RicePigeon

*Yume looks at her predecessor with a curious look on her face, as she begins to put her gun down.* "I see... It would appear that you are who you claim to be. But how is this possible? How could, no, why would those from the past be appearing here and now?" *She looks at Hikari suspiciously* "This woman bears a very strong resemblance to the youkai the elders once talked about. The one who created Gensokyo and sought to ensure that mankind would stay enslaved to meet the needs of the youkai. Why would my ancestor ally herself with youkai such as her? Why would the previous Hakurei shrine maiden assist in the enslavement of mankind like this?" *Hikari began to answer, only to be cut off by Yume* "I was asking my ancestor, not you..."

*Yume looks at Meimu with a look of contempt* "And I'm supposed to believe that my ancestors who have been dead for hundreds of years are suddenly walking the earth? You'll have to try harder than that, youkai"

*the gun miko scoffs* "At least get the name right. Its Yume Hakurei. Besides, only the Hakurei shrine maiden like myself can control the Yin Yang orbs. That power is too much for thieves such as yourself. Now I won't ask again... Hand them over."

*the gun maiden points her rifle at Meimu* "I have no idea what details you're talking about, and it probably doesn't concern me. But I see you've heard of me at least." *she then turns her attention to Reimu* "Another shrine maiden? No... a thief I see." *points her gun at Reimu* "You'll return the Hakurei Yin-Yang orbs to my shrine, post haste."

The shrine maiden with the rifle, seems to hold her stance, still aiming at Hikari while keeping an eye on Meimu. "On the ground... nice and easy now, you youkai..." she mutters.

Due to personal issues beyond my control, PotW will be postponed until further notice

"I'm sorry.. have we met before?"

At that moment, Cirian can feel a light tap on her shoulder. "Um... Excuse me..."

Gourgeist really misses out on that passive recovery from Leftovers and scouting/stalling with Protect, though...

Ironically the "best" Gourgeist form is actually the small size, since 99 base speed is pretty fast for something that annoys the crap out of you with Leech Seed and Wisp. Then again, they're pretty much only doing this for the upcoming Battle Spot event

Btw, nominations for the PotW for next Sunday and Wednesday so far are as follows: Lower Tier PotW Nominations (10/05/14) & OU PotW Nominations (10/08/14) & &

Could you be a bit more specific so he (and everyone else) knows exactly what needs to be addressed?

At least hes not asking him for Orochigill's IP address ;p

Except you then have legendary Pokemon that are just absolute garbage. Cases in point: Articuno (sorry Xan), Phione, Regigigas

*Hikari then looks at the people now surrounding her, their interest piqued by her words. She sighs* "Alright... The world I come from, Yukari's antics have caused her to... take in an apprentice. This apprentice, who was once friendly, began to harden her heart, to where she began to seek out someone who could give her a fight to the death. She went around Gensokyo, searching for one who could give her such, but to no avail. All that was left was her master... During that point, her desire for victory had caused her to tap into her power, becoming one with it, and gained the ability to destroy boundaries with her bare hands..." *Hikari looked down in sadness* "...Yukari didn't stand a chance. Her death caused a massive power struggle, as Gensokyo abandoned its spellcard rules. The struggle between humans and youkai reaching a new low as they declared war on each other, killing each other in cold blood at first sight. Its...* *at this point they hear a gun cock, only to see what looks like a shrine maiden resembling Reimu with dog tags holding a rifle, aiming at Hikari.*

