The Goomy's NU Alpha Official "What Should be Banned" List
Stoplight System:
Green: Completely Balanced, no need to even consider banning in current/future meta.
Yellow: May be unbalanced, probably need time in new meta to determine if broken.
Red: Broken, ban immediately in Beta phase.
In-Depth Discussion:
Green:
Since I don't think any of these Pokemon should be banned, I just want to discuss shortly a few Pokemon that I find to be underappreciated in the current metagame.
Assault Vest Incineroar is actually an amazing bulky pivot that can fit in on a lot of teams and provides some immediate power, unique defensive typing, and slow U-turn.
Although there are a lot of viable dark types, pursuit trappers, and fast mons, I find Mismagius to still be very effective against balance and stall. This is mainly due to the NP, Taunt set being very effective against these archetypes.
Any meta that has Steelix in it is a meta that Torterra will thrive in. Being able to come in on a lot of bulky Pokemon in the tier and basically getting a kill with a STAB Choice Banded attack makes Torterra heavily underused. It's effective at what it's been good at since XY.
Vileplume isn't on the list of Pokemon in the tier for some reason, but it is actually probably the most reliable answer to the fighting types in the tier. The fact that it has access to Moonblast now makes it even more reliable against threats such as Pangoro and Scrafty.
Togedemaru falls into the category of bulky pivot, one of my favorite roles a Pokemon can fulfill. It has different utility and can modify its set depending on what the team needs with Nuzzle, Zing Zap, Encore, Fake Out, U-Turn, Spiky Shield, and Toxic all being viable options.
Yellow:
This section shows Pokemon that I find to be unbalanced in some way in the current metagame, but do not think should be instantly banned. However, I will also make a "gun-to-my-head" prediction as to if I think these Pokemon will be ban-worthy in the early stages of Beta.
Noivern has a lot of positive things going for it in the current metagame. Its excellent speed tier of 123 combined with useful offensive and defensive typing make Noivern a scary Pokemon for offense to face. Combine that with the fact that Noivern is versatile enough to run a Stall-Breaker Taunt/Super Fang set makes it a huge bother in the current meta. The things holding Noivern back are its relatively bad Special Attack and Porygon2's existence. Overall, I think Noivern is manageable due to its weakness to SR and its poor, non-boostable Special Attack. Therefore I believe Noivern will
not be banned in SM NU.
Tyrantrum is very scary in the current metagame as the only true, reliable (highly ranked) counters to it are Steelix, Rhydon, and Seismitoad. The versatility to run Scarf, Band, or DD (with or without Z Move) makes Tyrantrum very threatening in the tier. Its coverage is just good enough to break past certain would-be counters. Due to its raw power, typing, and versatility, I believe Tyrantrum will be
banned in beta.
Another dragon type,
Kingdra, is the next Pokemon I will discuss. Kingdra follows the trend of versatility and unpredictability that a lot of the "yellow" Pokemon possess. Kingdra can afford to run Special or Physical sets. Specs, RD, Agility, Crit-Dra are all viable on Special Attacking sets and Sub DD, or Chesto Rest are viable physical sets. Kingdra is also a great Z-move user and can choose which STAB it wants to use for a Z-move. The only thing holding Kingdra back is its relatively poor initial offensive output, as well as the prevalence of Porygon2 and Whimsicott. For that reason, I did not say that Kingdra should be instantly banned, but I do believe it will be
banned in beta.
It's pretty funny how the cycle of NU works,
Virizion is back. Virizion is interesting as I think it actually performs better now than it will once the meta settles out. Currently, its main counters such as Vileplume, Golbat, and Garbodor can be overwhelmed by the other threats in the tier. Virizion has the benefit of being able to run a special or physical set (CM and SD respectively) and has the capability to bypass checks with Continental Crush. However, I believe Virizion will
not be banned in SM NU due to the rise in survivability of its counters when the meta settles out.
In my opinion,
Hitmonlee is currently the second most threatening fighting type behind Pangoro. Its immediate raw power with Choice Band combined with its decent speed tier make it a great wall breaker. Unburden sets can be used to work well against offense combined with excellent priority in Mach Punch. Overall, this Pokemon puts pressure on in every game and is incredibly splashable as its set can be tailored to fit the team's struggles with ease. The unpredictability also makes Hitmonlee difficult to face. Despite these positive qualities, NU has many great fighting resists and ghosts that can counteract Hitmonlee (hence the rise in the new Reversal set), so I think Hitmonlee will
not be banned in SM NU.
