The “Nifty Or Thrifty” article series takes a comprehensive look at the meta for PvP Cup formats: Little Jungle Cup REMIX, in this case. As is typical for the NoT series, I’ll cover not only the top meta picks, but also some mons where you can save some dust with cheaper second move unlock costs or less powering up.
Because for those on a stardust budget—and/or folks trying to save up some dust for the future—it can be daunting trying to figure out where to spend or not spend it. We all want to field competitive teams, but where can we get the best bang for our buck?
It can be hard to psyche yourself up to really invest much in a format like this… I mean, Little League formats are clearly here to stay, but they’ve been varied enough that any investments here may have a looooong gap before you can use them again. So as I usually do, I’ll start with those with the cheapest second move unlock cost and work our way up, and try to put even a little more emphasis than usual on the “thriftiest” stuff.
Gonna to try to be comprehensive with this, but can’t go into detail on everything I want to. To that end, I will only be highlighting Shadow versions when they’re particularly relevant… many are worse, and that’s what you can infer if I don’t talk about them.
Little Jungle Cup Remix Rules
Quick rule review for this format:
- Pokémon must be at or below 500 CP to enter.
- Only Normal-, Grass-, Electric-, Poison-, Ground-, Flying-, Bug-, and Dark-type Pokémon will be eligible.
- The three Pokémon most used by Trainers Ace rank and up in the last Little Jungle Cup will not be allowed in the Little Jungle Cup Remix.
- In addition, Salandit, Shuckle, and Smeargle are not permitted.
So here’s our full banlist:
BANNED IN REMIX:
Alright, so the core of this article from here on out is my writeup for previous Little Jungle Cup metas, trimmed to take out things that are banned and add in some new things (or things that have slid way up in the rankings as a result of new moves and/or the above bans). It’s not DRASTICALLY different from the past, but there are some key differences, which I will highlight. (Usually with a big “NEW!“).
Alright, here we go!
10,000 Dust/25 Candy
WHIMSICOTT (NEW!)
Charm | Grass Knot & Hurricane/Moonblast
No more Cottonee, but that just means more WHIMSIE. It’s actually very similar to Cottonee in performance, just with higher Attack and less bulk, so unlike Cottonee, it can outrace Abomasnow, Swinub, and but loses to Wigglytuff that Cotton tends to beat. I daresay that Whimsicott may actually be… better? So much for THAT ban. We have a MAJOR loophole!
WIGGLYTUFF
Charm | Ice Beam & Play Rough
The other true Charmer in this meta, Wigglytuff has the potential for similar success as compared to Whimsicott… if you can find one small enough, of course. (We’re talking under Level 10, usually.) It lacks Whimsie’s Ground resistance, so Wiggly loses much harder to G-Fisk and also cannot overcome Chansey (Whimsie does), though ironically can more easily beat Onix than Whimsie can. Wiggly is no slouch, and a fine alternative if you don’t want the downsides that also come with having Whimsie’s Grass typing (weak to Ice, Fire, etc.)… or want to run an evil multi-Charmer team. *shudder*
DUBWOOL (NEW!)
Double Kick | Body Slam & Wild Charge
It’s not very often an inexpensive new option crashes onto the scene this hard, but that’s what having great charge moves and suddenly backing it up with a new, really good fast move (Double Kick, in this case) can do for you! Dubstep is not meta-warping or anything, but it is most certainly part of the meta now, just as it is in Great and Ultra Leagues this season!
ALTARIA
Dragon Breath | Sky Attack & Dragon Pulse/Moonblastᴸ
It may be hard enough to get one of these ahead of time already, seeing as how it costs 400 candy to evolve and you may not even have a Swablu small enough for the resulting evolved Altaria to slip in below 500 CP anyway. But another unfortunate wrinkle: IVs matter quite a bit here too. An average Altaria (with high Defense and HP IVs but average Attack) looks notably less effective than an Altaria with good PvP IVs. The differences, by the way, are Deino and Shadow Stunky, and really good IV Altaria can also overcome Vigoroth, so maybe those aren’t such a big deal for you. But the better IVs you can find ahead of time (low Attack, high D/HP), the better. Despite being critically weak to popular Fairies, Altaria is very legit in this meta. (Sadly not so for Swablu, however.)
