Anyone who’s dipped their toes into competitivePokemonbattling will be familiar with OverUsed, as it’s one of the most popular tiers around. This is where the vast majority of Pokemon end up, including manypseudo-legendariesandmythical Pokemonthat fall slightly short of Uber tier.
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What’s so interesting about battles at this level is that they’re not limited to just OU Pokemon, with Pokemon belonging to UU, RU, and NU being fair game as well. This allows for a wide swath of viable strategies and team compositions that seek to get the most value from the best Pokemon for OverUsed tier.
10Azumarill: Huge Power In A Small Pokemon
To get started, Azumarill is a dualWater/Fairy-type Pokemonthat has a jovial disposition and pretty mediocre base stats by default. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth in the competitive scene, where Azumarill dominates thanks to its Attack-doubling ability Huge Power.
This changes Azumarill’s 50 base Attack stat to 100, with further EV investments raising it even higher. When taught Belly Drum, Azumarill is able to max out its attack in a single turn, resulting in a whopping 436 Attack.
At that point, it doesn’t really matter which move you pick but with access to priority and stab attacks like Aqua Jet and Play Rough, Azumarill can make quick work of just about any Pokemon.
9Baxcalibur: Wall-Breaking Dragon
Making its debut inPokemon Scarlet and Violet, Baxcalibur is one of only two lines of Pokemon to receive the exclusive Dragon/Ice typing, with the other being Kyurem. To add to its blessings, Baxcalibur boasts an impressive 145 base attack and two competitively viable abilities in Ice Body and Thermal Exchange.
The latter ability prevents Baxcalibur from being burned while raising its Attack when hit by a Fire-type move, effectively removing one of itsneutral weaknesses. With Swords Dance or Dragon Dance, Baxcalibur can run circles around most OU Pokemon and deliver powerful one-hit KOs with moves like Glaive Rush, Icicle Crash, and Earthquake.
8Ceruledge: Sneaky Specter
Another Pokemon that was first introduced in Scarlet and Violet, Ceruledge makes up one-half of Charcadet’s evolutionary line. Unlike its Fire/Psychic counterpart Armarouge, Ceruledge is aFire/Ghost-type, affording it full immunity to offensive Normal and Fighting-type attacks.
Furthermore, its base 145 Attack, 100 Special Defense, and 85 Speed allow it to set up on slower OU Pokemon without fear of being burned by Will-O-Wisp so long as you run it with the ability Flash Fire. Lastly, Ceruledge gains stab priority through Shadow Sneak, as well as increased survivability and health recovery via Bitter Blade.
7Clodsire: Squishy Stall
Evolving from Paldean Whooper, Clodsire is aPoison/Ground typethat quickly found its way to the OverUsed tier. This can be attributed to its uncommon typing, bulky stat spread, and versatile ability pool ranging from Poison Point and Water Absorb to the ever-potent Unaware.
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With qualities like that, it’s no surprise to see Clodsire crushing the competition in OU as a formidable Specially-Defensive wall. Its specialty is stalling out enemies with entry hazards like Stealth Rocks and Spikes as well as using Toxic to spread Poison while leveraging Recover to stay alive.
6Gholdengo: The Perfect Sweeper
Pokemon like Gholdengo are set up for success from the very start; highly resistantSteel/Ghost typing, fantastic base 133 Special Attack, great coverage in its movepool, and powerful ability that provides full immunity to status moves (Good As Gold).
With all these strengths coming together, there’s no way for Gholdengo to be anything less than OverUsed, though you’ll also find it in the Uber tier as well. At the OU level, Gholdengo only needs one turn to set up Nasty Plot and become the offensive sweeper it was meant to be.
5Garganacl: Wall Of Salty Tears
Similar to Gholdengo, Garganacl is blessed with a potent ability in Purifying Salt, which halves the damage taken fromoffensive Ghost-type moveswhile preventing the Pokemon from becoming inflicted with status effects. This is further complemented by decent HP and Attack stats, as well as an impressive base 130 Defense.
When equipped with Curse and Recover, Garganacl becomes an impenetrable fortress that simply won’t go down. Its only weaknesses are its relatively low Special Defense and paltry speed, both of which must be exploited to have any chance of bringing it down.
4Kingambit: Supreme Overlord Of OverUsed
New to Gen 9, Kingambit is a powerfulDark/Steel-typethat evolves from Bisharp, gaining several advantages over its pre-evolution in the process. Among these is its signature ability Supreme Overlord, which adds a ten percent damage boost to each of its moves for every fainted ally in your party.
This can be a tremendous asset in competitive battles, especially when you’re down to just Kingambit. In most instances, the signature stab move Kowtow Cleave will be enough to smite any Pokemon, but Sucker Punch can be a great alternative to deal with faster threats.
3Meowscarada: Trickster Of The Trio
Recognized as one of Scarlet and Violet’s three starters, Meowscarada is a surprisingly fastGrass/Dark-typethat boasts amazing Attack and Speed stats. This allows it to function as a dedicated lead that can set up Spikes while preventing opposing Pokemon from doing the same with their own hazards.
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To achieve this, Meowscarada relies on moves like Taunt and Knock Off to disrupt its opponent’s tactics and force a switch-out. In terms of abilities, Overgrow is the more desirable option ever since Protean was nerfed, but both can be completely viable with the right moveset.
2Skeledirge: Bulk And Blaze
The second Pokemon starter to grace the OverUsed tier, Skeledirge is a Fire/Ghost-type with great Special Attack and decent HP and Defense stats. In battles, this translates to a bulky attacker that can also stall using Will-O-Wisp and Hex.
Working in Skeledirge’s favor is Unaware, which ignores any opposing stat boosts, ensuring it can properly set up and start spamming itssignature moveTorch Song as soon as possible. All in all, this Pokemon is good at applying pressure and serves a unique role in competitive Pokemon’s OverUsed tier.
1Hisuian Zoroark: The Elusive Illusion
While base Zoroark remains shackled to theNeverUsed tierfor the time being, its Hisuian cousin fits snugly in the OU Meta. This can be attributed to Hisuian Zoroark’s retooled stat spread that affords it a bit more Special Attack and Speed at the cost of slightly less HP and Attack.
At base 125 Special Attack, this Pokemon becomes quite effective as a wall-breaker with access to coverage moves like Focus Blast and the ability to pivot with U-turn. The strategic benefits of Zoroark’s Illusion are just as potent while a dualNormal/Ghost typingallows it to catch enemies by surprise.