Emboar is probably the oddest Pokemon of all of the "yellow" Pokemon listed. However, its best quality is again its unpredictability. Band, Scarf, LO, Mixed, and Z-move are all effective sets that can be utilized by Emboar. The tier lacks good physical fire resists that don't lose to Grass Knot/Bloom Doom Solarbeam. It's limited speed is its major downfall, but I do believe that Emboar will be
banned in beta.
Nintetales is an incredibly threatening Pokemon in the current tier. The ability to run Inferno Overdrive in the Sun with Nasty Plot turns Ninetales into an amazing wallbreaker in a decent speed tier of 100. I don't think that Drought is inherently broken, so I would rather see Ninetales banned or not banned as opposed to "Drought" (Same reason Speed Boost Blaziken was banned and not Speed Boost, it made that specific Pokemon too good, not all Pokemon with access to Drought are "too good"). The ability to set up the sun is an amazing asset as sun teams are hard, but not impossible to stop. Once threats like Dragalge and P2 are banned, sun will be even better. I believe that Ninetales on its own accord will be
banned in beta if that's the direction the council and NUTLs want to take. Otherwise I believe Drought will be
banned.
I believe
Typhlosion is just as good as it was in XY. I didn't think it was ban worthy then and I don't think it is now. It is definitely going to be interesting to see its influence on the metagame without Porygon2 being a cold stop to it. Scarf and Specs are still basically the best sets while Expert Belt can still be run effectively, but is probably done better by Pokemon like Pyroar. Due to the influx of other threatening fire types, and the addition of bulky waters, I think it will
not be banned in SM NU.
One of the scariest set up sweepers in the meta,
Minior. Minior's ability, Shields down is a blessing in a passive metagame as it has the ability to set up in the face of threats that can really only hope to status it and can reliably change forms with Substitute if necessary. The downfall of Minior is the fact that it is relatively frail when its SR weakness is taken into account, it lacks immediate power, and Prankster Encore is fairly common in the tier. In addition, Steelix and Rhydon are great answers to Minior that can work effectively on most builds. I find Minior to be challenging to deal with due to the lack of great flying resists/steels in the tier, so it is restrictive on teambuilding in that way. However, due to its limitations, I believe Minior will
not be banned in SM NU.
Sceptile is not as good as it was when it was last banned. The meta has gained some cool answers to it, fire types are prevalent, and Porygon2 beats almost any variant. However, it is in an amazing speed tier, has access to 2 great abilities, and can run either physical or special sets. The reason Sceptile is listed on the "yellow" list is that time will tell how the metagame treats its counters (such as Golbat, Togetic, and Garbodor) and Porygon2 will most likely be gone. All in all, I believe Sceptile will
not be banned in SM NU.
This is probably a Pokemon not many people expected to see on here,
Lilligant. Lilligant gained a new toy in Psychium-Z Dream Eater. This has pushed Lilligant from being a good Pokemon in my eyes to being a potentially broken one. The mind games of when you will reveal your Z-move to get through its would-be counters are insane and there are very few true counters such as Sap Sipper Miltank, Drapion, and Ferroseed. I believe that Lilligant is under the radar right now due to the multitude of broken threats in the tier, but I think it will be
banned in beta.
Jynx is still super scary. The versatility that Jynx provides is still very good. It can use Scarf, Sash, Sub, and Z-move sets effectively. Z-Lovely Kiss is a cute new tool for Jynx that gives it a free set up opportunity and increased speed. This allows Jynx to perform well against all team archetypes. However, it still has a fairly limited movepool and the many Pursuit trappers in the tier make Jynx less of an issue than it could be. Therefore, I believe it will
not be banned in SM NU.
Meloetta is a Pokemon that is currently held down by the metagame around it, but can definitely be a threat if things shake its way. Porygon2, ghosts, and Pursuit trappers make Meloetta's job difficult in the current meta. However, it can potentially become a top threat with access to many different sets such as Scarf, Specs, Sub CM, and Relic Song. I believe it will
not be banned in SM NU.
Sigilyph is a very interesting Pokemon in the current meta. Although there are a multitude of good Pursuit trappers it still performs well by being able to burn Physical attackers with the Psycho Shift set, beat stall with the Sub CM set, and handle offense with the Sash set. All in all, Sigilyph is versatile and can alter its set to benefit whatever kind of team it is on. Porygon2's existence limits Sigilyph currently. I believe it will
not be banned in SM NU.
I don't have much to say about
Slowking and
Slowbro. It will just be interesting to see if they end up doing what P2 is currently doing by walling a huge part of the settled out meta and choke out meta growth. I don't see this happening, so I believe they will
not be banned in SM NU.
