This thread has been relatively inactive lately, and since I'm (sort of) starting to play around and build more again, I'd like to propose some changes that I had in mind for this upcoming update. Hope you guys enjoy!
Rises
B -> B+
I'm aware that this guy just rose, but I think that Crawdaunt's continued to gain traction and has established enough of a place for itself in the metagame to sit comfortably in B+. Its terrible Speed, typing, and frailty really don't allow it to contribute defensively to teams very frequently at all, but if it can get an opportunity to come in it's such a pain for just about any team to deal with. It abuses a lot of the metagame's defensive trends super well, maintaining a strong balance matchup because of the strength of Hippowdon + Empoleon cores and taking advantage of Slowbro's presence, Gligar's increasing traction, and Alomomola sort of falling off. Its ability to tank a hit or two from stuff like Choice-locked Scizor and Mega Sharpedo can also give it a decent offensive matchup, while it also appreciates the slightly decreased usage of breakers like Primarina and Heracross in favor of Water-weak options like Infernape, Mamoswine, and Terrakion. Fitting well on the rising Spikes builds we've been seeing is also a nice boon it's got going for it, and I think that despite its defensive flaws it's one of the scarier breakers right now and a rise would reflect its worth well atm.
B -> B+
Gligar is in a great place right now and is easily one of the best defensive Ground-types currently available. Its item reliance can hinder its ability to check foes like Krookodile as reliably, though I think its defensive niches are still extremely applicable and allow it to consistently perform and fit comfortably on balanced and even some bulky offensive builds. It's a pretty sturdy switch-in to banded Scizor sets since Knock Off really isn't seen on them too much while it does an excellent job checking a lot of other important presences, like Terrakion, Cobalion, Zeraora, and Hippowdon. Pokemon like Nihilego, Mega Manectric, and Mega Aerodactyl (Aqua Tail doesn't 2HKO) are also seldom running Ice-type coverage at this stage, allowing Gligar to more reliably punish them, though it needs Toxic to efficiently check the latter. It really just has a lot going for it at this stage and has a surprising amount of moveset customizability for a defensive Pokemon. I think B+ would perfectly reflect the place it's made for itself in the metagame.
B- -> B
Mega Blastoise still doesn't get a ton of usage, but I think that its response to some recent metagame trends has made it a strong enough pick for a rise to be reasonable at this stage, especially since I find the other Mega Evolutions in its rank to be a lot more niche and generally tougher to fit comfortably on teams. Mega Blastoise's main strength, in my opinion, currently lies in its ability to break past the majority of trending defensive Pokemon, muscling past a ton of the most prominent bulky Water-types, like Empoleon, Jellicent, and the Slowbros, with its coverage. It takes advantage of cores that often include these Water-types + a Ground-type like Hippowdon, Gligar, or Nidoqueen really well, giving it a strong balance matchup. It's also a serviceable check to a good amount of offensive threats, like Scizor, Krookodile, and Mega Aerodactyl, which gives it a decent amount of opportunities to come into play and begin breaking against offensive builds.
Drops
B+ -> B
This one may be a bit controversial but I really don't think that our offensive Ghost-types are in a good place in the metagame right now. Chandelure's typing is much less defensively applicable in a metagame where the premier Grass-type in Celebi doesn't provide it with reliable switch-in opportunities and where several of the common slower Pokemon it can punish with super effective attacks (mainly the Slowbros and Jellicent) don't let it in for free at all either. It also struggles to consistently pivot in on Scizor since with rocks down it's getting whittled to almost half health by Choice Band U-turn, making Fire-types with recovery options or more room for either defensive investment or a berry item, like Rotom-H and Moltres, a lot more reliable. It also struggles to combat the presence of several Dark-types, such as the rising Crawdaunt, Choice Scarf Krookodile, and Hydreigon, which in particular is the best it's ever been right now. While Gengar can more easily work around its Pursuit and Dark-type vulnerability with Focus Blast, I still don't think it has enough going for it to be as consistent or worthwhile as the rest of B+, which is why I think it should also drop. Choice Scarf Krookodile is only maintaining its presence as a revenge killer and punishes Gengar just as heavily as Chandelure, relegating it to really only one kill at most before removing it from play. It struggles to combat several other offensive trends we've seen, such as the rise in Spikes, a playstyle abused very well by Pokemon like Mega Sharpedo and Crawdaunt, and Zeraora's introduction to the tier. Nidoking and Nihilego are also proving their worth as really solid picks in the metagame which further eats into its niche and gives it pretty stiff competition. I just don't think either of these guys are too comfortable a fit in the current metagame in favor of other options, and their complete lack of appearances made across the entirety of Snake Draft thus far sort of speaks to how awkward they can be to fit on teams and use well.
B- -> C+
I think that all three of these Pokemon had previously solid niches in the metagame that have either diminished recently with meta trends working against them or just a relative lack of usage to prove their reliability. Bewear's Choice Band and Swords Dance sets directly compete with the plethora of great Fighting-types currently residing in the metagame, and while Fluffy provides it with a unique niche in theory, it just doesn't have the typing or Speed necessary to take advantage of it as well as it needs to, considering that several of the tier's best physical attackers hit it super effectively with STAB, carry Fighting-type coverage, or are Ground-types that can ignore its ability entirely and 2HKO it at worst with Earthquake. Bisharp theoretically joining us isn't even as much of a plus for it as it'd seem on paper, given that a +2 Z-Sucker Punch deals some pretty heavy damage (76.7% minimum). While it can still be pretty threatening under the right circumstances, I think it's a lot more niche now than earlier on in the metagame and drop would reflect that well. Rhyperior is just really hard to justify using over the tier's several other available Ground-types. It can't reliably check literally any Pokemon in ranks A- and above, primarily checks Pokemon with drastically decreased relevance (like Crobat and Pidgeot), can't easily circumvent its weakness to all the Fighting-types running around, and is punished hard by the majority of the tier's relevant Electric-types. The one thing it can hang its hat on is more reliably switching into Rotom-H than a lot of its competition, though it still has to look out for status or getting chipped by Pain Split, and this niche is relatively minimal compared to its many current drawbacks to being used. Toxicroak is still a potent sweeper with a unique STAB combination and decent tools in Sucker Punch and Ice Punch, but it can't as reliably capitalize on its main niche with Dry Skin when a large amount of bulky Water-types, like the Slowbros and Jellicent, are fully capable of handling it one on one. It also lacks appreciation for the Ground-types often paired with Waters like Empoleon and Tentacruel that it can take advantage of, like Hippowdon and Nidoking.
C- -> UR
Mega Abomasnow's usage is so lacking that at this point any niche it has is almost entirely theoretical. It has solid mixed offenses, a good STAB combo, and decent coverage, but fails to make use of these tools very adequately due to its awful typing and even worse Speed. The vast majority of the offensive metagame can easily take advantage of its flaws to apply heavy pressure to it, which requires that it's supported rather heavily, which can lead to building restrictions for the player. Its niches don't differentiate it enough from its main competitors in Mamoswine and Kyurem, which are also way more self sufficient and reliable, for it to offset its flaws enough, and this is further compounded by the fact that it's Stealth Rock weak and takes up a Mega slot. I just don't think that Mega Abomasnow has enough applicable uses to be justified in sitting at even C-, especially considering that it gets less usage on UU ladder than literally Vaporeon and hasn't had any proven success since before USUM.
I hope you guys enjoyed reading! My apologies if some of these noms are a bit controversial, which I sort of expect, but let me know what you think nonetheless!