Considering I've been covering alot of lower tier Pokemon as PotW, I thought I would cover some higher tier Pokemon as well, so I'll be doing OU PotW every Wednesday and lower tier PotW every Sunday/Monday. With that, I bring you to this guy: Black Kyurem Base Stats (Max Stats Lv.100) (- Nature) (+ Nature) HP: 125 (360-454) Attack: 170 (345-439) (310-395) (379-482) Defense: 100 (205-299) (184-269) (225-328) Sp.Atk: 120 (245-339) (220-305) (269-372) Sp.Def: 90 (185-279) (166-251) (203-306) Speed: 95 (195-289) (175-260) (214-317) Current Tiers: Singles: OU Doubles: DOU Tier Metagame Viability (Singles): Ubers: F (Unviable/Unranked) OU: A- / B+ UU: Banned RU: Banned NU: Banned PU: Banned Tier Metagame Viability (Doubles): DUbers: F (Unviable/Unranked) DOU: A DUU: Banned General Overview (Singles) When one looks at Black Kyurem's massive 700 Base Stat total and status as a legendary box mascot, coupled with its absurdly high base 170 Attack stat, the initial instinct is that such a monster would be deserving of ubers status much like Ho-oh, Kyogre, Dialga, and Zekrom before it. After all, Black Kyurem is literally Kyurem fused with Zekrom. However, many factors have allowed Black Kyurem to drop from ubers to OU since Gen 5. It's Ice/Dragon typing, for instance, leaves it with many weaknesses, including two common priority moves and a weakness to Stealth Rock. In ubers, it is completely outclassed by White Kyurem, who sports identical stats on the Special side, and with good special attacks to utilize it. Black Kyurem, on the other hand, lacks a physical Ice type move to utilize its high physical attack stat outside of Freeze Shock, which should never be used competitively, and its physical movepool in general is barren compared to its special movepool. However, Black Kyurem has found itself at home in OU as a mixed attacker, as it still sports a respectable 120 base Sp.Atk. OU Overview At the time of writing this PotW, Black Kyurem is currently ranked at A- viability in OU, and is currently being nominated for a drop to B+, which may or may not happen. In Gen 5, as well as most of early and mid X&Y, Black Kyurem was used mostly as a mixed wallbreaker, capable of hitting hard while also being rather bulky on both sides. Recently, however, the OU metagame has not been kind to Black Kyurem. With Aegislash's ban, Black Kyurem now finds itself facing fierce competition as a wallbreaker from Mega Heracross, Mega Gardevoir, and Mega Medicham, as well as from Keldeo and Landorus-Incarnate, all of which do not require as much support to be effective as Black Kyurem. However, Black Kyurem can still keep up with the shift towards offense by utilizing a Choice Scarf and fulfilling the role of a revenge killer instead, as its rather average base 95 speed with 224 speed EVs now allows it to reach 423 speed, allowing it to easily outpace fast offensive threats such as Greninja, Mega Manectric, Choice Scarf Landorus-Therian, Choice Scarf Tyranitar, and, with a positive speed nature, Mega Charizard X after a Dragon Dance, smacking most of them with Outrage. Black Kyurem can also run an Assault Vest set, which allows it to check many specially based offensive threats in the metagame while hitting them back hard, even with no attack investment. For example, Assault Vest Black Kyurem 2HKOs Clefable, one of its main checks, with 0 attack investment while only being 4HKOed by Moonblast. Even Mega Charizard Y fails to score a 3HKO while Fusion Bolt OHKOs in return. Moveset (Revenge Killer) Nature: Naughty or Naive / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Choice Scarf EVs: 252 Attack / 32 Sp.Atk / 224 Speed -OR- 32 HP / 252 Attack / 224 Speed Moves: Outrage / Dragon Claw / Fusion Bolt / Ice Beam or Iron Head Tips: As a revenge killer, Black Kyurem should be brought in after the opponent scores a KO, or through indirect switching through U-turn or Volt Switch. Avoid using Outrage if a Fairy or Steel type are present on the opponent's team, otherwise Outrage should be spammed freely. Dragon Claw gives Black Kyurem a safe STAB option when Fairies and Steel types are still present. Ice Beam OHKOs both Landorus formes, while Iron Head is for Clefable, who otherwise walls this set. If using Ice Beam, the first EV spread should be used, otherwise the second spread should be used for Iron Head. Naive nature can be used to outspeed and revenge kill Adamant Dragon Dance Mega Charizard X, otherwise Naughty should be used for extra power. If using Iron Head, Adamant and Jolly can be used over Naughty and Naive, respectively, to regain lost special defense. Recommended Teammates: Steel types (Mega Scizor, Bisharp) Magnezone Stealth Rock users Defog or Rapid Spin users (Starmie, Excadrill, Latios, Latias) Moveset (Assault Vest Tank) Nature: Sassy / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Assault Vest EVs: 248 HP / 44 Defense / 200 Sp.Def / 16 Speed Moves: Ice Beam / Fusion Bolt / Iron Head or Dragon Claw / Dragon Claw