PRO PvP Viability Rankings [Last updated on 08/17/2022]

[Iceflake]

Nice a update i was waiting to see what it would look like.

[Jorogumo]

First, I would like to thank all 19 participants who took the time to fill out and submit the PRO Viability Rankings survey that was posted in the PvP Council channel on the PRO Discord. I read every single response with much interest. In most cases, I went with the choice of the majority that I also happened to agree with. There will be two sections this time: VR changes (with as many explanations as I was able to provide on my own) and new discussion points (mostly comprised of common suggestions that I either understood but did not fully agree with or would like to have further discussion about). As usual, feel free to comment below this post to talk about changes and/or points that interest you. I will read every message, even if I do not always have the time to respond.

 

Overall, while this was not my intent at all, I noticed a general downward shift, resulting in many Pokémon (most of which are—perhaps not so coincidentally—Mega Evolutions) dropping in viability with only two rising.

 

New VR changes:

Spoiler

Rises:

• Landorus-T: A+ → S
• Serperior: A- → A

Drops:

• Mega Charizard X: A → A-
• Mega Venusaur: A- → B+
• Mega Gardevoir: B+ → B
• Mega Alakazam: A+ → A
• Mega Medicham: A+ → A
• Latias: A → A-
• Tangrowth: A → A-
• Thundurus: A → A-
• Jirachi: A- → B+
• Mega Pinsir: A- → B+
• Gengar: B+ → B
• Conkeldurr: B → B-
• Mega Garchomp: B → B-
• Starmie: B → B-

Discussion points for future updates:

• Garchomp: A+ → A?
• Heatran: A+ → A?
• Mega Diancie: A → A-?
• Azumarill: A- → B+?
• Mega Gyarados: A- → B+?
• Volcarona: A- → A?
• Breloom: B+ → B?
• Mega Heracross: B+ → B?
• Mega Latios: B+ → B?
• Thundurus-T: B → B+?
• Lucario: B- → C+?
• Ditto: C+?
• Heracross: C+ → C?
• Rotom-Heat: C → C-?
• Mega Ampharos: C- → Unranked?
• Porygon-Z: C- → Unranked?
• Sylveon: C- → Unranked?
• Venomoth: C- → Unranked?
• Haxorus: Unranked → C-?
• Krookodile: Unranked → C-?
• Swellow: Unranked → C-?

 

Rises:

 

Landorus-T: A+ → S

 

Many players who completed the survey suggested this change and, after giving it some thought and looking at this nomination from a different perspective than one solely based on all the available Landorus-T countermeasures, I must say that I agree with it.

 

While Landorus-T might be easier to check than some of the current A+ threats, it offers more than enough utility to make up for that flaw.

 

Landorus-T is the cornerstone of most offensive teams and many balanced builds. In fact, its splashability is often the result of a necessity for several builds. This is due to the extreme role compression that it offers. Landorus-T is able to blanket check most physical threats (emphasis on “check”). It is one of the most consistent Stealth Rock setters in the metagame. It achieves an unparalleled combination of offensive presence and defensive utility thanks to its ability, Intimidate, and its typing, which grants it useful immunities and resistances. Both of these traits offer Landorus-T more opportunities to switch into many Pokémon. Overall, Landorus-T compresses many roles into one Pokémon and does this better than anything else in A+.

 

Picking Landorus-T automatically strengthens your team and improves its matchup against many threats, which is a vital trait in a metagame characterized by as many matchup issues as the one we are currently playing in (due to the presence of an exceedingly high number of threats that are hard to prepare for properly).

 

While Landorus-T may not constitute a guaranteed switch-in to several physical threats, it can still (practically and situationally) switch into (and force out or revenge kill) many Pokémon that sometimes carry a move that either heavily damages it or outright KOs it. Here are some examples: Dragonite, Mega Scizor, Tyranitar, Garchomp, Excadrill, Conkeldurr, Diggersby, Mega Charizard X, Mega Lopunny, Mega Metagross, Mega Diancie, Mega Medicham, Mega Pinsir, Mega Heracross…

 

It goes without saying that Landorus-T is an extremely versatile Pokémon. It excels at many roles (e.g., revenge killer, defensive Stealth Rock setter, offensive Stealth Rock setter, sweeper…) and, outside of Stall, naturally fits on most builds.

