The world of competitivePokemonbattling can feel quite complicated, especially for anyone who’s used to playing through the series casually. From new battle rules and adjustments to categorized teams based on Pokemon stats, strategies, and usage, there’s a lot to take in.
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One of the best places to start your competitive Pokemon journey is NU, or NeverUsed, a tier where many of the weaker, less popular creatures end up. While they may not seem like the ideal choice, the best Pokemon for NeverUsed tier can allow for creative new strategies and team compositions, oftentimes resulting in more interesting battles than higher tiers.
10Mabosstiff: Man’s Best Wall Breaker
Making its debut inPokemon Scarlet & Violetas Arven’s signature Pokemon and best buddy, Mabosstiff is a deceptivelypowerful Dark-typecanine with high Attack and decent Defense/Speed stats. The former stat is where Mabosstiff gets the bulk of its usability in NeverUsed tier, especially when combined with the abilities Guard Dog and Stakeout.
Stakeout, in particular, can be quite potent as it doubles Mabosstiff’s Attack stat against any Pokemon that switches in. Combine this with access to moves like Crunch, Play Rough, and Psychic Fangs, and Mabosstiff becomes a fantastic wall breaker capable of taking out many bulky NU Pokemon, even those meant to counter Dark types.
9Dudunsparce: Bulky Beast
For years, Pokemon fans have been itching to get their hands on a new Dunsparce evolution and Scarlet & Violet have finally delivered. Whether you’re running the base version or the coveted three-segment variant, you’ll find Dudunsparce can hold its own against the best NeverUsed tier Pokemon.
Although its base 80 Defense, 75 Special Defense, and paltry 55 Speed are far from impressive, with the right EV investments and a few turns to set up Coil or Calm Mind, Dudunsparce becomes one of the bulkiest Normal types in the game.
8Bombirdier: Death From Above
Another Pokemon introduced in Scarlet & Violet, Bombirdier is a dualFlying/Dark-typethat offers a decent Attack stat and very little else, solidifying its position in the NU tier. With that said, it can be quite effective at this level as either a dedicated lead or Choice Band/Choice Scarf user.
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The strongest assets in Bombirdier’s arsenal are the abilities Big Pecks, which prevents other Pokemon from lowering its Defense, and Rocky Payload, which multiplies its Attack by 1.5 while using Rock-type attacks. The latter is preferable as it allows Bombirdier to get a lot of value from Stone Edge’s high critical hit ratio while covering one of its biggest weaknesses: Ice-types.
7Appletun: Deliciously Defensive
First appearing inPokemon Sword & Shield, Appletun has garnered a reputation as one of the most delicious-looking and defensive Pokemon around. As such, it continues to thrive in Scarlet & Violet’s NU tier, where its uniqueGrass/Dragon typinggoes largely unchecked.
Appletun has other useful advantages that put it a step above its alternate evolution, Flapple. For one, its ability Thick Fat mitigates damage from Fire and Ice attacks, allowing it to take more hits before fainting. Secondly, Appletun can use Recover and Leech Seed to increase its survivability as well as Apple Acid to chip away at the enemy’s Special Defense.
6Chansey: Tough Egg To Crack
Once upon a time, Chansey was considered one of if not themost impenetrable walls in competitive Pokemon. While subsequent generations have somewhat lessened its viability, it can still be quite effective (and annoying) on the right NU and OU team.
At the NeverUsed tier, you’ll find Chansey thrives as a utility of sorts, as it usually elicits a switch-in from your opponent, giving you ample opportunity to set up Stealth Rocks or slide in a quick Thunder Wave. Under normal circumstances, Chansey can’t survive most attacks or status effects, however, with the combination of Eviolite, Soft-Boiled, and Natural Cure, it becomes nearly un-killable.
5Jolteon: Fast As Lightning
Considering how many Eeveelutions there are in Scarlet & Violet, it’s not surprising to see many of them drop down to the NU tier after years of dominating in OU. This includes Jolteon, apure Electric-typethat boasts impressive Speed and Special Attack stats.
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Leveraging these in battle turns Jolteon into a powerful sweeper with stab moves Thunderbolt and Volt Switch as its bread and butter. With the addition of Heavy-Duty Boots as its held item, the move Tera Blast, and Ice as its Tera-type, Jolteon can safely switch in and out of battle while keeping Ground-types in check.
4Medicham: Huge Power, Great Coverage
Although Medicham may be outclassed by other dualFighting/Psychic-typesat higher tiers, this is far from the case in NeverUsed. Here, Medicham becomes quite versatile, functioning as either a revenge killer or wall breaker thanks to the ability Huge Power, which doubles its Attack stat right out the gate.
The aforementioned Fighting/Psychic typing limits the number of weaknesses it has while the move Close Combat basically serves as a guaranteed one-hit KO. Moreover, Medicham is blessed with access to various stab and coverage moves such as Zen Headbutt, Psycho Cut, Thunder Punch, Ice Punch, and Bullet Punch.
3Sandaconda: Shed Away Those Statuses
Without a doubt one of the best Pokemon for NeverUsed tier, Sandaconda provides a unique utility service that can’t be replicated by any other combatant in this tier. Its greatest strength is its Shed Skin ability, which has a 33 percent chance of curing any status effect at the end of each turn.
Aside from providing the obvious defensive benefits, this allows Sandaconda to recover health using Rest without having to rely on berries for its held item. On top of this, Sandaconda’s Ground typing works to prevent pivots that rely on Volt Switch as well as safely switch in on Electric moves in general.
2Combat Breed Paldean Tauros: Bulked Up Bull
Admittingly less exciting than its Aqua and Blaze variants, Combat Breed Paldean Tauros is able to carve out a nice niche for itself in the NeverUsed tier thanks to a good mix of high Attack, Defense, and Speed stats. This can be extended further by assigning it Bulk Up to raise both Attack and Defense in a single turn.
Like Medicham, Paldean Tauros can leverage Close Combat to instantly delete a target of its choosing while leveraging moves like Trailblaze to out-speed Choice Scarf users. As is the case with any Fighting-type, Flying-type Pokemon can be a huge problem for Paldean Tauros, which is where moves like Stone Edge and Electric-type Tera Blast come in handy.
1Vaporeon: Wishing Wall
The second Eeveelution to appear on this list, Vaporeon is a tried-and-true competitive wall that will complement just about any NU team, particularly ones built around Rain’s effects and the ability Hydration. For all other instances, Water Absorb is the preferred choice as it allows Vaporean to switch in on Water attacks to recover HP.
In terms of moveset, Vaporeon is one of the best Wish and Protect users in Pokemon, especially after sneaking in a couple of Calm Minds. Alternatively, it can run Haze to prevent opponents from gaining a foothold using stat buffing moves of their own.