PYROAR
Fire Fang | Flame Charge & Overheat
There are precious few ways to deal with Whimsicott AND G-Fisk, but Fire is one of them, and Pyroar is the highest ranked Fire in this format, easily clearing Whimsie and G-Fisk (though it does need a shield for the latter), as well as burning through every single Steel and Ice type, all Bugs but Crustle and Dwebble, and all Grasses except Lotad/Lombre/Ludicolo and Alolan Exeggutor, none of which should be particularly prevalent in this meta. And as a bonus, it can burn down Golbat, Dubwool, and even the mighty Chansey, and somehow even forces a tie with Nidoqueen. Still, Pyroar is admittedly quite niche… though it’s a critically important niche.
INCINEROAR
Fire Fang | Flame Charge & Dark Pulse
Basically an alternative to Pyroar/Litleo that loses to the Fairies but beats Darks instead like Stunky and Mandibuzz (for those who somehow sneak the Dark Bird into the format). Admittedly, neither this nor Pyroar are overly exciting, but they certainly have their place!
CHARIZARD
Fire Spin | Dragon Claw & Blast Burnᴸ/Overheat
You need a tiny one — I’m talking like Level 6 or so — but if Pyroar and Incineroar don’t work for you, Charizard may actually be more acheiveable. It isn’t quite on the same level as Pyroar overall, but does have the advantage of being good against Fighting damage. And if you can’t get Blast Burn, don’t despair… Overheat can work in a pinch instead. The only downside is that, being rather frail, Charizard does beat Whimsicott but only just barely. (And it loses to Wigglytuff.)
Talonflame
Fire
Other Flying Birds like TALONFLAME or even FLETCHINDER work too, but they usually lose to G-Fisk, so keep that firmly in mind. Not too surprisingly, for the record, Talonflame is the best of all with shields down, but NONE of them can overcome G-Fisk without having a shield to throw up against Rock Slide.
BARBOACH
Mud Shot | Aqua Tail & Ice Beam
A Mud Boy makes total sense as a G-Fisk slayer, of course, but as something that can potentially beat Whimsicott too? With Ice Beam, Barboach has a great way to threaten Whimsie and other Grasses, and that Whimsicott win comes with high rank (AKA high bulk) IVs, with which it can also take down Swinub and Umbreon. But a Barboach with relatively high Attack wins CMP versus most Obstagoons and flips that to a win, as well as new threat Dubwool. This all in addition to already decimating G-Fisk and beating a wide variety of Poisons, Fires, Grounds, Dragons, and Flyers. If you have a Barboach with good Attack OR good bulk, run it through some of those sims and see if it can achieve those high marks, because if it can, it’s very, very solid in the Little Jungle and probably the best Mud Boy here.
Swampert
WaterGround
PvPoke also likes to recommend SWAMPERT, and it’s pretty easy to see why. But as with Charizard and other fully evolved starters, you have to have a REALLY low level one, and unlike Charizard, Swampie simply HAS to have its exclusive move — Hydro Cannon — to work well. With Surf instead it no longer has sufficient punch to knock out Zubat/Golbat, Scrafty, or Chansey. Viable still, but at that point you’re probably better off with Boach or Wooper or the like. I don’t recommend building a Swampert just for this format… but do be prepared to face a few and plan accordingly. Do note that the answer to the question of “can Sludge Wave beat Whimsicutt?” is a very clear no unless it just doesn’t shield for some reason. Too slow and too frail. MAYBE a small WHISCASH instead, as it at least has Blizzard than potentially CAN potentially surprise Grasses.
DIGGERSBY
Mud Shot | Fire Punch & Earthquake
Might be easier to build from scratch if you’ve been stockpiling Bunnelby candy, as Diggs clocks in around Level 12 or 13 at Little League size, twice the level of stuff like Swampert. Diggs is also capable of overcoming Whimsicott thanks to Fire Punch, and does plenty of other good besides. It’s not ranked impressively high, but I think Diggs could be a BIG player in this meta… and unlike Great League, you don’t have to sell a major appendage to build it!