 

Depending on the set, Landorus-T can pressure almost all playstyles. SD Earth Plate sets are a hassle for defensive and fat teams, while Rock Polish and Choice Scarf sets pressure many offensive builds into never giving Landorus-T a free turn.

 

While Pokémon such as Mega Metagross and Tornadus-T might constitute a bigger teambuilding constraint, Landorus-T still influences the teambuilding process considerably because so many builds must (or at least should) run it.

 

Overall, Landorus-T is unquestionably meta-defining and, perhaps controversially, worthy of a rise from A+ to S.

 

Serperior: A- → A

 

On paper, it looks like Serperior would struggle in a metagame where Tornadus-T, Heatran, Zapdos, Dragonite, etc. are common. However, Serperior is still able to put in a tremendous amount of work and make progress even against some of its best answers. Substitute Serperior continues to thrive, with Glare gaining some traction over HP Fire for its ability to neuter the likes of Tornadus-T and Heatran, thus providing Serperior’s teammates with more opportunities to take advantage of them. SubSeed is an excellent set that fares relatively well against many balanced and bulky offensive teams. Serperior has its fair share of checks and counters, but it can opt for moves that prevent it from being deadweight against some of them or that provide the overall team with additional utility. Inspired by recent ORAS OU trends, some PRO players have even begun using Dual Screen Serperior with Light Clay. It has seen more usage (and some relative success) in the last PRO Ladder Tour as well, despite PRO having substantially more (and better) Defog options than ORAS OU—although it must be said that Serperior can drop Glare for Taunt on sets that use Light Screen and Reflect. Overall, Serperior’s versatility and utility cannot be understated.

 

Drops:

 

Mega Charizard X: A → A-

 

Mega Charizard X should not be underestimated. An underexplored menace able to rip through many unprepared teams, Mega Charizard X can efficiently take advantage of common Pokémon like Ferrothorn, Mega Scizor, and (to an extent) even Zapdos, while outspeeding and KOing Choice Scarf Landorus-T after 1 Dragon Dance, Intimidate, and Stealth Rock damage most of the time. Despite most Landorus-T sets being Choice Scarf sets, Mega Charizard X does not appreciate the rise of Rocky Helmet users, such as Landorus-T, Slowbro, Garchomp, Zapdos, etc. While hazards might seem easy to remove due to the prevalence of some good Defog users that pair well with Mega Charizard X, they are hard to keep off the field (without being taken advantage of or losing too much momentum) with sufficient offensive pressure. As such, Mega Charizard X cannot always use its typing to switch into some attacks if Stealth Rock is up. Moreover, +1 Mega Charizard X struggles to sweep the increasingly common balanced and bulky offensive teams before succumbing to Rocky Helmet chip and/or Flare Blitz recoil. Roost can increase its longevity, but losing coverage leaves it walled by even more Pokémon. Screens and Healing Wish are also two nice options that can be run alongside Mega Charizard X, although Mega Charizard X struggles to fit on as many teams as the Megas ranked in A. Because Mega Charizard X struggles more in the current metagame than it did in previous ones and because its checks are becoming more and more common, thus hindering its sweeping capabilities, it requires more support than the Megas in A and fits better with the other Megas in A-.

 

Mega Venusaur: A- → B+

 

Many of the Pokémon that Mega Venusaur excels against are less viable and less common than they used to be (e.g., Mega Gyarados, Azumarill, Mega Diancie…). Mega Venusaur struggles in a metagame where Heatran and Tornadus-T are still common, while also being unable to afford luxury options like Earthquake. Moreover, it has to worry about Latios, Mega Medicham, Mega Metagross, and some other threats that are starting to shape the metagame. On paper, Mega Venusaur is a solid Keldeo answer that is not Pursuit-weak. Having said that, one of Keldeo’s best partners, Tyranitar, hinders Mega Venusaur’s overall efficiency by setting up Sand. Mega Venusaur does not appreciate a weakened Synthesis, a Scald burn from Keldeo, Sand chip, and hazards in general. In practice, Mega Venusaur alone does not suffice to answer Keldeo throughout the course of a match and, due to its limited longevity for the aforementioned reasons, often requires a secondary Keldeo check on the team. Mega Venusaur has always faced competition from Amoonguss, which has access to the coveted Spore, does not take up the Mega slot, and offers a Keldeo answer that can comfortably pivot in and out thanks to Regenerator. Furthermore, Mega Venusaur also has to compete with Tangrowth on the physical side, as the latter has Regenerator, checks some dangerous physical threats that Mega Venusaur cannot take on, such as Mega Metagross, and handles offensive Ground types, like Landorus-T and Garchomp, better. In truth, this drop could have happened before but is nigh mandatory now. Mega Venusaur is no longer one of the most consistent performers on balanced builds and only fits on more defensive and Stall-oriented teams, where it faces competition from other Megas, such as Mega Slowbro and Mega Altaria. Many Pokémon in the A ranks have proven to be able to adapt back to the trends of our ever-evolving metagame whenever it has adapted to them; Mega Venusaur has not done that yet.

