos Glastrier, so that's neat I GUESS.

AND NOW... I PRESENT (a set that isn't as bad as the one above but rarely does anything because of the atrocious speed tier this mon has vs mons that check/counter it...):

Blade of Miquella (Virizion) @ Loaded Dice
Ability: Justified
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Grass/Rock/Psychic
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Seed
- Sacred Sword/Close Combat
- Trailblaze/Zen Headbutt/Stone edge

The amount of times the opponent typed "!learn virizion, rock blast" and said "... huh... ok"/"never seen loaded dice before"... was like four, but that's a lot because usually I didn't even get to show off the set on account of the best move at the moment being close combat-ing.

I glanced at some calcs when first trying this out and it seems ok, but a bit underwhelming and wouldn't you know it?! It is exactly that. Ok, but a bit underwhelming in practice.

It was decent.

Not good enough to warrant copying any calcs here.

I'm going to leave some thoughts and sets for bronzong here because maybe someone else doing research this week could get some inspiration(?) doubtful, but here we go!


BellOfAwakening (Bronzong) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Iron Defense
- Body Press
- Night Shade
- Rest/Protect

I used rest most of the time. Which meant when this set worked it REALLY worked.

I didn't test cm stored power this week so I can't say how this compares, but it always seemed to do SOMETHING. I really enjoy mons that guarantee make progress, and while night shade DID help with many midgrounds, I'm sure some other moves are more rewarding with this set.

I ran this set with resttalk snorlax so it was really annoying for opponents. I will share my rest spam team at the bottom of this post.

-----

Utility:


Bronzong @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Tera Type: Ghost/Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Def
Calm Nature / Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Psychic Noise
- Night Shade/Body Press
- Protect

Psychic noise to stop bulky mons from healing, particularly snorlax. Protect because it's great to heal from lefties while your opponent's snorlax can't. Tera Ghost because you wall snorlax harder.

FINAL THOUGHTS/TEAM:

Snorlax is very good. Virizion's potential lies outside of my creativity/in already discovered sets. Bronzong has some viable flexes for moves on the most common sets.

Here's my restspam team:
https://pokepast.es/5f4d535a9b72265d

This really validates my final thoughts - you'll no doubt agree if you use it. :)

Thanks for reading if you did. I have not posted in years and I don't remember how to do pretty stuff like formatting or sprites. Hopefully I'll be more use towards research in future weeks, but don't count on it. ;P

 

[Melt Gibson]

Hi everyone! Just here to give you a reminder on two very important things and make an announcement on one more.

Firstly, don't forget to post your research findings for this week! We had quite a few who did last week, so I'm just bumping this as a reminder.

Second, due to incoming shifts and (possibly) another voting slate to follow, we will be on hiatus until Sunday, March 3rd. Thank you for your understanding!

And lastly, a big congratulations to E4 Bruno Mars for having the highest ladder ranking this month and being entered into the hall of fame!

 

[Melt Gibson]

WE'RE SO BACK

RESEARCH WEEK 5: Back To The PUture
Welcome to Research Week 5! This week we'll be focusing on Grafaiai and Bastiodon.


Newly arriving this month, Grafaiai brings a plethora of options to the table. From its unique defensive typing to a host of great abilities and a solid movepool, there are plenty of colors for this little bugger to paint with. Will you find a way to appreciate this artist in his own time?


Bastiodon, also newly dropped this month, has a... colorful history in this tier, to say the least. It's consistently been outclassed at almost everything it tries to do, as despite those massive defensive stats, its typing and relative passivity left much to be desired. However, with the advent of Gen 9, it received the best buff that a Rock/Steel-type could ask for: not having to be one! Oh, and it also got Body Press, that's neat too. Will this old-timer's new tricks be enough to keep it relevant, or is it once again better left in the past?

The tag for this week will be SVRW05. The deadline for this week is Sunday, March 10th. Good luck, and happy researching!
​

 

[E4 Bruno Mars]

SVR05 E4BrunoMars
Grafaiai
Bastiodon

 

[PrincessGardevoir]

SVRW05 Zora

Grafaiai


I feel sorry for anyone who runs into me on ladder, I will be using the little shithead

 

[cy_bernet_ix]

SVRW05 Cy
Bastiodon, maybe some Grafaiai