Love for Underrated Pokemon

[Venonaut97]

One thing I've noticed as I've looked through various sites and articles about what "good" Pokemon to use in battle, is that some fairly "good" Pokemon are rarely or never mentioned at all. For that purpose I figured why not give some of those underrated or underloved Pokemon a moment to shine. As a quick rule, while you may reference stronger Pokemon in order to discuss strengths and weaknesses, I do not want any strong Pokemon to be the main topic of your post. Just to make sure there isn't any confusion, strong in this case refers to any Pokemon with a stat total greater than 450 500.

 

I also would like to ask that people try to focus more on posting about their underrated or underloved Pokemon, than trying to endlessly debate someone over another Pokemon.

 

Edit: 450 was probably a bit too low, 500 is probably a nicer number.

Edited August 30, 2017 by Venonaut97
Changing details

[Wolfox]

I'm gonna start with one pokemon that people always overlook: Hariyama. While the base stat total is higher than 450 (Which I believe it a bit low for something like this, due to many evolved mons surpassing that even when they're not "strong") it's a mon often overlooked. I used Hariyama for the first time during my second run through reborn, and oh boy did it's shoulders hurt from carying the team from time to time.

 

 

After checking via the Showdown team builder, I noticed that many of the mons with a BST of 450 are either stage one or basic pokemon, thus there will most likely not be too many posts here about many mons with a lower BST.

 A nice example, the worst regional bird, Noctowl, has base 452. that should say how low this bar is set and that it should be raised a bit

Edited August 30, 2017 by Wolfox

[Yagami]

Exploud, It was one of my MVP in my very first run of Reborn when I knew nothing much about pokemon.Early game it really helped with echoed voice and later helped with hyper voice and boom burst.Since it had scrappy I even used it against Shade.This pokemon was the sole reason I won against Aya.There are many times in Reborn when you have a partner so every fight becomes double battle.So a stab hyper voice really does a lot of damage.If you can partner it with a pokemon with telepathy like gardevoir  you can just use boom burst.It also can learn surf and elemental fangs by the tutor so you can let it hold expert belt for more damage.

 

Lunatune,this was also a MVP in my first run.First of all,levitate is a really useful ability.It learns psychic really early and is helpful against Aya,Samson,Kiki,Ciel and Charlotte.This pokemon alone took out 6 pokemons of Chorlotte.Just a simple trick room and rock slide combo.It can also learn moonblast by relearner and bulldoze which is helpful.In gen 7,it can learn power gem by relearner.

Edited August 31, 2017 by Yagami

[Alistair]

Hmm... These days I'm interested in a Pokémon that sees relatively little use and mention, although I find him useful. Much like Wolfox's Hariyama, he's a mon that has a BST higher than 450 (sorry ^.^') and is pure Fighting type. If my memory doesn't fail me, his stats are 75/125/75/30/75/85 (BST = 465). You may have guessed it, I'm talking about Sawk. He's competetively rated as RU. His problem is, I believe, his very limited movepool (especially what he learns via levelling) and his "one-trick pony" type of profile. Although, I find it has some charming traits.

 

His sky-high attack and minimal special attack are perfect for a dedicated physical wallbreaker, and even though I can't speak for him in competition, I think he does this job very well in the games. His base 85 speed is actually good compared to most Fighting types, especially with a helpful nature, and his base 75/75/75 bulk isn't that bad either. He was fortunate enough to lose a lot of points in the one category that doesn't matter to him, special attack.

Besides he has a natural access to Sturdy+Counter, resulting in devastating comebacks against stronger and faster foes. All in all, a nice, simple mon that does his simple job rather well. If only he had wide coverage, he would really be a threat to be reckoned with.

[Ojama Yellow]

simipour. people often see the elemental monkeys as being living garbage and whatever else. its part of the reason why they panpour is available before the first gym in both reborn and rejuv, id assume. and honestly, I cant fully disagree- the stats of the elemental monkeys, even evolved, arent great. rather low bulk for a fully evolved mon, mixed attacking stats which sadly both are only 98, and a speed of 101 as their main selling point because 101 speed is by no means bad.