 

Mega Gardevoir: B+ → B

 

Current meta trends are unfavorable to Mega Gardevoir, despite it never truly gaining any traction. Mega Scizor was the most used Mega across both servers for the PvP season of June 2021. Mega Metagross is also increasingly common and, while Mega Gardevoir can burn or beat some of its checks, it still has to hit Focus Blast against the likes of Ferrothorn and Heatran while often not KOing them from full and possibly fainting in the process. Moreover, Mega Gardevoir struggles in a metagame where its Speed tier puts it below many potent threats, such as Garchomp, Keldeo, Mega Diancie, Tornadus-T, and Weavile. Mega Gardevoir has a hard time against offensive builds in general and faces tough competition from other wallbreakers, like Mega Diancie on the special and Fairy sides and Mega Medicham (or even Mega Heracross, a Mega currently ranked in B+) on the Fighting side. Mega Gardevoir also has to compete for a Mega slot with Mega Alakazam, a much faster Mega with a better match-up against certain offensive builds. Overall, Mega Gardevoir is quite the situational pick and, while it can perform well against certain teams, it tends to perform poorly against many builds, including common ones or those with progressively more common Pokémon. As a result, Mega Gardevoir’s increasing inconsistency is now reflected in the Viability Rankings with a drop from B+ to B.

 

Other drops that I currently do not have the time to comment on, but that I ended up agreeing with:

• Mega Alakazam: A+ → A
• Mega Medicham: A+ → A
• Latias: A → A-
• Tangrowth: A → A-
• Thundurus: A → A-
• Jirachi: A- → B+
• Mega Pinsir: A- → B+
• Gengar: B+ → B
• Conkeldurr: B → B-
• Mega Garchomp: B → B-
• Starmie: B → B-

 

If anyone wants to explain (or argue against) any of them, please be my guest!

 

New discussion points:

 

Azumarill: A- → B+?

 

It feels like Azumarill keeps struggling in the current metagame. Rotom-W was the most common Pokémon for the PvP season of June 2021 and Pokémon like Ferrothorn, Zapdos, and Mega Scizor give Azumarill a lot of trouble. On paper, Choice Band sets can heavily dent these Pokémon, but an Azumarill locked into the wrong move invites in many dangerous threats that can take advantage of it or set up on it. Belly Drum sets still have sweeping potential, although they have a harder time in this metagame because of how slow Azumarill is. There are common Pokémon that can live a +6 Aqua Jet and Jolly Azumarill sometimes fails to outspeed Rotom-W sets that specifically invest into Speed to outspeed it. As such, Azumarill’s overall efficiency has decreased and it is less consistent than it used to be. Its typing is still a great asset and Perish-trapping sets are worthy of a mention for their ability to eliminate some of Azumarill’s common checks to open up a door for one of its teammates. However, Azumarill now requires more support than before. Therefore, discussing whether it should consequently drop from A- to B+ is relevant.

 

Mega Gyarados: A- → B+?

 

While Mega Gyarados can be a fearsome sweeper, the current metagame is not very friendly towards it. Despite its bulk, Pokémon like Keldeo and Rotom-W force it to run Earthquake. With the metagame shifting towards more balanced and bulky offensive builds, Mega Gyarados struggles to sweep and often requires multiple boosts to get past common checks like Ferrothorn. Mega Gyarados cannot really afford to run Substitute to avoid Status or Leech Seed as freely as some claim, because it needs all the coverage moves that it can have in the current metagame. With Mega Charizard X dropping from A to A- and being ranked alongside Mega Gyarados, now is a good time to discuss whether Mega Gyarados should drop to B+ or remain in the same tier as Mega Charizard X.

 

Volcarona: A- → A?