or Earth Power Tips: Assault Vest allows Black Kyurem to keep many offensive threats in check, including Thundurus-I, Greninja, Mega Gyarados, Mega Venusaur, Mega Alakazam, and even Mega Charizard Y, avoiding a 2HKO from most, if not all, of them while hitting back hard, even with uninvested offense stats. Iron Head deals with Clefable, who cannot do much back with Moonblast. Pairs very well with pivots and U-turn/Volt Switch users such as Rotom-Wash, Magnezone, Mega Scizor, and Landorus-Therian. Recommended Teammates: Counters to Mega Scizor and Jirachi (Magnezone) Defog or Rapid Spin users (Starmie, Excadrill, Latios, Latias) Volt Switch and/or U-turn users (Landorus-Therian, Magnezone, Rotom-Wash, Mega Scizor) Moveset (Mixed Wallbreaker - Physical Based) Nature: Lonely or Naughty / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Life Orb EVs: 252 Attack / 56 Sp.Atk / 200 Speed Moves: Ice Beam / Dragon Claw / Fusion Bolt / Iron Head or Outrage Tips: Switching into resisted attacks and/or predicted switches is the best way to get Black Kyurem in. Is easy to check and/or revenge kill when facing offensive teams. Iron Head smacks Clefable along with any rock types that may switch in. Recommended Teammates: Defog or Rapid Spin users (Excadrill, Starmie, Latios, Latias) Sweepers (Mega Tyranitar, Gyarados, Mega Gyarados, Manaphy, etc) Moveset (Mixed Wallbreaker - Special Based) Nature: Mild or Rash / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Life Orb EVs: 56 Attack / 252 Sp.Atk / 200 Speed Moves: Ice Beam / Earth Power / Fusion Bolt / Roost or Outrage Tips: This set struggles to beat Clefable, and Chansey if it lacks Outrage. Ice Beam 2HKOs Ferrothorn, but Hidden Power Fire can be used in the last slot to OHKO, as well as OHKO Mega Scizor. Teravolt Earth Power strikes Rotom-Wash, while also dealing with Heatran. Switching into resisted attacks and/or predicted switches is the best way to get Black Kyurem in. Is easy to check and/or revenge kill when facing offensive teams. Recommended Teammates: Defog or Rapid Spin users (Excadrill, Starmie, Latios, Latias) Terrakion General Overview (Doubles) DOU Overview Black Kyurem is just as much as an offensive powerhouse in Doubles as in Singles. He can be quite unpredictable with its ability to run as a mixed attacker. Although slow, Teravolt helps it take down threats such as Rotom-Wash, Rotom-Heat, and Mega Venusaur. Moveset (Doubles Substitute Special Attacker) Nature: Modest / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Leftovers EVs: 228 HP / 252 Sp.Atk / 28 Sp.Def Moves: Ice Beam / Earth Power / Substitute / Protect Tips: Substitute in conjunction with Protect allows Black Kyurem to survive plenty of hits while buying its partner time. Take advantage of Black Kyurem's resistances to Electric and Water to set up Substitute. With 228 HP and 28 Sp.Def, Cresselia, Grass types, and most Electric types will not be able to break Black Kyurem's Substitutes most of the time. Useful for clearing out threats to rain teams such as Mega Venusaur, Amoongus, and Rotom-Wash. Recommended Teammates: Aegislash Kingdra Heatran Landorus-Therian Mega Charizard Y or Mega Charizard X Thundurus-Incarnate Rotom-Wash Moveset (Doubles Mixed Attacker) Nature: Lonely / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Life Orb or @Expert Belt EVs: 240 Attack / 44 Sp.Atk / 224 Speed Moves: Dragon Claw or Outrage / Fusion Bolt or Earth Power / Ice Beam / Protect Tips: Dragon Claw easily takes down almost every Dragon type in Doubles. Dragon Claw is preferred over Outrage as it allows you choose a target, but Outrage can be used for extra power. Fusion Bolt nails Politoed and Mega Charizard Y. Earth Power is used for Rotom-Wash, Rotom-Heat, and Heatran. Protect is used to scout the opponent's sets as well as avoid taking damage in situations where the opponent would double target Black Kyurem. This Black Kyurem moveset should be used with partners that can perform speed control, such as through Icy Wind, Thunder Wave, or Tailwind. Recommended Teammates: Gardevoir (Choice Scarf sets only) Quick Guard users (Hitmontop, Terrakion) Tailwind users (Togekiss) Follow Me or Rage Powder users (Togekiss, Amoongus) Scizor/Mega Scizor Moveset (Doubles Choice Band) Nature: Adamant / Ability: Teravolt / Item: @Choice Band EVs: 24 HP / 252 Attack / 232 Speed Moves: Dragon Claw / Fusion Bolt / Outrage / Ice Beam or Rock Slide Tips: Use Dragon Claw when it is not safe to spam Outrage. Ice Beam should be used if Ice type coverage is needed, otherwise Rock Slide can be used for spread damage Be sure to KO opposing Fairies and Steel types, as well as users of Intimidate and Will-o-Wisp, before using Outrage. Recommended Teammates: Togekiss or Jirachi (Follow Me variants) Gardevoir (Choice Scarf sets only) Mega Charizard Y Fairy type resists (Aegislash, Scizor, Mega Scizor) Terrakion checks/counters (Aegislash, Scizor, Mega Scizor) External Links: Smogon Analysis (OU) Smogon Analysis (DOU)