 

and now why I actually do like simipour. if you guessed 'scald by levelup', youre (partly) correct! learning a move like scald at level 22 of all things is really good, and if you abstain on evolving the monkey until 31 you even get a free acrobatics to boot! heres where the mixed attacking stats start helping you out. both acrobatics and scald can hit real hard ingame early on, and with its speed it mostly goes first as well! there are better water-type pokemon around, but I honestly dont agree with simipour being useless garbage because it really can put in work when used right.

 

and, if you really want something with less than 450 bst, I have something for you.

 

 

yeah. the objectively superior final evolution of wurmple doesnt really have great stats, but it has an epic level-up movepool that has toxic, quiver dance, light screen, whirlwind, moonlight and protect. by which I mean that its actually really not bad when it comes to supportive mons. definitely not top-tier, but also better than most people think.

[FairFamily]

I'm not sure 450 base stats is a good indicator of strong. Chansey has a base stat of 450 and diggersby has one of 423 but these are strong pkmn. Chimeco however is classified as strong.

 

A pokemon I really like is gastrodon. It was such a good typing and was a fantastic wall in reborn. It also has a great movepool with recover and a breedle stockpile.

Edited August 30, 2017 by FairFamily

[Ice Cream Sand Witch]

 

 

[Seal]

For me it's Cacturne. It's stats are pretty bad, but it's move pool is pretty good and unique. It can learn spiky shield to tank a hit and do a bit of damage which can be paired with leech seed. You can compensate it's low speed with sucker punch. It also has a bunch of great physical and special moves since both are viable. Special moves could be paired up with Nasty Plot. Spikes is also an option. Counter + Focus Sash is also pretty good because of his low defences.

[Walpurgis]

I love lilligant. You can put your opponent to sleep with sleep powder, start to set up quiver dances and once you have a few boosts you can start spamming petal dance without any regret, as its ability own tempo prevents lilligant from getting confused. It hasn't got much coverage, but with 110 base sp atk +4  and 120 bp from petal dance the few pokemon that can tank one hit will die to the next one.

[Octavius]

My entry would have to be dusclops. Not the much-maligned clown dusknoir, but everyone's favorite gen 3 cyclopean horror. And besides, the only good thing about dusknoir is that he gives dusclops access to eviolite. Because my word does dusclops have some serious bulk. Outrageous Defense and Sp. Defense stats combined with few natural weaknesses allow dusclops to handle a wide variety of foes one on one. And even though his offensive stats and lack of strong STAB moves can barely shadow punch their way through a cryogonal, the clops has a massive arsenal of utility moves to make up for it: will-o-wisp, infestation, curse, and pain split are the main ones that come to mind, and he even has night shade for consistent 3HKO levels of damage. His low HP pool has natural synergy with pain split, and he can punish walls and physical attackers with burns and heavy residual damage. Top it all off with Eviolite to boost his defenses to untouchable levels, and you've got a mon who can take down just about anything (unless they bludgeon your dreams with knock off).

 

And even though it doesn't really fit the proposed ruleset, I think Slaking deserves a mention as one of the most underrated Pokémon for playthroughs. Yes, Slaking has truant, which means his hulking 670 BST frame is useless every other turn (and if that's the case, his BST levels out to 335 every turn, which falls well within these parameters!). But there are ways to circumvent this! Early in the game, you have access to Slaking's best friend, Cofagrigus. With Cofagrigus able to spread his ability Mummy to Slaking, you transform a one-dimensional truant sloth into a near-unstoppable monster. Able to slap things around with powerful normal STABs and fighting/dark coverage, a mummified Slaking can even utilize slack off to recover from damage he sustains. He can even use counter (looking at you, Solaris's Garchomp) to pull out wins in trying circumstances. And late game, even without Cofagrigus to support him, access to Choice Band and Giga Impact can one-shot just about anything in the game. Setting battles to shift will even allow you to directly switch out Slaking after he fells an enemy, circumventing the drawbacks of Truant and Giga Impact. Even though Slaking is much-maligned, he can dominate opponents given the correct circumstances.