 

This was one of the most nominated Pokémon for a rise, but I would like to give this nomination more time first. Volcarona can sweep several unprepared teams, sometimes only needing a single setup opportunity in order to do so. Some of its most common answers can lose to coverage options (e.g., Hidden Power Ground, Giga Drain…). Even Hidden Power Ice, which might seem gimmicky or unnecessary at first, can ease the way for Volcarona to sweep teams it would normally struggle to beat. With the rise of balance and bulky offense, it makes theoretical sense for Volcarona to rise in viability. However, in practice, the matchup moth still runs into more issues than expected. Chansey is not exclusively used on defensive teams; Pokémon like Garchomp, Keldeo, Dragonite, Azumarill, and even Tyranitar are commonly used; Heatran’s usage is quite high, which means that a non-HP Ground Volcarona will have a harder time against teams packing a Heatran. While Volcarona can beat some of the previously mentioned Pokémon, like Keldeo, after minimal chip, it often has to choose two moves out of 3 (Giga Drain, Bug Buzz, and HP Ground). HP Ice is even harder to fit, though it retains an element of surprise against some of Volcarona’s usual checks. Depending on the move selection, Volcarona will struggle to break past some Pokémon without a good amount of prior chip. For example, a Volcarona lacking Bug Buzz (or HP Ice) will have a harder time against a Psyshock Latios. Bulky sets are also worth considering, but they should probably invest more into Speed to avoid something like Choice Scarf Landorus-T halting them in their tracks at +1. Even with HP Ground, Volcarona still requires more team support than many of the Pokémon in A. For instance, it mandates solid hazard removal and something to take on Chansey on its behalf. Having said that, these issues are not necessarily specific to Volcarona; they rather stem from common team necessities that players should at least consider in the teambuilder, although it can be argued that Volcarona exacerbates them further. Some meta trends also work in Volcarona’s favor and it is not the easiest Pokémon to revenge kill. For example, +1 offensive Volcarona is able to outspeed and KO Choice Scarf Landorus-T with Fire Blast, while Flamethrower has a high chance to KO it after Stealth Rock damage. While Volcarona has the potential to beat certain teams after a single Quiver Dance, it must be stated that it can sometimes still put in some work against teams that can seemingly stop its set altogether. I personally find it to be too inconsistent for A (at least for the time being), but I am open to more discussion on this topic.

 

Thundurus-T: B → B+?

 

Thundurus-T is a threatening Pokémon and, although slower than its Incarnate counterpart, has the necessary positive traits to make up for that discrepancy. It hits harder and has a useful ability in Volt Absorb, which lets it take advantage of certain Electric types, such as Zapdos, an increasingly common Pokémon, and Magnezone, one of the most used Pokémon for the PvP Season of June 2021. Thundurus-T also makes Rotom-W more fearful of clicking Volt Switch over Hydro Pump. Thundurus-T’s sweeping potential cannot be understated, either. Agility, in conjunction with Electric-, Ice-, and Fighting-type coverage, turns Thundurus-T into a devastating Pokémon that can almost only be checked defensively (unless you are relying on a Focus Blast miss). Given Thundurus-T’s high Special Attack, not many Pokémon can check it defensively. Chansey is a stellar answer to sets lacking Nasty Plot, while the Lati twins, defensive Ground types (e.g., Hippowdon, Gastrodon…), and some Assault Vest users (e.g., Tangrowth) can beat it in a one-on-one scenario most of the time. Offensively speaking, Sucker Punch and Ice Shard users can attempt to revenge kill a weakened Thundurus-T after it has used Agility, with Choice Band Weavile only requiring minimal chip before being able to KO it. Thundurus-T can find setup opportunities against some Electric- and Steel-type Pokémon, like Ferrothorn, Zapdos, Skarmory, some Mega Scizor sets. Moreover, it can try to set up against Pokémon that it forces out due to its coverage moves KOing them, such as Gliscor, Slowbro, Tornadus-T… Agility helps Thundurus-T against more offensive and faster builds, while Nasty Plot gives it a boon against balanced and more defensive teams, where it can muscle past the likes of Chansey and Clefable more easily than Thundurus-I. Unlike its counterpart, it can sometimes afford to run a Modest nature.

 

Ditto: C+?