BEEDRILL
Poison Jab | X-Scissor & Drill Runᴸ
And the other side of the coin, as Bee easily beats Whimsie and others, but has to have an energy lead or something to have a shot at G-Fisk. Shadow Bee may be better (gaining Umbreon and sometimes Chansey) but still suffers from the same problem: likely burning an Elite TM to build, and really only handling half of the WhimsieFisk core while merely threatening the other half. It’s a problem that’s even more extreme for things like ARIADOS, SPINARAK, and other Poisonous Bugs. They have a place, but they’re limited.
BULBASAUR
Vine Whip | Seed Bomb & Power Whip/Sludge Bomb
Which is where little Bulbasaur comes in. The first thought is that surely you want to run Sludge Bomb to deal with Fairies, right? Actually, Bulba can beat the Cotton Ball with just Grass moves, and it NEEDS Power Whip to reliably get G-Fisk in time too. So Power Whip/Sludge Bomb then, right? Well, NOW you miss out on Scrafty, Toxicroak, Vigoroth, Dubwool, and Obstagoon without the relative speed of Seed Bomb. I think Seed Bomb/Power Whip is the best compromise, trading theoretical coverage (and a wider margin of victory over Fairies) for reliability and best overall utility. Hopefully you have a Bulbasaur from Element Cup that’s just a TM away from being ready here.
Or one other option, while we’re on the topic: Shadow Bulbasaur actually CAN mostly get away with running Seed Bomb/Sludge Bomb, as it can finish off G-Fisk without Power Whip, reliably handle Fairies, and beat everything non-Shadow, all-Grass Bulba can except Umbreon. If you have a Shadow Bulba to use, that’s the way to go with it.
There are other Grass starters that work here too, of course, including CHIKORITA, TURTWIG (best as a Shadow), TORTERRA (no exclusive move required!), and others, but Bulbasaur really stands out here as the best, even moreso than Frenzy Plant VENUSAUR.
PIKACHU (LIBRE)
Thunder Shock/Charm | Flying Press & Thunder Punch
In perhaps the ultimate case of have-or-have-not, we have the Legend tier reward for GBL for the last several seasons… and that’s been the ONLY way to get Libre at all. Even further, if you have one with too high IVs, it won’t fit under 500 CP, so you need one with something like 10-12-11 IVs or lower for it to even work. (looks sadly at my own Libres, none under 500 CP 😭) If you meet all those criteria, then yes, you have a pretty nice little weapon on your hands… a solid Electric that can also rough up G-Fisk, Swinub, Aboma, and numerous Normals (including Chansey!) and Darks, all thanks to the overpowered Flying Press.
But Libre can do more than that… you can legit run it as a Charmer! In that configuration, it gives up G-Fisk, Swinub, several Flyers (Ducklett, Golbat, Skarmory), and Chansey to instead beat Altaria, Deino, Umbreon, Swampert, and Shadow Stunky and REALLY dominate Obstagoon, Scrafty, and Toxicroak instead of the tight races they were before.
There are other Pikachu varieties that are fun, but not quite as useful. ROCK STAR can also work as a classic Electric or even better Charmer and do good thing, but neither have any chance against G-Fisk and the only way it even takes advantage of Meteor Mash versus Whimsicott is if Whimsie just fails to shield. POP STAR really only works as a Charmer. FLYING just doesn’t really work at all, failing to beat even a shieldless Whimsicott. The NEW SHAYMIN SCARF version is a jack of all trades, but master of none. REGULAR PIKACHU actually works out pretty well… IF it has Legacy, first-ever-Community-Day-move Surf, with which it can beat Swinub, Onix, Nidoqueen, and Toxicroak… though sadly not G-Fisk without a shield or serious energy advantage. And all that is all WAY more than I ever expected to type about Pikachu in PvP! 😤
GOLBAT
Wing Attack | Poison Fang & Shadow Ball
Again, gotta be kinda small (under Level 10, usually), but at least you don’t need any fancy Legacy moves or anything. Golbat is actually probably one the very easiest things to go out and build fresh for this meta and do a lot for you, obviously shredding Fairies and Grasses and Bugs, but also capably handling Fighters, enemy Flyers (Altaria, Ducklett, and even Skarmory!), the great evil known as Chansey, and even fighting Nidoqueen to a standstill. Shadow Bat is an interesting sidegrade, flimsier and therefore a bit shakier overall, but it beats everything normal Golbat can except for Altaria, and actually can beat Aboma to compensate. Either way you go, Golbat is a great filler.