Red:
Pokemon in the Red category are Pokemon I believe should be banned immediately once NU enters Beta.
Ribombee is simply too powerful and fast for the NU metagame. Access to Quiver Dance and the ability to resist most priority in the tier makes Ribombee very difficult to revenge. In addition, Z-moves can be used to break through would-be counters. The only steel types in the meta do not have reliable recovery and can be worn down throughout the course of a game fairly easily. Poison types are better counters, but are generally not splashable enough (in my opinion) to function as dedicated counters. Choice Specs can also be used for immediate power. Therefore, I find Ribombee too much for the meta and think it should be banned immediately.
This is probably the most broken Pokemon in the tier, Yanmega. Tinted Lens makes predictions a thing of the past for Yanmega players and basically invalidates balanced teams as even bulky steel types get 2HKOed by this beast. In addition, a LO Speed Boost set is perfectly viable and can be run to help Yanmega work its way through offensive teams. This mon is overwhelming and cannot even really be "countered" in the teambuilder. Therefore I think it should be banned immediately.
Meet the Pokemon that literally invalidates stall, Pangoro. Pangoro is simply too strong, has too much coverage, and is too versatile for NU. It can beat stall all on its own with Mold Breaker SD sets, it can beat offense with Z-Snatch sets, and it is bulky enough to perform well against balance while healing itself with Drain Punch. Ban immediately.
Rotom-Mow is probably a controversial pick on this list. I feel that Rotom-Mow applies way too much pressure for the NU meta to handle. The only ground types in the tier get roasted by Leaf Storm, while Volt Switch (which is not weak) gives easy momentum. Lack of Spikes weakness and decent defensive typing makes Rotom-Mow an amazing pivot. It can work well against Offense with Scarf sets, balance with Specs Sets, and stall with access to Trick. Ban immediately.
Belly Drum Slurpuff has too few checks in the meta for it to be healthy. Its checks have to be at almost full to even fill their roles and Slurpuff has ample opportunities to set up in the current meta. It resists most priority and can heal itself with Drain Punch. Way too much for NU. Ban.
Dragalge is way too strong for the NU meta game. Adaptability makes it function way too well as a wall breaker to the point that basically nothing can switch in. Its excellent defensive typing allows it opportunities to come in and nuke things or even support its teammates with Toxic Spikes. Ban.
Moltres is too strong and provides too much utility to be healthy in the NU meta. The ability to run 3 attacks roost, scarf, specs, sub/wisp, and multiple z-moves makes Moltres difficult for any team to handle and adds a lot of uncertainty due to its versatility. The only good flying resists in the tier also lose to Bloom Doom and Fire Stab, so its coverage is basically perfect. Ban.
I believe that Xatu is ban-worthy. It's ability to alter its moveset to support its team, natural bulk, great speed tier, and Magic Bounce make it too good for the NU meta in my opinion. It invalidates a lot of hazard setters and forces a lot of Pokemon to alter their set in order to beat it. The splashability of this Pokemon is insane as it can basically be thrown on any team and immediately improve its matchup against a lot of teams that rely on specific Stealth Rockers with basically no opportunity cost to the Xatu user. CM is an effective set that allows Xatu to break stall and the bulky pivot set allows Xatu to maintain momentum and prevent hazards simultaneously. Ban.
There are no switch ins to Exploud under Trick Room and it has respectable bulk/typing. Ban.
Reference this post regarding my thoughts on Porygon2.
http://www.smogon.com/forums/thread...on-read-post-153.3594836/page-13#post-7382277
Ban.
Despite its limited movepool, the versatility of Necrozma is what I believe makes it ban worthy. The ability to effectively run SD, CM, Sub CM, ID/CM, CM Autotomize, CM/ID Sub, CM/ID Moonlight, SR, and even Weakness Policy Autotomize make Necrozma a beast to deal with. It basically functions better than Musharna ever could as it has better stats across the board and its ability adds to its already impressive bulk. Necrozma basically forces every team to have a dark type or risk getting 6-0ed by it. Ban.
Thank you so much for reading through this! I hope this can open up some discussion and feel free to PM me if you have any questions, etc.
TL:DR
Yellow: Noivern, Tyrantrum, Kingdra, Virizion, Hitmonlee, Emboar, Ninetales, Typhlosion, Sceptile, Lilligant, Jynx, Meloetta, Sigilyph, Slowking, Slowbro.
Red: Ribombee, Pangoro, Dragalge, Rotom-Mow, Moltres, Xatu, Yanmega, Exploud, Porygon2, Necrozma