 

This one-dimensional Pokémon is one of the best revenge killers in the metagame. Ditto tends to perform relatively well on builds that struggle against setup sweepers and where it acts as a setup deterrent. Ditto can also help some defensive teams against other defensive and Stall teams because it replenishes its PPs every time that it switches in, thus giving the Ditto team the PP advantage in a scenario that could result in a PP war. Last but certainly not least, Ditto’s main application in PRO misuses the Pokémon on poorly built teams that should be rebuilt from scratch to avoid needing a Ditto to fix their problems in the first place. On those builds, ones that tend to suffer from the Chansey syndrome, also known as the “add this Pokémon for a quick and easy fix” afterthought, Ditto can perform well, too, preventing several dangerous threats from sweeping an otherwise almost fully dysfunctional team. In a metagame shifting towards balance and bulky offense, Ditto struggles to perform decently against some of the most common builds. Ditto is still an extremely niche Pokémon, but its niche is invaluable to some teams and many team builders. Considering that most suggestions recommended Ditto for a rise (sometimes even to the A ranks), I remain open to discuss a potential Ditto rise, as long as sufficiently convincing arguments are presented. 

 

Other discussion points that I currently do not have the time to comment on, but that might be worth debating:

• Mega Metagross: A+?
• Garchomp: A+ → A?
• Heatran: A+ → A?
• Mega Diancie: A → A-?
• Breloom: B+ → B?
• Mega Heracross: B+ → B?
• Mega Latios: B+ → B?
• Lucario: B- → C+?
• Heracross: C+ → C?
• Rotom-Heat: C → C-?
• Mega Ampharos: C- → Unranked?
• Porygon-Z: C- → Unranked?
• Sylveon: C- → Unranked?
• Venomoth: C- → Unranked?
• Haxorus: Unranked → C-?
• Krookodile: Unranked → C-?
• Swellow: Unranked → C-?

Edited July 16, 2021 by Jorogumo

[Jorogumo]

The banner on the initial post has been updated. It now includes different Pokémon and, most notably, 3 Mega Evolutions: Mega Alakazam, Mega Metagross, and Mega Scizor.

Edited January 17, 2022 by Jorogumo
Font change

[Jorogumo]

Small VR changes:

Garchomp: A+ → A

Breloom: B+ → B

Cofagrigus: C- → C

 

The reasons for these changes were mentioned in the #top25-pvp-chat channel of the PRO Discord server on June 8, 2022. I recommend reading them if you are curious about them.

 

There was also some discussion about Landorus-T, Amoonguss, and Starmie. For now, they all remain in their respective tiers (S, B+, and B-). However, while I generally agree with their current placements, I haven't fully made up my mind one way or the other and would like to see them being discussed further.

 

Kyurem-B is still a recent addition and more time is needed before ranking it. Feel free to discuss that one as well.

 

Edit: Kyurem-B has been tentatively added to A- on August 17, 2022.

Edited August 17, 2022 by Jorogumo
Added Kyurem-B to the rankings

[Avatarash]

Some nominations of mine

 

Raises

 

Charizard-Mega-X: A- -> A+

Probably the most underrated pokemon in the metagame. Between Touch Claws boosted high-power STAB moves, completely unresisted coverage, and access to Dragon Dance, Charizard-X functions simultaneously as a wall-breaker and as a sweeper. It benefits from the ambiguity factor of Charizard having two megas, a great defensive typing prior to mega evolving, and a great defensive typing after mega evolving which removes several type vulnerabilities. It can opt to run roost which allows it to heal off Flare Blitz recoil, Stealth Rock damage, and even allows it to wall many pokemon in the metagame. It can also opt to run Dragon Dance plus three attacks which gives it completely unresisted coverage. Charizard-X is extremely difficult to stop after setting up; many teams are forced to resort to recoil damage as their only way to beat it. However, support from teammates like Healing Wish Latias can patch this weakness. The only thing keeping Charizard-X from S-tier is its high need for team support. For further reference check out: recent SPL trends and Skypenguin’s posts regarding Charizard-X.

 

Dugtrio-Alola: Untiered -> C-

A chaotic and unusual choice, Dugtrio-Alola’s niche in the metagame comes from its status as the only suicide lead to which h.o. teams have access that can reliably set-up stealth rocks against Mega Lopunny (unless we count Weak Armor Onix). Besides allowing it to get up rocks against Fake Out anti-leads, Tangling Hair in combination with Memento provides a double debuff combo and a free switch-in for a set-up reliant teammate. Dugtrio-Alola has to choose between Earthquake, Iron Head, and Toxic for its last two moveslots, I typically choose to run Iron Head and Toxic as Dugtrio-Alola’s ground typing already pressures many opposing stealth rock setters such as Heatran, while Toxic is a more consistent choice for pokemon Dugtrio-Alola invites onto the field such as Landorus-T.