Some news in the tiers: OU News: Viability ranking updates : C ---> C+ Mega Houndoom moved up because it's a good way to take advantage of the rise in Psychic-types and Gengar, as it checks both, while being a 100% counter to SubWoW Gengar and Mew, which is great. It also has a fantastic Speed tier that lets it outspeed most of the tier and hits pretty hard with just its STABs and Nasty Plot. : C+ ---> C Mega Absol is too frail and easy to check to be in C+, while also struggling to switch unMEvolved into the threats that Mega Houndoom can, such as Gengar and Mew, because it's afraid of WoW. Landorus-T, Fighting, and Fairy-types make Absols' life harder (Azumarill, Clefable, Keldeo, Terrakion), where Mega Houndoom covers most of them between Fire Blast and Hidden Power Grass / Fighting. : C ---> C+ The reasons for Doublade's rise in rank is already covered in the PotW above. To reiterate: although Doublade is kinda dead weight outside of beating 10 specific Pokemon, these 10 specific Pokemon are so hugely threatening to Stall teams that Doublade has pretty much become a necessity for them. : Stays in D Chansey has alot more physical bulk than Blissey, but as far as stall is concerned, Blissey is not knock off prone and lefties is really helpful in regards to sandstorm, status, and hazard-stack double switches (which is the most common way offense deals with stall). Blissey has passable Sp.Atk so that it can run flamethrower/ice beam which is kinda noteworthy i guess (0 SpA Blissey Flamethrower vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Gengar: 65-77 (24.9 - 29.5%)-isn't stalled out by gengar too which fks most stall teams :o). but what it comes down to is the team you are using it with. do u need a secondary physical wall that can take on things like mega pinsir,gyara, or land-t so that u can twave/toxic it? or can you afford the loss in bulk for added longevity. Blissey isn't completely unviable in ou. : A+ ---> A Ferrothorn dropped because the metagame is prepared for it, with magnezone and special attackers using HP Fire being everywhere. : Stays in A+ Landorus-T stayed in A+ because it doesn't excel in a single role as much as the other Pokemon in S rank do and lacks versatility in comparison with the Pokemon that are in S rank mainly because of their versatility, such as Mega Charizard X. Both of Landorus-T's sets are dead weight against stall teams outside of the U-turn chip damage, and none of them is especially good offensively or defensively in general, at least not enough for S rank. Scarf Landorus-T is the best scarfer true, but it lacks a spammable STAB and needs to predict correctly between the move that KOes the opponent and U-turn to not give up momentum, a problem many of the S rank Pokemon don't have (Specs Keldeo has Scald, Azumarill and Thundurus's most effective sets are not choice locked). And of course there is the opportunity cost in being unable to run Landorus-I. : S ---> A+ Landorus-I dropped because it's hard hitting ability is less needed as the metagame becomes more offensive, while its only good Speed becomes a bigger flaw. Also, it competes for a teamslot with Landorus-T, adding a significant opportunity cost. : B+ ---> A- Magnezone moved because it can trap most relevant Steel-types between its Scarf and Air Balloon sets, while also providing defensive utility by checking birdpsam, Mega Gardevoir, Clefable, and SD Mega Scizor. : A- ---> B+ Breloom moved because it's getting easier and easier to check after sleep has been activated, as outside of Amoonguss and Mega Vevusaur, Pokemon such as Mega Heracross and Mew, that have risen a lot in usage over the past months, easily wall it. It's also much easier to anti-lead, with Jolly Mega Heracross and Fake Out Mega Medicham rising in usage. SD + LO is potent but the metagame hasn't adapted to this set yet, so it will stay in B+ until we see how the SD set fares in a metagame prepared for it. : B+ ---> B Mandibuzz lost viability because one of the primary reasons for its usage, Aegislash, has vanished, and it can't run a set that functions with as much efficacy in the current metagame. : Stays in D Salamence stays in D because nobody has presented a really good reason to use it over other Dragon-types with late-game