ZUBAT (NEW!)
Quick Attack | Poison Fang & Sludge Bombᴸ/Returnᴸ
Also perfectly viable is pre-evolution Zubat, a different flavor of Golbat that trades in Wooper and Skarmory that Golbat beats to instead take out Swampert, Mandibuzz, Pyroar, and usually Deino too! It now takes FULL advantage of the recent buff to Quick Attack and may have surpassed other Bats in Little League from here on out.
CRUSTLE
Fury Cutter | Rock Slide & X-Scissor
There are certainly cases for Smack Down, but Fury Cutter is just better here, leading to wins over Scrafty, Deino, Obstagoon, Nidoqueen, Vigoroth, Swinub, and Shelmet. It’s a very nice performance, but unfortunately it cannot overcome Whimsicott (and of course falls way short versus G-Fisk too).
Dwebble
BugRock
If you want Smack Down, you may as well just run DWEBBLE, who actually does everything SD Crustle does AND beats Deino too.
50,000 Dust/50 Candy
SWINUB
Powder Snow | Icy Wind & Returnᴸ/Body Slam
It doesn’t do it easily, but Swinub CAN beat G-Fisk from an even start (it gets a lot easier with top notch IVs), and handles Whimsicott and a host of Flyers, Dragons, and/or Grounds, plus Umbreon, Chansey, and Shelmet as bonuses, plus it can win the mirror over Body Slam Swinub by running Return instead. Ice/Ground still isn’t a great defensive typing, being weak to a LOT of things, but in this meta it’s not TOO big a glaring hole. Shadow Nubbie is a a viable sidegrade that usually loses mirrors but can pick up Deino more easily.
WOOPER
Mud Shot | Returnᴸ & Mud Bomb/Body Slam
Similarly, Wooper looks most interesting when you have Return as a closing move, so here we’re talking purified Wooper only. Mud Bomb is necessary to guarantee G-Fisk, but overall better is Body Slam, which can instead beat Wigglytuff, Obstagoon, Umbreon, and even Mandibuzz. The hope if you go with that gutsy play is that G-Fisk will try to avoid Wooper anyway, thinking you MUST have Mud to fling. (And with high enough Attack you can still beat G-Fisk even without Mud wthout giving up anything, so there’s that to consider too… though you do give up bulky stuff like Umbreon and Mandibuzz then.)
QWILFISH
Poison Sting/Water Gun | Aqua Tail & Ice Beam
Poison and Water… must mean it can take down G-Fisk AND Fairies, right? Yes, just not both at the same time. Qwil is best with Poison Sting, handling Whimsicott and Wiggly, Fighters, Flyers (thanks, Ice Beam!), Fires, and Grounds (Nidoqueen, Swinub)… just not G-Fisk. To do THAT, you need to run Water Gun, but you lose a boatload of other wins in the process. If you have no other way to handle G-Fisk, then sure, go for it. But I really think it’s Sting Qwil or nothing, IMO.
SKRELP is best off running Water Gun AND a good Poison move (Sludge Bomb), and while it comfortably beats Whimsie and many of the same things Qwilfish does, even with Water Gun and Aqua Tail, it still fails to overcome G-Fisk. Arrrrrgh. Same with Tentacool and Tentacruel, which are even worse. That WhimsieFisk core is tough to break with any one Pokémon.
Qwilfish (Hisuian)
DarkPoison
Oh, and don’t forget that HISUIAN QWILFISH is a thing now too! It runs well with Aqua Tail and a variety of second move options, from Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse to Ice Beam and Sludge Bomb. Pick your pleasure.