 

Latias-Mega: A -> A+

Probably the most underplayed pokemon in the metagame. With an incredible support movepool, strong defensive utility, and a potent offensive presence, Mega Latias can successfully perform many roles including: bulky set-up sweeper, utility support, and self-sufficient bruiser. Latias’ support movepool includes: Thunder Wave, Defog, Wish, and Healing Wish. Mega-Latias’ bulk and defesive typing allows it to switch into metagame staples like Rotom-W, Heatran, Landorus-T, and many more. Latias has access to Calm Mind and Stored Power which allows it to turn into an incredibly dangerous set-up sweeper. It has access to strong coverage options like Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, and Surf that can complement its calm mind set. Lack of Mega Sableye in the meta also allows Mega Latias to more viably run Stored Power as its only damaging move on the Calm Mind set - picking a fourth move between options like Reflect Type, Refresh, and Substitute. Finally, Mega Latias can also opt to run a moveset consisting of two or three attacks plus roost turning it into a fairly self-sufficient big ball of stats. These attacks can be chosen from: Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Earthquake (which is actually superior to HP Ground - don’t listen to Smogon), Psychic, Surf, and a few others. Mega Latias is the premier check to Keldeo in the metagame as well as the best option for bulky teams against Gliscor. Mega Latias’ biggest weakness is the prevalence of Pursuit users, notably Weavile and Tyranitar; however, options like Reflect Type and Substitute can alleviate this issue and entry hazard support from teammates can even allow Mega Latias to beat these pokemon.

 

Slurpuff: Untiered -> C-

Slurpuff only functions on dual screens and requires a fair amount of team support, but it is incredibly threatening when it successfully sets up. Unburden allows Slurpuff to outspeed many common scarfers like Landorus-T and Belly Drum gives Slurpuff enough power to OHKO many common defensive metagame staples like Clefable, Gliscor, and Zapdos. Drain Punch provides valuable coverage and healing to Slurpuff, allowing it to take on Heatran and even guarantee a OHKO on relaxed Ferrothorn after Stealth Rock. Slurpuff is beaten by Skarmory and Unaware pokemon but set-up Slurpuff behind screens actually beats would-be-checks such as defensive Mega-Scizor and Sand Rush Excadrill. If only it had access to Thunder Punch…

 

Drops

 

Bisharp: A -> B

While still a very strong choice, Bisharp fails to reliably fulfill its role as a sweeper. This is due to a multitude of factors. Firstly, due to its mediocre speed stat, Bisharp relies heavily on winning many 50/50 Sucker Punch interactions. While Bisharp may be advantaged in some of these situations, surprise options like Substitute or Will-O-Wisp can turn these situations largely in the opposing pokemon’s favor. Secondly, there is a plethora of meta-relevent pokemon that outspeed Bisharp and can easily take a +2 Sucker Punch such as: Keldeo, Mega Tyranitar, defensive Landorus-T, Mega Gyarados, Mega Altaria, Hydreigon, and the list goes on… All this considered, Bisharp’s main selling point becomes its ability Defiant which allows it to dissuade Defog users. As such, Bisharp only warrants use on Sticky Web or Hazard Stacking teams. Pursuit is possible, but it is mostly outclassed as a Pursuit user by Weavile and Tyranitar. 

 

Lopunny-Mega: A -> B+

Mega Lopunny lacks both the power and utility of other megas in A and even A- tier. It finds itself completely walled by defensive staples like Clefable and Reuniclus especially if it doesn’t take Power-Up Punch - even Fake Out into Ice Punch fails to KO defensive Landorus-T. While its speed tier may be good, it still finds itself outsped by most boosted pokemon which is antagonistic to its intended role as an anti-offense pokemon. It is an interesting choice on bulky/semi-stall teams especially when using Quick Attack over Ice Punch. However, in a direct comparison to other megas in the A/A- range, it lacks in both the power and utility compared to Tyranitar, Charizard-X, Charizard-Y, Latias, Medicham, and even Gyarados. It does compare much more evenly with megas in the B+ tier, especially Manectric.