cleaning abilities. Moxie Outrage is cool and all in theory, but i would prefer a much initially stronger Outrage, useful resistances, and the ability to fuck up physical Ground-types with Ice Beam that Scarf Kyurem-B provides. Or, Scarf Garchomp's superior STABs, bulk, and typing. Or, CB Dragonite's superior wallbreaking, defensive, and revenge killing abilities. Almost completely outclassed, stays in D. : C- ---> C Tangrowth is an excellent answer to Sand Rush Excadrill. It beats it much more convincingly than Ferrothorn (dies after a bit of chip damage, needs Power Whip to beat it and is completely ruined by the SD variant) Celebi (has a very real chance to lose to Iron Head Flinches), MVenu or Amoonguss (who straight up lose). It also has a good niche as an Azumarill counter that's not completely ruined by Magnezone or Banded Superpower, and though it does lose to the BD set, that set is pretty uncommon atm compared to band and especially AV. Even though Celebi also counters non-BD Azumarill too, Tangrowth does it much more convincingly. Unlike Celebi, who can get worn down over time, Tangrowth doesn't have to worry about this at all thanks to Regenerator, and its Ground immunity, increased offensive presence and far greater physical bulk makes it a good pick over Amoonguss is a lot of cases. It's also an excellent answer to Terrakion (even takes banded X Scissor which Celebi does not), Bisharp (all Ferro can do is leech seed really, and Celebi and Venu kinda just lose pathetically), Landorus-T (Celebi, believe it or not, takes a U-Turn but doesn't take it well at all, and Ferro gets eaten by Zone) and Crawdaunt, which I've seen a ton more of, and who can dispose of Amoonguss, Celebi and Ferro with Banded Knock Off (you can lose to LO SD with Tangrowth but Band is the more common set from my experience). For the most part, it's eclipsed by these other grass types, but it does hold quite a few advantages over them, to the point where it's definitely a solid option for quite few teams, especially if you're Excadrill and Bisharp weak (the latter of which seems to happen a lot). : B ---> B+ Celebi moved because its Speed, Nasty Plot, ability, support movepool, and Psychic typing are big pros over Amoonguss, Ferrothorn, and Mega Venusaur. : B+ ---> A- Politoed move because rain teams benefit from the increase in offensive teams, against which rain teams fare really good. Also, rain teams are getting more versatile, which helps. : C+ ---> B- Sylveon moved because it's defensive set fares better than Clefable against offensive stat boosters and Sub users (Sub Mega Hera, Mega Gyarados, NP Thundurus, Sub Kyu-B, SD Garchomp, SubCM Keldeo, Sub + SD Terrakion, Sub Mega Medicham), and because its Specs set is good enough for B-. : C+ ---> C : C+ ---> C Both Espeon and Smeargle have dropped in viability as the viability of both are intertwined with the other; Espeon is never seen without Smeargle, and Smeargle is never seen without Espeon. The two are only seen on teams dedicated to Geomancy + Baton Pass Smeargle. : C+ ---> C Mega Aggron moved because it's quite a bit inferior to Rhyperior outside of checking Fairy-types, such as Azumarill, Mega Gardevoir, and Clefable. Rhyperior has a much better typing for a physical tank, better STABs, Lefties, and doesn't occupy your moveslot. Mega Aggron is more or less one whole rank less viable than Rhyperior in this metagame, and should only be used over it if your team was Fairy-weak. : Unranked ---> D Lanturn has better overall bulk than Rotom-W, while also being able to provide Heal Bell support while simultaneously being immune to Paralysis. Electric-types are also a pain in the ass for many teams. Lanturn has an easier time checking threats that Rotom-W can, such as Raikou, and can absorb Scalds thanks to Water Absorb. UU News: Smeargle Banned Smeargle suspect test voting is done and Smeargle was voted to stay banned from UU. Geomancy has been unbanned as a result of the Smeargle ban (since nothing else in the tier can use it) Victini is now undergoing a suspect test to see if it can be allowed to return to UU. RU News: Moltres & Meloetta Suspects Moltres and Meloetta are gaining support for suspect tests, which may or may not happen before ORAS is released.