[Azeria]

The destroyer of worlds himself, lord Jumpluff is here.

 

Seriously, this guy turned Rejuvenation's difficulty curve into a joke tbh. He was godly. Fast Sleep Powder and Leech Seed alongside Acrobatics for semi decent damage output allowed it to cheese basically anything it wanted to. Quickly turned into one of my all time favorites.

[Venonaut97]

Coming in at a base stat total of 450 is Venomoth, and if my name doesn't already give it away, I love this guy. I haven't seen much love for this guy, which surprises me for a few reasons.

 

1) It has tinted lens, which doubles the power of ineffective moves. While this won't let you sweep, it certainly will allow your Pokemon to handle a wider range of opponents.

2) In Gen VI, it learns psybeam at lv 25, which will allow you to abuse Corey's team a fair bit.

3) Also gets sleep powder at lv 29 in Gen VI, which makes it even easier to abuse Corey. Sleep powder also never misses on the swamp field.

4) Venomoth's pre-evolution, Venonat, has compound eyes. This makes finding wild Pokemon holding items even easier.

5) It is the third/fourth fastest Pokemon that can learn sleep powder. Only jumpluff outspeeds it, while it is tied with Roserade and Lilligant with a speed stat of 90.

6) Venomoth also learns quiver dance, which raises spd, sp atk, and sp df. This combined with sleep powder makes it dangerous on the battle field.

7) Can be bred to have morning sun, which makes it even harder to take down.

8) It's other abilities Shield Dust and Wonder Skin can prevent additional effects of attacks and reduce status move accuracy, respectively.

 

Edited August 31, 2017 by Venonaut97
correcting inaccurate information

[Filthy Casual]

This is going to sound strange, given how feared this thing is: Wobbuffet. A lot of people avoid this one, as they don't want to spend the time babying it. It's also hard to use in the main story, as it involves a lot of predicting. If I'm being frank, it's one of the hardest Pokemon to use in the game...

 

...but in my opinion, if you can use it correctly, it might be one if not the most devastating in-game Pokemon to grace the entire series.

 

Wobbuffet can't attack directly, but has a crap ton of HP. With moves like Counter and Mirror Coat, you can imagine how devastating that can be for opponents if you can out predict them. It also can be a decent support Pokemon with access to moves such as Safeguard to protect your team from hazards and Encore to stop Pokemon from setting up. However, best of all, it has access to Destiny Bond and Shadow Tag, almost guaranteeing a KO.

 

I hold Wobbuffet close to my heart. It was him alone who tore through four of Red's Pokemon in Heart Gold (and my team was in the mid forties). Why? Because I used him effectively enough to tank out most of Red's moves. Overall, Wobbuffet is an awesome Pokemon for people who are trying to challenge themselves, yet also look for a huge payout. 

Edited September 1, 2017 by Filthy Casual

[Brakk]

How about Ninjask? It's stats in general are just 456, but it is nice for setup.  

[EndearingCharacterTrait]

I want to mention Cherrim. Sure, there's fierce competition for Grass types, and it's not the best by any stretch of the imagination.

 

But, it learns Petal Dance immediately upon evolving. At 25. I'm pretty sure that's the earliest of any mon. 

 

Its stats add up to 450, and they're fairly balanced, but mediocre compared to stronger mons. But it has 87 in Special Attack and 85 in speed, not terrible at all. 

 

Cherrim's claim to fame however is its unique Flower Gift ability, which gives a 1.5x multiplier to Attack and Special Defense to itself and its allies in harsh sunlight. Sure, it would have been better to boost special attack, but honestly that might be too strong. With this active Cherrim gets an effective 117 base in SDef instead of merely 78, actually quite solid. Plus, if partnered with a more robust, potentially physical attacking mon in a doubles match the stat boosts can be significant.

 

I've gained new respect for Cherrim in my current challenge run.

 

Cute though it may be, this is not the face of mercy.

