drampa's grandpa
benign auto-cannibal
My initial thoughts on this are as follows:I was looking at the Staaabmons mashup, and some things caught my eye, and some things I think we should consider.
1. I think we should unban Tapu Lele: Lele was banned in part in Stabmons because of the secondary effects that Psychic Surge has as well as its good offensive stats (post link here). However in AAA, the ability that Lele provided in Stabmons can now be seen on any pokemon, and thus Tapu Lele's unique utility that caused it to be banned in Stabmons is no longer unique, and thus can be unbanned.
2. I think we can unban Tapu Koko (maybe a suspect test of sorts): In AAA, Koko's best abilities are Galvanize and Pixilate in order to fix its moveset problems. However, in Stabmons, its moveset problems are no longer an issue as it can run Bolt Strike and Play Rough. The difference was that the power and versatility that Koko had in Stabmons caused it to be banned (post link here). Although, part of that power comes from its ability in Electric Surge which boosts Electric type moves. Although, similarly to Tapu Lele, Electric Surge can also be seen anywhere, and thus is no longer unique to Tapu Koko. AAA also has Motor Drive / Volt Absorb, allowing things like Skarmory to hardwall Tapu Koko. Tapu Koko's main sets in either metagame seem invalidated due to the other metagame, so I'm not entirely sure where it could fall, but it seems worth looking at.
3. I think we can unban Porygon Z: Porygon Z was banned in Stabmons due to its "raw power thanks to adaptability" (post link here). However, Adaptability is abundant in AAA, so Porygon Z isn't special in that sense anymore. However, I believe we should keep an eye on Adaptability. Adaptability has made some Pokemon problematic in AAA, like Terrakion with nearly unresisted coverage, and that was banned. Adding Stabmons to the mix, most Pokemon get improved Stab moves (a la Tapu Koko), and then Adaptability further enhances that power, and it could quickly spiral out of control.
If this mashup gets played more often (via tours and such), then other things might come to light, these are just my initial thoughts having looked at the banlist for Staaabmons.
1. Tapu Lele is probably a pretty safe unban. I can see Tinted Lens sets being decent, but not unbalanced in a meta that will likely lean towards offense, at least to begin. I will welcome any other discussion of this mon, but if nobody has other opinions I will unban it.
2. Tapu Koko is not a safe unban. Unbans are not my priority unless they are extremely obvious, and I don't think this one is. Tapu Koko still has an insane 130 base speed and in staaabmons can run Sheer Force, Tough Claws, or Adaptability to boost its newfound strong STAB moves. It's certainly not impossible that it will be balanced; electric immunities are much easier to come by now with Volt Absorb and co. I can see testing this if we ever get some form of ladder, but until then it will remain banned, and if we do get a ladder banning broken things will be a much higher priority.
3. Porygon-Z is also probably not broken. Adaptability honestly might be. However I can't think of any new reliable counters for Porygon-Z besides memey Soundproof mons. Other Pokemon (such as Meloetta) probably generally outclass this in theory thanks to superior bulk, typing, and / or speed. What do you guys think about this one?
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