Not sure where you got the idea that Doublade is fragile, unless you mean its special defense stat. You'll never see Odor Sleuth or Magic Eye (which does nothing against Ghost or Steel types btw) in serious competitive play aside from Foresight Hitmontop, who uses it exclusively for the purpose of being able to rapid spin against ghost types. Again, Glass Cannon? Its used as a wall or tank for the purpose of being able to switch in to physical attackers that most other Pokemon wouldn't dare attempt switching in to, and the only reason it sees any use is because Aegislash is banned from everything in Singles except ubers.

*Hikari watches as Maribel leaves, troubled by what had just occured* ("It may not be too late... If she's destined to become her, I can at least make her hold on to her human heart, her positive qualities. With those, I just may end up preventing her death...") *She proceeds to look at Meimu* "If you care that much about your master, then you should head to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. If this Gensokyo's history is to repeat itself, then her death can be prevented there..."

Well time for the next PotW, this one being one that caught my personal interest: Doublade Base Stats (Max Stats Lv.100) (- Nature) (+ Nature) HP: 59 (228-332) Attack: 110 (225-319) (202-287) (247-350) Defense: 150 (305-399) (274-359) (334-438) Sp.Atk: 45 (95-189) (85-170) (104-207) Sp.Def: 49 (103-197) (92-177) (113-216) Speed: 35 (75-169) (67-152) (82-185) Current Tiers: Singles: RU Doubles: DUU Tier Metagame Viability (Singles): Ubers: F (Unviable/Unranked) OU: C+ UU: B- RU: S NU: Banned PU: Banned Tier Metagame Viability (Doubles): DUbers: F (Unviable/Unranked) DOU: F (Unviable/Unranked) DUU: F (Unviable/Unranked) General Overview (Singles) Before X&Y were released, we were introduced to Honedge and its evolution Doublade, the first Ghost/Steel types in the series. Once X&Y was released, we discovered that Doublade had a final evolution in the form of Aegislash, a Pokemon that, through its ability Stance Change and its signature move King's Shield, severely outclassed anything Doublade could do in the upper tiers, forever solidifying Doublade's fate to the lower tiers... At least until Aegislash was banned from OU in October of 2014. OU Overview The banning of Aegislash brought upon a very drastic change in the OU environment. With the only viable Ghost/Steel type gone, Mega Heracross, Terrakion, Mega Pinsir, Mega Medicham, and Mega Gardevoir have all skyrocketed in viability, as the former three are no longer required to fit Earthquake in their movesets, while the latter two are no longer forced to run Fire Punch and Shadow Ball, respectively. Additionally, Staraptor use has also skyrocketed from the lack of a Pokemon that resists or is immune to all three of Brave Bird, Double Edge, and Close Combat. These factors would have caused defensive stall teams to take a huge hit in viability, were it not for the fact that Doublade exists. It possesses the exact same typing as Aegislash, along with a physical defense stat identical to Aegislash's Shield forme that, when coupled with its similar base HP and Eviolite, gives Doublade more physical bulk than its evolution and thus able to tank physical hits better, while still maintaining an offensive presence with its base 110 attack stat, even when uninvested. While it may be tempting to invest towards its physical defense or attack, investing towards Special Defense allows Doublade to avoid a 2HKO from Mega Gardevoir while hitting back with Gyro Ball. Doublade, however, lacks the special bulk and nuking ability of its preevolution, so it is often dead weight when used outside of stall teams. No Guard often does more harm to Doublade than good, as it not allows moves with imperfect accuracy such as Fire Blast and Hydro Pump to hit it without fail. Additionally, Doublade lacks a reliable recovery move outside of Rest, a factor that can make or break a defensive Pokemon, so it requires Wish and/or Heal Bell support to keep it healthy so that it can continually check or counter the Pokemon it is meant to. Overall, Doublade has a huge niche on OU stall teams that no other Pokemon can