[Venonaut97]

Another Pokemon that goes underappreciated in my opinion is Ariados. One thing I will note is that Ariados only has a base stat total of 400 in Gen VII (it was 390).

 

Despite this fact, Ariados makes up for this by having an excellent movepool at its disposal. Firstly, Ariados possesses a signature move known as Toxic Thread, which not only lowers the speed of all adjacent opposing Pokemon, but poisons them as well. This is further complemented by Ariados having Venom Drench, which lowers the Atk, Sp Atk, and Spd of all poisoned Pokemon. It also has access to Shadow Sneak and Sucker Punch, which will help cover its abysmal speed stat.

[Zargerth]

Maybe it's because this guy is considered hideous that no one ever recommends one. So, shout-out to Barbaracle.

 

It learns pretty much everything you need via level up: Shell Smash, Razor Shell, Cross Chop, Night Slash and Stone Edge for instance. While it doesn't have access to Sturdy, it has other abilities that complement it's movepool, such as Sniper and Tough Claws. Barbaracle is by no means a weak Pokemon, just ignored and outright forgotten.

[Moneybanks416]

This goes against the "over 450 BST" but I have to say Chesnaught. I know it's one of the starters but I never see anyone mention this Pokemon at all. It has great bulk and defense, gets access to Drain Punch, Spikes, Synthesis, and Leech Seed. Any of those combined with Spiky Shield and a Rocky Helmet can whittle opponents down. This is a very reliable Pokemon and very underrated IMO

[Alex]

From just playing through Pokemon X, this thing did a lot! Natural Reflect and Stealth Rock, alongside Rock Tomb and Moonblast, plus Rocky Helmet, meant that it could take anything from Normal and Flying-types while setting up and lowering stats. It saved me a lot of times, and could even take Steel hits at times! Love this thing.

 

[Zander]

Granbull. Excellent tank. 252 attack, 128 hp and 128 defense. Eating poison jabs easily and normal attacks while dishing out so much damage. Put on an assault vest on this set and you have the best physical wall which can actually attack.

[Star Arcana]

 

This beautiful thing right here. Prankster, dual screens, Fake Out, Psychic = this thing can really mess with opposing teams. I'm using one in my Reborn playthrough, and I have no real complaints so far. Sol pulls his weight, and then some! 

 

Female Meowstic is also pretty solid early to mid game, but she does get outclassed as the levels continue to creep upwards. Considering her useless though is way too harsh, even later game. I'm still using mine off and on in my Desolation run, and I'm nearing the end of ep. 4. 

 

 

If Reborn taught me anything though, it's not to underestimate this beast. Overall, it is very lacking in the stats department, but its speed and sp. def are actually pretty decent. This allows it to outspeed many in the early game, and with screens protection, it can be half-hardy. However, where this monster shines is in being a total troll. Parafusion + Charm = GET REKT. May I add that Charm does help make up for its subpar defense somewhat. This being said, I'm only at Pyrous Mountain, so it will likely start slipping as foes get stronger teams, but so far, no complaints. I literally only beat Shade because Trollirisu + screens was such an effective combo. 

[Dante52]

I'd like to second that comment on Trollirisu. It softened up many a 'mon in my reborn run with moves like charm, nuzzle, superfang, sweet kiss, and electroball. The pokemon I thought of may not necessarily be underrated, but I was certainly surprised how helpful it was in Rejuvenation. 
 

This little guy just wall-stalled many opponents in my run. Its BST is only 410, but it has 130 Defense and Sp. Def and though its HP is only 55, it comes with lots of level up moves to mess with people: Pain split, Recover, Toxic, Baton pass, Counter, Safeguard, Taunt, Gastro Acid, Soak, Curse, to name a handful. On top of that, by TM it can learn Reflect, Light Screen, Rest, and Protect. Its abilities Innards Out and Unaware can both be helpful, and you can load it up with leftovers or a sitrus berry to up its tankage. There were some gyms where this guy took out most of the team by himself. Definitely turned me into a fan. 

