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Lower Tiers ADV LC
- Thread starter grape tylenol
- Start date
Very nice post from Kaboom about ADVPL and how each ADV LC player measures up against the rest of the pool. My ranking is very similar, although I think Kingdras are in a much worse spot with the loss of Arcanine1929 and would rank them last in the pool for sure. I also think I would rank the Scythe Lords a bit lower as Quinn is on his own and will likely have difficulty finding support given that most players have been scooped up by other teams. Since Kaboom didn't rank them, my personal opinion is that the Aquacorde Anglerfish are in an excellent position with LC veteran HSOWA and prominent ADV LC community member Kaboom working together, and I would rank them as tied with the Claydolls if not above them. Rankings aside, I would say I'm the most interested in seeing ElectricityCat play as he has remained a bit of an enigma in the ADV LC community. I'm also very interested in seeing how the combination of two active members of the ADV LC community, Cawil Maxamad and Zcarlett, and top current generation LC player but newcomer to ADV LC Hacker works out!
Oh and also: ADV LC Cup signups are now open and will be closing April 14th at 10:00PM GMT-4.
Oh and also: ADV LC Cup signups are now open and will be closing April 14th at 10:00PM GMT-4.
Thunder Wave tiering action coming to a tier near you
May 2024 Tiering Survey
Thanks to the ADV LC Open: Porygon's Bizarre Adventure tournament (congratulations Raichy on your win!), as well as the ongoing LPL, ADVPL, and ADV LC Cup tournaments, the tier has seen quite a bit of play! I figure now is the perfect time to gauge the community's opinion on the metagame so that we can explore potential tiering action over the summer. If you are interested in sharing your thoughts on the ADV LC metagame, you can fill out the survey here! The survey will close May 5th at 10:00PM GMT-4 so be sure to fill it out before then if you want your voice to be heard.
Thanks to the ADV LC Open: Porygon's Bizarre Adventure tournament (congratulations Raichy on your win!), as well as the ongoing LPL, ADVPL, and ADV LC Cup tournaments, the tier has seen quite a bit of play! I figure now is the perfect time to gauge the community's opinion on the metagame so that we can explore potential tiering action over the summer. If you are interested in sharing your thoughts on the ADV LC metagame, you can fill out the survey here! The survey will close May 5th at 10:00PM GMT-4 so be sure to fill it out before then if you want your voice to be heard.
May 2024 Viability Rankings Update
Thanks to Cawil Maxamad, HSOWA, and Shing as well as the ADV LC Council for helping out with these!
Major Shifts
Abra: A+ → S
Abra's 19 Speed in addition to it's monstrous base 105 Special Attack already made a huge threat, but its newfound set diversity has propelled it to S rank. Abra is most commonly seen running a Calm Mind sweeper set with Psychic and Thief (or Hidden Power Water,) but other movepool options like elemental punches, Barrier, Hidden Power Dark, and even screens have been used, making it difficult to predict, a deadly quality for any Pokemon.
Voltorb: B+ → A
Similarly to Staryu in the last viability ranking update, players have caught on that 20 Speed, Thunder Wave, and Explosion all in one package makes a great Pokemon! Voltorb's Speed, tied only by Diglett and fellow Electric-type Elekid, allows it to reliably spread paralysis as well as get off a last-ditch Explosion if things aren't going its way. While Voltorb does get Explosion, it doesn't get the same coverage options Elekid does, forcing it to rely on the weak Hidden Power Grass instead.
Lileep: B- → B+
Lileep functions well as an annoying defensive Pokemon thanks to its Rock / Grass typing as well as Recover, a move otherwise not seen in LC. If a team isn't prepared for it, it can be quite difficult to take out as the above user discovered, but it struggles to make progress into the opposing team due to a weak offensive movepool.
Magnemite: B- → B+
Magnemite is a surprisingly deadly Pokemon, especially behind a Substitute. Its respectable base 95 Special Attack combined with STAB Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Grass allows it to take out powerful foes including Wailmer and Diglett. Magnemite's Electric / Steel typing also allows it to come in on Doduo and force it out. Magnemite, of course, still suffers greatly in that it is trapped and removed by Diglett (as long as Magnemite isn't behind a Subsitute) as well as Trapinch.
Pineco: B → A-
Spikes have become very popular so it's no surprise to see Pineco, the best Spikes setter, rise significantly in viability. It's interesting to see that Pineco came out on top over Cacnea, it seems players prefer the always reliable Explosion and option to Rapid Spin over the offensive power that Cacnea has.
Teddiursa: Unranked → C
Teddiursa, similar to Snorunt and Ralts, has seen use recently as it is the pet mon of a strong player (in this case not Shing but Quinn). It's not without its merits though: Teddiursa has a great Attack stat in addition to Swords Dance and has proven itself to be an asset in tournament games. Time will tell if Teddiursa can carve itself a niche as a powerful physical attacker or if it will fall back off the viability rankings.