replicate, one that most Stall teams cannot survive without nowadays. Sample Moveset: Nature: Brave / Ability: No Guard / Item: @Eviolite EVs: 240 HP / 16 Attack / 252 Special Defense IVs: 31 / 31 / 31 / X / 31 / 0 Moves: Gyro Ball / Toxic / Rest / Sleep Talk, Sacred Sword, or Pursuit Recommended Teammates: Any Heal Bell/Aromatherapy user (Chansey, Clefable, etc) Slowbro Mega Venusaur or Mega Charizard X Amoongus Any Stealth Rock setter (Hippowdon, Skarmory, Clefable, Chansey) Clefable Gliscor (Specially Defensive) UU Overview Unlike OU where Doublade tries to fit in as a wall, Doublade is used as a tank in UU, sponging hits with its 3 immunities and 9 resistances while dishing out damage. It turns into a very potent sweeper when used on Trick Room teams in the tier, sporting perfect neutral coverage with the combination of Sacred Sword and Shadow Sneak / Shadow Claw. The tank set has just enough physical bulk to switch in to most physical moves, including weak super effective ones, but must watch out for mixed variants of Pokemon such as Sharpedo and Hydreigon. Alternatively, Doublade can run a defensive set similar to the one it uses in OU, though physically inclined rather than Specially Defensive. Sample Moveset (Tank): Nature: Brave / Ability: No Guard / Item: @Eviolite EVs: 240 HP / 252 Attack / 16 Special Defense IVs: 31 / 31 / 31 / X / 31 / 0 Moves: Gyro Ball / Swords Dance / Sacred Sword / Shadow Sneak Sample Moveset (Wall): Nature: Relaxed / Ability: No Guard / Item: @Eviolite EVs: 240 HP / 252 Defense / 16 Special Defense IVs: 31 / 31 / 31 / X / 31 / 0 Moves: Rest / Sleep Talk / Shadow Claw or Sacred Sword / Gyro Ball or Toxic Recommended Teammates (Tank): Hydreigon Any Special Wall (Assault Vest Meloetta, Umbreon, Florges, Porygon2) Any Wish passer (Alomomola, Umbreon, Florges, Aromatisse) Any Bulky Water type (Vaporeon, Quagsire, Swampert, Suicune) Any Flying type or Levitate user (Mega Aerodactyl, Rotom-Heat, Flygon) Trick Room users Status Absorbers or Fire types (Rotom-Heat) Recommended Teammates (Wall): Hydreigon Any Special Wall (Assault Vest Meloetta, Umbreon, Florges, Porygon2) Any Bulky Water type (Vaporeon, Quagsire, Swampert, Suicune) Any Flying type or Levitate user (Mega Aerodactyl, Rotom-Heat, Flygon) Trick Room users RU Overview Doublade sits at home in RU as a top tier threat, and perhaps the best spinblocker in the tier. It checks and/or counters a ton of threats in the tier, including Cobalion, Virizion, Hitmonlee, Braviary, Durant, and Cresselia. In RU, Doublade can fit only many different team playstyles, both offensive and defensive, due to its combination of physical bulk and offensive presence. Like in all other tiers, Doublade needs to watch out for Special attackers and Knock Off users, the latter of which removes its Eviolite and significantly impacts its ability to take hits. Unlike the upper tiers, a RestTalk set isn't as viable in RU as Doublade will be sacrificing its offensive presence in the tier, which if more beneficial in the long run. Sample Moveset: Nature: Adamant / Ability: No Guard / Item: @Eviolite EVs: 212 HP / 252 Attack / 44 Speed IVs: 31 / 31 / 31 / X / 31 / 31 Moves: Iron Head / Swords Dance / Shadow Claw / Shadow Sneak Recommended Teammates: Any Entry Hazard user Any Wish user (Alomomola, Aromatisse) Any Specially Defensive Tank or Wall (Slowking, Aromatisse, Virizion, Druddigon) Any Fighting type (Hitmonlee, Hitmontop, Emboar) General Overview (Doubles) Unlike in Singles, where Doublade's evolution, Aegislash, is banned from every tier except ubers, Doublade is outclassed by its evolution, which currently resides in DOU. DOU Overview Everything Doublade can do, Aegislash typically does better, and Doublade loses out on crucial components that its evolution gets, such as King's Shield, 150 base Special Defense, and 150 base Special Attack to spam Shadow Ball and Hidden Power Ice with. Furthermore, Doublade also loses out on Wide Guard, which only its evolution gets. In short, don't use Doublade in DOU, use Aegislash instead. DUU Overview DUU is still in its infancy, but Doublade is not yet ranked in this metagame. External Links: Smogon Analysis (OU) Smogon Analysis (UU) Smogon Analysis (RU)