TOXICROAK
Counter | Mud Bomb & Sludge Bomb
One of few true Fighters here, so does Fighter things, beating up Darks, Steels, Normals, and Ices. But no, not even with Poison Jab instead of Counter does it manage to overcome Fairies other than Whimsicott… though they ALL have to be wary of a Toxicroak with energy, of course, as Sludge Bomb is a clear and present danger.
Croagunk
PoisonFighting
CROAGUNK does beat some Fairies and present an interesting alternative, but has the opposite problem: it can’t overcome G-Fisk, Pyroar, or others that Toxicroak’s Counter damage can.
SHADOW GLOOM/ODDISH
Razor Leaf | Sludge Bomb & Moonblast/Seed Bomb
So this is about as good as it gets for Razor Leafers in Little Jungle Cup, and that’s not too shabby at all. A number of good things, like shredding G-Fisk and most every other Ground, plus Fighters (and quasi-Fighters like the new Dubwool) and Chansey and Wigglytuff and, yes, Whimsicott as well.
LURANTIS
Fury Cutter | Leaf Blade & Superpower
Does most of the Grass things you’d want it to, but has special standout wins over things like Swinub, Abomasnow, Chansey, Galarian Stunfisk, and others thanks in large part to Superpower. Fomantis does much of the same without Fighting coverage, still picking up a win versus Scrafty anyway, and is equally viable if you just want to play with some new toys.
ABOMASNOW
Powder Snow | Weather Ball (Ice) & Energy Ball
Some frustrations here… you can get some things (Deino, Obstagoon, Vigoroth, Onix) with regular Aboma, and other things (Swinub, Skarmory, Chansey) only with Shadowbama. This is one where IVs matter, as with high rank IVs, regular Aboma can sneak in a win over Swinub (like Shadowbama can) and pick up Wigglytuff as well. Check out what you have available for potential gems.
LOTAD
Water Gun/Razor Leaf | Bubble Beam & Energy Ball
Yep, you can use it. I think I lean Water Gun for how it can overcome impactful names like Zubat, Umbreon, Toxicroak, Nidoqueen, Mandibuzz, and Skarmory, but Razor Leaf works fine too, with its own wins versus stuff like Swampert, Shadow Stunky, Wigglytuff, Vigoroth, and Scrafty.
CHINCHOU
Spark/Bubble | Bubble Beam & Thunderbolt
A carryover from other Little League formats, Chou definitely has a place here, it’s just in cleaning up the riff-raff… even with Bubble, it’s not beating G-Fisk… not unless you replace Thunderbolt with the horrible Water Pulse. (Don’t do that… it’s not worth it.) Chinchou is good filler, especially if you already have one floating around.
LANTURN (NEW!)
Spark/Water Gun | Surf & Thunderbolt
However, allow me to instead propose new Surf recipient Lanturn instead, if you have one small enough. Believe it or not, it’s actually even bulkier than Chinchou, and Surf is a much more potent weapon in this format than Bubble Beam. As a result, Lanturn can beat things Chou simply cannot like Onix, Toxicroak, Scrafty, Shadow Stunky, Umbreon, and even the mighty Chansey. You DO give up Vigoroth and Wigglytuff in the process, but I think that’s a good tradeoff and that Lanturn is now your Water/Electric frontrunner!
DEDENNE
Thunder Shock | Discharge & Play Rough
Arguably one of the more underrated Pokemon in the format, despite failing hard versus G-Fisk and Grasses like Whimsicott, because of how it does all the stuff you’d want an Electric to do (mostly clearing out Flyers and Waters) AND slams the door on Darks, Fighters (and Dubwool types), and Dragons, all in one very handy (and cute!) little package. Dedenne could be a really great fit on many teams if they’re willing to look.
SCRAFTY
Counter | Power-Up Punch & Foul Play
Probably needs no introduction anymore, as it has now entrenched itself — for better or for worse — in Great AND Ultra Leagues, so why not Little League too? Obviously this takes a wild-caught Scraggy to evolve and fit, so not everybody is going to have even the chance to make one for this format, but for those that can, it’s as good as you’d expect at terrorizing G-Fisk, Darks, Ices, Normals, Rocks… you know, all the normal Fighting stuff. Foul Play doesn’t do as much as you may be used to here, but it’s at least a good weapon to throw at Poisons and such. More than any other reason, THIS is why you likely want to bring a Fairy or at least something that handles Fighters very, very well.
