Tier List Update January 2017

[Blue]

I will announce the Tier list changes of January in this thread.

These changes are made according to the Usage gathered from 7th December - 8th January.

The tables can be seen here: (The cut-off point is 4.36%).

 

A list of this months Tier Changes:

 

Moving down from OU to UU:

Vaporeon: 

 

Vaporeon hit a mere 3.37% usage in OU this month, which means it has dropped below the usage cutoff line. This being the case, the tier council has decided to test Vaporeon in UU.

 

Vapo has actually been below the usage line for a couple months now, but we voted not to test it in the UU tier while the kanga test ban was going on. Now, we feel it’s time to give it a shot. While some of us have voiced concerns about vaporeon’s bulk, power, and versatility, we’ve agreed that it’s not quite overpowered enough to warrant a quickban. It was tested in the past, and though it eventually ended up banned, the tier looks a lot different than it used to. It also didn’t quite live up to its expectations on paper during that last stretch.

 

Therefore, we’ll be testing out Vaporeon for the next month in UU to see if it’s something that could be healthy for the tier. We’ll be opening a discussion thread for Vaporeon in UU during the course of this test ban, and we encourage the community to voice their opinions on the drop and how it has affected the UU tier as a whole.  

 

Moving up from NU to UU: 

Golem: 4.56% usage in the Under-used tier. Locked for 2 months.

 

 

Status of Test bans:

 

Snorlax (Test ban in OU): Banned to Ubers

The tier council has, at long last, come to a decision on Snorlax. After a lengthy test ban, we've decided to make his ban permanent. Therefore, Snorlax will be banned from OU and sent to Ubers.

 

Snorlax has long been a controversial pokemon in the OU metagame. Sporting unrivaled splashability, it consistently topped usage charts as the go-to special wall/tank/sweeper. It has just enough versatility to keep its would be counters on their toes (surf for rhydon, fire blast for skarmory, crunch for dusclops), but curselax is truly its bread and butter set, and for good reason. One of the things we had noticed in the months leading up to the test ban was a dramatic centralization around pokemon like milotic, forretress, and skarmory, all of which could handle snorlax to some extent (though the extent to which milotic 'handles' lax is questionable, and certainly drew out the length of the average OU battle).

 

Since the test ban, we've noticed some very positive things happen in the OU meta. Sure, many people gravitated towards Chansey as their special wall, and the usage does show chansey sitting in a very similar position to snorlax. However, I think we can all agree that chansey is far less scary to would be checks/counters, and in fact the risk/reward balance is much less absurd for chansey users than snorlax users - that is to say, using chansey comes at a risk of being set-up bait for a number of pokemon, whereas snorlax threatened basically everything that could switch in with a crippling paralysis from body slam.

 

We originally tested the tier without snorlax hoping that the metagame would be less centralized and to allow for more creativity in teambuilding, and we believe that the test has confirmed this to be the case. Therefore, the test ban will become a permanent ban.

 

 

Additional Information:

 

Little Cup Usage shows a surprisingly high usage for Gastly: The Tier Council decided to ban Gastly from LC and oversee the development of the tier without it.

 

 

Nothing defines LC more than Gastly; as a valuable asset for any team and a terrifying threat to face, this pokemon is the focus of all LC players.

 

Just like many other LC pokemons, Gastly is unwallable. However, unlike other unwallable pokemons, Gastly is much more difficult to revenge kill. Gastly can reach a 18 speed stat with a Timid nature which mean only Poliwag, Abra, Meowth, Ponyta, Voltorb, Staryu, Elekid, Magby and Taillow can outspeed it. Out of those only Abra, Ponyta (if full spatk), Staryu, Elekid and Magby can OHKO a Gastly for sure. Some of those can only OHKO Gastly with Life Ball which mean they will lose to Salac Berry Gastly.

 

Unlike other LC pokemons, Gastly also has an easier time getting in play thanks to its really good typing and ability. Its Poison/Ghost coverage and its remarkable spatk stat allows Gastly to become a sweeping force as soon as it comes in play. It can also be quite unpredictable with its three main movesets: Life Ball set, Swift Choice Band set and Endure Salac set.

 

For these reasons, the TC believes Gastly, unlike other LC pokemons that could be labeled as Offensive Uber, has a significant negative impact on the LC tier and limits teambuilding severely.  

 

 

Thanks to the Tier Council and everyone who has been participating in Official Tournaments and Matchmaking!