Just because options from tiers exist to deal with broken doesn't make them good or the broken thing balanced. They often require extensive team support to function properly (which restricts teambuilding) and they often get screwed over by other common threats. The reason why Baton Pass is getting dealt with again is because the only non-haxy way to beat it is to have Haze on your team, and Haze has limited distribution on top of basically being used just for Baton Pass.
Also to correct something on the last page, Mega Mence is actually banned in OU Doubles.
The fact that you actually used Slaking unironically to deal with Mega Mence makes me question your competitive knowledge.
Thank you for the correction, I didn't know, in terms of M-Sal (I guess I was thinking VGC).
I never said those Pokemon balance out the move, but I did say the move isn't so "broken" that you have to constantly cower in fear of the burn. 30% is a decent percentage (and could be lower imo) but it's not so bad that if you carry a check, you have to fear it. Now, I know common Pokemon in OU like M-Sab, Clefable, Talonflame and Mega Bro can be difficult to work around, but again, a team having problems with a move is a team problem. It's not a universal thing. I understand that the wide coverage of the Burn Scald can inflict is very powerful, but this same argument can be made for paralyses and Toxic, as well as SR, even with the Defog mechanic change.
You can question my competitive knowledge if you wish, but I'd say go ahead and use something else in that Nintendo Wifi tournament that does better. If you do, then great. I found CB slaking a good option for M-Metagross and M-Sal in that tournament and used it as an "example", but like I said, I wouldn't use it in OU Smogon because it doesn't work. however, the opposite is true for me with Gastrodon. Because it works decently against most Bulky Waters, I use it. I'm not saying you have to, but if your team is weak to a specific thing, you should try to fix it in whatever way works best for you.
Yeah, no. I gotta disagree with that entirely.
Scenario A: Something uses Pixilate Hyper Voice. You predict appropriately, and switch in a steel type. The hit is resisted, and you usually grab the momentum by doing so, since many of the things that resist Hyper Voice also force its users out.
Scenario B: Something uses Scald. You predict appropriately, and switch in a grass or water type. The hit is resisted... but there's a 1 in 3 chance that despite your perfect prediction, a burn occurs. Many water resists, such as Mega Venusaur, Ferrothorn, Gyarados, Rotom-W, Azumarill, and basically anything that doesn't have natural cure, are suddenly either outright crippled, or at the very least, hindered by said burn, due to the attack drop and the residual damage. Even if you force the Scald user out, you still lose momentum due to the burn. You could pack a cleric to try and combat it, but that's adding an extra step, and you need to afford yourself a free turn to Heal Bell/Aromatherapy... assuming you can fit a cleric on your team at all, since they often don't fit in HO teams, for instance.
Pixilate Hyper Voice may have raw power, no one's denying that. But it's not insurmountable since the things that resist it (Steel types and even some Poison types) are found on most teams, and there's no secondary effect that can cripple the resists. What makes Scald so threatening is that you can literally spam it with almost 0 risk or opportunity cost, because the things that are immune to water are rare and/or not viable, and the things not crippled by burns are equally so... especially since the entire type that's immune to burns, Fire types, are weak to Scald itself. I may not be 100% on board with a Scald ban myself, but there's no denying just how spammable it really is, and being able to be used with little to no cost to your team is what makes it so threatening. You need a lot more specificity to prepare for Scald than you do to prepare for Pixilate Hyper Voice.
Cacturne's not even a good check. It can only 3HKO MegaBro with Adamant and Life Orb, while MegaBro can soundly 1HKO it if it's carrying its most common coverage move, Fire Blast. Cacturne has no niche. It's not viable in OU under any circumstances, ever.
I'm not saying Scald is not spammable, because it is. But if a person refuses to use something that can check the spammable move, and then complains about it being a problem, that's another story. I'm not saying HV or KO are broken/should be banned, I'm stating that they are more threatening because my team is weaker to that, than to Scald.
I know very well that Gastrodon isn't the best Pokemon in OU, but when I see a bulky water, I send it out, and generally don't have problems. Keldeo is a decent problem, but then there is Jellicent so...
What I'm saying is that tiers are based on USAGE. A pokemon can do well in the tier for certain things, and be outclassed for others sure, but it can also work fine in the capacity you need it for. If I put Gastrodon on my team, that's little specificity, and Scald becomes also a non-existant problem. I just have to play carefully around the move.
Sub/Disable Cacturne can come in on a Scald/Psyshock, set up a sub, take the Blast, Disable, and force it out, or can go the sash route, and can use block, then disable, and then leech seed. It can work, but like I said, it's niche as heck. But this is what I mean. Instantly, people jump to offensive checking, when defensive checking can be viable as well. I'm not saying Cacturne is AG material, cuss it's a niche. Or that Scald is weak, I'm just saying a lot of people are thinking in smaller boxes than they could be. Scald is a powerful move, but I don't think it needs to be banned at all.
Instance, I came back from a 1-6 deficit to a 1-0 win with a Milotic, because it had Refresh. Does this make it Uber or OP? No, but winning matches eventually comes down to prediction, and whether you can take momentum and keep it. Scald is a easy move to press to do so, but I've seen people Scald Pokemon, and it has no change on the battle, except they lose their sweeper a turn early and something else came in for clean up, while I've seen it also heavily impact a game, like today where I lost 0-2 because of a Scald burn. It happens. It's a percentage play. But I don't think it's so bad as to warrant a ban.
Edit:
Also, for those who do question Gastrodon's viability, have a look at this, quoted from the Keldeo XY page on Smogon:
"Other Options
Expert Belt enables Keldeo to bluff a Choice item. However, Life Orb or Salac Berry is generally better because Keldeo's lack of coverage means it cannot hit many Pokemon super effectively. An offensive Calm Mind set with three attacks and a Life Orb can turn Keldeo into a powerful setup sweeper; however, the Substitute + Calm Mind set is generally better due to the added bulk provided by Leftovers and Substitute's ability to dodge status. Endeavor combined with Substitute or a Focus Sash can enable Keldeo to severely weaken a threat, but it is quite gimmicky and unreliable. Focus Blast is an option for hitting certain physical walls that resist or are immune to Water
such as physically defensive Gastrodon, Tangrowth, and Suicune; however, its bad accuracy and inability to hit Chansey for serious damage make it a far weaker option than Secret Sword. The combination of Rest and Sleep Talk can be used to give Keldeo some form of recovery."
Apparently enough people on Smogon consider it viable to be mentioned as something that can threaten one of the top OU Pokemon. Remember, I'm not saying it's the best, as FB is not a great move, but you have to pick and chose on a team, and because of this, things like Gastrodon can do enough to be viable.