BRELOOM
Counter | Seed Bomb & Sludge Bomb/Dynamic Punch
Conveniently resists G-Fisk’s Ground AND Rock moves… it’s ranked as a Top Five G-Fisk counter in this meta, and the other four don’t have much play otherwise, but Breloom does. It fends off Darks, Ices, Normals, and Rocks as you’d expect a Fighter to do, but also conveniently resists Water and Grass, which help it beat stuff like Swampert and the majority of Grasses too. I smell a dark horse.
HERACROSS
Counter | Rock Blast & Megahorn/Close Combat
IF you have one small enough, yes, Heracross works here fine. Unlike Loom, it beats Toxicroak, Wooper, and with Close Combat, Shelmet, but unlike Loom, loses to Swampert and Onix (as it doesn’t resist Water or Rock).
ESCAVALIER
Counter | Drill Run & Aerial Ace
On paper, Escav should be a PERFECT fit for this meta: Counter and Drill Run for G-Fisk, Aerial Ace and a resistance to Fairy damage. (Megahorn is a little too slow.) But unfortunately, even with top notch IVs, it falls short versus Charmers AND G-Fisk, though it does enough good to still consider using and just hope for an energy lead should G-Fisk or a Charmer show themselves later. It gets just one or two fast moves away from beating both. 😞
SHELMET
Infestation | Body Slam & Bug Buzz
Yes, Bug Buzz is a little slow, but it’s THE way for Shelmet to most reliably take out Whimsicott. Beyond that, Shelmet is a solid contributor that hates on Bugs, Grasses, and Grounds (unfortunately not named “Galarian Stunfisk”… Rock Slide dooms it). Needing to be in the mid-20s and with its second move costing 50,000 dust, it’s more expensive than the many 10k Bugs, but it IS worth it.
HAUNTER/GENGAR
Shadow Claw | Shadow Punchᴸ & Sludge Bomb
Not Shadow Ball? 🤔 Stick with me here. Sludge Bomb is better in this meta, because it pulls in wins against things that resist Ghost damage: Umbreon, Mandibuzz, Dubwool, and Chansey. That all said, while the win total with Shadow Ball looks just fine, be cautious: a number of those wins leave Haunter/Gengar with less than 10 (sometimes less than 5) HP, so they can swing depending on opponent IVs, lag, or other factors. But yes, I think the OG Ghosts do enough to keep up their role of handy generalists.
NIDOQUEEN
Poison Jab | Poison Fang & Earth Power
The Queen handles Charmers and Grasses and Fighters and many other things, and even usually beats out G-Fisk, but needs some luck or a shield advantage to tangle with most other Grounds, Waters, Ices, and Flyers. Still VERY good, don’t get me wrong, but there’s a lot gunning for her. She’s riskier than the numbers show.
Both pre-evolutions are very viable too, both with Poison Sting and Poison Fang. NIDORINA actually appreciates its new toy Thunderbolt here, allowing it to snipe Skarmory, Zubat, Shadow Stunky, and Toxicroak, which are all GREAT pickups. NIDORAN♀️ remains solid and reliable too, able to utilize Return for her closing move and beating Nidoqueen, Mandibuzz, Pyroar, Shelmet, Umbreon, and Swinub with it, many of those being beyond even Nidoqueen’s grasp. If you have a good Shadow one that you can purify, now would be the time, but do note that NOT all IV spreads will work for a purified, Level 25 Nidoran♀️… some will end up over 500 CP. Check before you purify!
75,000 Dust/75 Candy
Space and time are really tight, and I really am trying to highlight how do play this format CHEAPLY (thrifty!) anyway, so other than the first entry here, I’m gonna go through these rapid fire.