"This isnt good" *Hikari goes up to Maribel and puts a hand on her shoulder, looking into Maribel's eyes with a very concerned look on her face* "Merry... just now, you became her. Do you know that? Just now you let your power take control of you." *Hikari looked away from Maribel and at Gensokyo's ruins* "... You lost your humanity, even if it was for a brief second. Something like that is what will ultimately cause your world to become this place..."

"Maribel killing herself simply isn't an option... If she dies, so does Yukari and all of Gensokyo..." *She turns her attention toward Maribel* "Yes... it's true, Maribel. Yukari Yakumo is your future self..." *She proceeds to give Maribel a hug* "...which makes me your cousin."

*Hikari nods* "I thought so... This destruction that you see around you is what is left of Gensokyo 200 years from now in my universe. A destruction that you caused. Not intentionally, of course, but... Somewhere along your future, you allowed your power to grow beyond your control. You then set into action a course of events that... resulted in your death, causing this to happen. Because your power grew out of control, it changed you... psychologically, as if you became a different person." *Hikari looks down in sadness, taking a deep breath and clenching her hands together.* "... Yukari Yakumo... is that person."

Scarlet Devil Mansion *Yukari, who is already there, notices Raina* "My my... is today impersonation day? First myself, and now Reimu. What else will th.." *Yukari's taunt is cut short as her eyes widen with a blank stare of horror, gasping.* Hakurei Shrine *Hikari nods at Lily, opening a portal and holding Maribel by the hand and walking in* "Merry, one day you're going to have to make a decision. Where I'm from, your power, the power than we both share, eventually consumes you. When it does, this is what happens as a result..." *The two step out of her portal, now standing on what seems to be Gensokyo's landscape, but barren and almost lifeless as the ground appears scorched. The Hakurei shrine is now demolished, and what appears to be an old WWI-era bunker has been erected next to it.* "Tell me Merry, is this the dream world you desired?"