Edited September 30, 2017 by Dante52
typo

[V for Vendetta]

Oh Golem you poor,poor thing. Frankly speaking, I love Golem,it's very underrated since it dies to almost everything. Fire blast kills it and that's resisted. with a base stat of 495 this mon sadly does not even reach 500 (Used to be 485) and even it's Alolan form get's destroyed by everything with the same stats aswell. I wish Gamefreak gave this Gen 1 rock type some justice and give it the Probopass and Steelix treatment,more towards Steelix as it gets a mega evolution. If there's one thing I really hope Ame does is give this rock lizard some love and add him to Hardy's team (Alolan since that's somewhat better then the original Golem) it's one of the first rock types you encounter in almost every single Pokemon game yet so rarely does it end up in someone team. Feels bad to be a Geodude.

[NickCrash]

I'll go full meta with Raichu-A

60/85/50/95/85/110 BST: 485

 

That little fellow has great speed coupled with decend SpA, with dual STAB that can be resisted only by 20 pokemon (34 with the NFE). 

I bet once it's included in Reborn, it will become a must-have for mid-range gyms, since it's so good in opening holes in the opponent's teams.

[Jess]

Mightyena!

 

 

Stats: 

HP: 70

Attack: 90

Defense: 70

Sp. Attack: 60

Sp. Defense: 70

Speed: 70

 

Pure Dark, with a base stat total of 420 BLAZE IT, Mightyena is nothing spectacular. But let's look behind the numbers!

This magnificent beast is amazing. I don''t even know where to start from. 

 

Abilities: Intimidate can cripple down Physical attackers and give you time to Howl up and turn into a menace! Quick Feet can get Mightyena faster than pretty much anything, even Electrodes and turn around the tides of battles! Julia paralyzed my Mightyena one day. She didn't have fun with what followed that decision! Finally, and best of all: MOXIE! This thing only needs to Sucker Punch Shade's Gengar/Corey. Then, it is all over. Easiest battle of my life!

Ability Capsules are your friend. Find your strategy and swap to the one that suits the occasion. Mightyena won't disappoint you!

 

Moveset: Where amazing happens. This thing has great moves that can turn it into pure terror if it gets going! Crunch (most powerful, basic STAB), or the more unreliable due to its nature, but handy due to (occasional) priority, Sucker Punch. Elemental Fangs (Poison, Fire, Ice and Thunder) for coverage. Play Rough to cover Fighting types. Anyone thinks that Dark is weak vs Fighting? Let's see how Fighters cope vs a Mightyena's Moxie-boosted Play Rough! And, last but not least, FUCKING IRON TAIL by the Agate Circus Move Tutors. First playthrough of my life in Reborn. After being frustrated by Ciel's flinch-kiss (aka Togekiss), I decide to be illogical and defeat it with a Dark type. Mightyena outspeeds somehow. Maybe it's because it's Jolly with 252 EV and 29 IV in Speed. Iron Tail connects, Togekiss in red. Mightyena tanks Air Slash. EVERY IRON TAIL CONNECTS FOR 3 TURNS. Metronome boosts its power. Ciel wastes all her Hyper Potions. Togekiss goes down. Impossible is nothing.  

Also, when the offensive moves end, the utility ones start!

Thief to steal items (Hello Heart Scales!), or just cripple beasts (I defeated glitchworld Mewtwo in my first Reborn run by Thieving its Leftovers and Sucker Punching it to death-took a few Ethers/Revives, but it worked!). Snarl to cripple Special Attackers. Swagger to cripple Special Attackers even more! Roar to prevent terrifying beasts (like Bennett's Quiver Dancers) from setting up! Howl to boost your Attack. Hell, it can even Yawn and put things to bed early or Taunt stallers like Luna's Umbreon! Again in my first run, Umbreon just went down to my Mightyena after a Taunt and 2 Metronome-boosted Play Rough strikes!

 

Design: It's a damn badass ominous-looking Wolf-dog. With a golden hue, if shiny.

 

Just give peace this beast a chance. You will LOVE it!  <3