GALARIAN STUNFISK
Stunfisk (Galarian)
GroundSteel
Mud Shot | Rock Slide & Flash Cannon/Muddy Water/Earthquake
HAVE to go somewhat in depth on this one, as much as I’ve mentioned it. Because yes, it really IS that good. It’s actually kind of stupid the number of things that can’t overcome G-Fisk… you need to bring a pretty dedicated counter to take it out. Learn the matchups, search for “G-Fisk” in this article to pluck out the things I’ve written about that can beat it (I have tried to point most of them out specifically!), and get ready. Because whether you have one or not, most everyone that DOES have a sub-500 CP G-Fisky is surely going to toss it out there. Here’s the one tidbit I will specifically give you: anyone that runs one will do so with Flash Cannon if they’re particularly clever, as it beats everything that Earthquake does in 1v1 shielding (and everything but Chansey and Wooper in 0-shield)… plus Whimsicott. 😱 Or heck, run what many players did last time in Little Jungle with Muddy Water, which can add on Nidoqueen and makes the mirror match VERY interesting.
STEELIX (NEW!)
Dragon Tail | Psychic Fangs & Crunch
Got a pint-sized one? You may want to deploy it, because just like that, Steelix is suddenly ranked #1 in all of Little Jungle Cup Remix. What changed? Quite simply, the addition of Psychic Fangs, which gives it the ability to beat several things it could not before, most notably including Nidoqueen, Swinub, and with the right IVs, Shadow Stunky. Also note that it DOES still also beat Skarmory, it just has to stick to straight Crunch… and everything else it can handle with Fangs alone. It’s not the most eye-popping win total, but Steelix IS legit really good here now.
And the rest….
Now the rapid fire to bring it home:
Onix
RockGround
- Steelix’s pre-evolution ONIX has no inherent advantages versus Whimsicott but wins anyway, along with doing Rock things (smashing Flyers, Bugs, Poisons, Ices) and outlasting tanks like Umbreon, Chansey, and the aforementioned Whimsie. G-Fisk makes it sad, but Onix can tangle with a LOT in this meta thanks in part to its ridonkulous Defense.
Stunfisk
GroundElectric
- Galarian Stunfisk is still all the rage, but original STUNFISK is still good too, and usually beats G-Fisk straight up.
Skarmory
Steel
- Almost as much a “no duh” as G-Fisk, but easier to get at Little League size, is SKARMORY. Yes, of course it’s good. And yes, it beats up on Fairies (and Whimsie especially) quite nicely. If you want, you can save dust and run it with just one charge move and only miss out on close wins versus Mandibuzz. Just sayin’.
Eevee
Normal
- Humble EEVEE is suddenly looking very legit (provided it has Legacy Body Slam), thanks to this season’s buffing of Quick Attack. That is especially true if you also have one with good IVs, which can potentially now beat Swampert, Swinub, and Chansey! And if you really want to show off, you can run Legacy Last Resort as well and trade away Onix to beat out Wooper instead. Smoke ’em if you got ’em!
Vigoroth
Normal
- Yes, VIGOROTH does Fighter things without just curling up in the fetal position versus Fairies, but that doesn’t seem special enough to me to be worth the cost. Maybe you feel differently though!
Deino
DarkDragon
- Original Little Cup standout DEINO is fine here, just nothing particularly special.
Trevenant
GhostGrass
- Frankly, I expected more from TREVENANT.
Drifloon
Ghost
- DRIFLOON really is just mini-Drifblim, and handles G-Fisk and others fine while keeping even Whimsicott somewhat in check.
Forretress (Shadow)
BugSteel
- It’s quite a splurge, but Shadow FORRETRESS with double Steel moves does some really good things here if you’re looking to make a big splash. The standard Earthquake is a bit too slow… run Heavy Slam in its place. You’ll thank me later!
Chansey
Normal
Lickitung
Normal
- Once again, repeat after me: DO NOT RUN CHANSEY. 😡 (Or LICKITUNG, for that matter.) But study those matchups and know how to beat it, at least, because some players just like to watch the world burn and will have it out there.
I know that was long, but that’s it… we’re done! Until next time, you can always find me on Twitter or Patreon, or please feel free to comment here with your own thoughts or questions and I’ll try to get back to you!
Thank you for reading! I sincerely hope this helps you master Little Jungle Cup Remix, and in the thriftiest manner possible. Best of luck, and catch you next time, Pokéfriends!