Minor Shifts
Snubbull: A- → A
Trapinch: A → A-
Houndour: B+ → A-
Cacnea: B → B+
Cubone: B → B+
Horsea: B+ → B
Duskull: B+ → B
Meowth: C → Unranked
May 2024 Metagame Survey Results
The metagame survey has now closed! Thank you to everyone who took the time to fill it out. Let's take a look at what you thought about the current metagame:
Looking at the survey results, we can see that most players enjoy the metagame which I am really happy to see! We can also see that Thunder Wave is a very controversial subject (more on that below) while Abra and Diglett are generally agreed upon to be balanced. Regarding the summer "for fun" tournament, an ADV LC tournament featuring Omanyte was by far the most popular choice, so we will be running that tournament sometime late this summer (think late July or August).
On Thunder Wave
Here is the announcement you have all been waiting for!
The ADV LC council has decided to run a suspect test on Thunder Wave. Players who have achieved at least one of the following will be qualified to vote in the suspect test:
Thanks to Cawil Maxamad, HSOWA, and Shing as well as the ADV LC Council for helping out with these!
Major Shifts
Abra: A+ → SAbra's 19 Speed in addition to it's monstrous base 105 Special Attack already made a huge threat, but its newfound set diversity has propelled it to S rank. Abra is most commonly seen running a Calm Mind sweeper set with Psychic and Thief (or Hidden Power Water,) but other movepool options like elemental punches, Barrier, Hidden Power Dark, and even screens have been used, making it difficult to predict, a deadly quality for any Pokemon.
Voltorb: B+ → ASimilarly to Staryu in the last viability ranking update, players have caught on that 20 Speed, Thunder Wave, and Explosion all in one package makes a great Pokemon! Voltorb's Speed, tied only by Diglett and fellow Electric-type Elekid, allows it to reliably spread paralysis as well as get off a last-ditch Explosion if things aren't going its way. While Voltorb does get Explosion, it doesn't get the same coverage options Elekid does, forcing it to rely on the weak Hidden Power Grass instead.
Lileep: B- → B+Lileep functions well as an annoying defensive Pokemon thanks to its Rock / Grass typing as well as Recover, a move otherwise not seen in LC. If a team isn't prepared for it, it can be quite difficult to take out as the above user discovered, but it struggles to make progress into the opposing team due to a weak offensive movepool.
Magnemite: B- → B+Magnemite is a surprisingly deadly Pokemon, especially behind a Substitute. Its respectable base 95 Special Attack combined with STAB Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Grass allows it to take out powerful foes including Wailmer and Diglett. Magnemite's Electric / Steel typing also allows it to come in on Doduo and force it out. Magnemite, of course, still suffers greatly in that it is trapped and removed by Diglett (as long as Magnemite isn't behind a Subsitute) as well as Trapinch.
Pineco: B → A-Spikes have become very popular so it's no surprise to see Pineco, the best Spikes setter, rise significantly in viability. It's interesting to see that Pineco came out on top over Cacnea, it seems players prefer the always reliable Explosion and option to Rapid Spin over the offensive power that Cacnea has.
Teddiursa: Unranked → CTeddiursa, similar to Snorunt and Ralts, has seen use recently as it is the pet mon of a strong player (in this case not Shing but Quinn). It's not without its merits though: Teddiursa has a great Attack stat in addition to Swords Dance and has proven itself to be an asset in tournament games. Time will tell if Teddiursa can carve itself a niche as a powerful physical attacker or if it will fall back off the viability rankings.
Minor Shifts
Snubbull: A- → A Trapinch: A → A- Houndour: B+ → A- Cacnea: B → B+ Cubone: B → B+ Horsea: B+ → B Duskull: B+ → B Meowth: C → UnrankedMay 2024 Metagame Survey Results
The metagame survey has now closed! Thank you to everyone who took the time to fill it out. Let's take a look at what you thought about the current metagame:
Looking at the survey results, we can see that most players enjoy the metagame which I am really happy to see! We can also see that Thunder Wave is a very controversial subject (more on that below) while Abra and Diglett are generally agreed upon to be balanced. Regarding the summer "for fun" tournament, an ADV LC tournament featuring Omanyte was by far the most popular choice, so we will be running that tournament sometime late this summer (think late July or August).
On Thunder Wave
Here is the announcement you have all been waiting for!
The ADV LC council has decided to run a suspect test on Thunder Wave. Players who have achieved at least one of the following will be qualified to vote in the suspect test:
- 2 wins and at least 3 ADV LC games played in ADVPL IV
- Placed top 4 of ADV LC Open: Porygon's Bizarre Adventure
- Placed first in ADV LC Cup