The “Nifty Or Thrifty” article series takes a comprehensive look at the meta for PvP Cup formats: our third (I think?) trek through Fossil Cup, in this case. (And for two straight weeks) 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.
And also as per usual, we’ll start with Pokémon with the cheapest second move unlock cost and steam ahead until we finally arrive at the most expensive (Legendaries and some high XL options). I will also only be highlighting Shadow versions when they’re particularly relevant… many are worse, and that’s what you can generally infer if I don’t talk about them.
First, a VERY brief summary of the meta with a quick Bottom Line Up Front:
B.L.U.F.
- Great League format (1500 CP limit), with all Rock, Steel, and Water types eligible. No bans.
- Ironically for “Fossil” Cup, the vast majority of actual Fossil Pokémon (and Rock types in general) are hated out of this meta due to the many Steels and Waters that smash them.
- This is generally a Water-heavy meta, and thus the very few Grasses (and, to a lesser degree, Electrics) that sneak in are very potent corebreakers. They’re all highlighted within the article.
- Fighters and Grounds do quite well also with their effectiveness versus Steels and Rocks.
The meta is not ALL that different from our last trip through Fossil Cup a year ago, but what IS different will be marked with a 💪 (for things that have been buffed) or a 💥 (for things that are brand new to the meta, or at least to the analysis article). Those that are highlighted will absolutely be impactful, so don’t skip past them!
10,000 Dust/25 Candy
SWAMPERT
Swampert
GroundWater
Mud Shot | Hydro Cannonᴸ & Earthquake
This is just the kind of meta where the infamous Mud Boys shoot to the top, with obvious advantages over the format’s many Steels and Rocks, and paths to victory over even most opposing Water types. Just look at the dominance of Swampert in particular. 👀 Even slightly more impressive is Shadow Swampert, not just in terms of more wins, but the quality of those wins, with names like Rainy Castform, Tapu Fini, Sealeo, Blastoise, and most impressively of all, Ferrothorn (and Shadow Lileep). Pretty impressive to be beating Grass types like that (and the very few Grasses here are a BIG deal here, as we’ll see later) without dealing ANY super effective damage. By contrast, while non-Shadow Swampie is fine, it instead has unique wins versus things like Shadow Poliwrath, Samurott, Shadow Kingdra, Shadow Sharpedo, Seismitoad, and Greninja… things that are likely to be far less prevalent in the meta. That said, there IS one other important distinction: different wins against different variations of the same opponent. Shadow Swampert beats Walrein, Shadow Lapras, and Ice Beam Azumarill, while non-Shadow Swampert instead beats Shadow Walrein, non-Shadow Lapras, and Play Rough Azu. Just some little tricks to keep in mind so you know when to potentially swap out or not. Good luck!
WHISCASH 💪
Whiscash
GroundWater
Mud Shot | Mud Bomb & Scald/Blizzard
It rather famously loses the head to head versus Swampert, but Whiscash is… overall a bit better? The main thing going in its favor is beating Fighting Waters Quaquaval and Shadow Poliwrath. (Though interestingly, with shields down it is instead Swampert that beats ShadoWrath, and Whiscash now beats Swampert head to head!) And in 2v2 shielding, Whiscash can also overcome Lucario (and again ShadoWrath), but loses Skarmory (which Swampert and its big neutral Hydro Cannons can beat instead). It’s also worth noting that Blizzard is still a legit alternative to Scald, and can sneak away with a couple extra wins in 2v2 shielding, like Swampert and Jellicent (though it does now tend to lose to Escavalier). ShadoWhiscash is a sidegrade… I guess? It’s notably worse in 1shield, dropping Quaquaquaval, Skarmory, and Shadow Quagsire, slightly worse with shields down (gains ShadoWrath, drops Swampert and Jellicent), but then notably better in 2v2 shielding (dropping ShadoWrath, but gaining Jellicent, Skarmory, Quaquaquaquaval, and even Azumarill!). What does that all mean? Well, unlike in the past, I think Swampie and Cash are on pretty equal ground this time. Pick your pleasure!
SHADOW FERALIGATR 💥💪
Shadow Feraligatr
Water
Shadow Claw | Hydro Cannonᴸ & Crunch/Ice Beam
Yes, I specifically recommend the Shadow version. Why? Well, the two versions are actually pretty similar in 0shield (Shadow takes out Azu, non-Shadow bests Swampert and Shadow Poliwrath) and 2shield (Shadow beats Pelipper, Cradily, non-Shadow overcomes Mantine, Quaqua, and Escavalier) situations, but in 1v1 shielding, there is NO contest between non-Shadow and ShadowGatr, which beats everything non-Shadow can except ShadoWrath and adds on Mantine, Pelipper, Water Gun Lanturn, Golisopod, Swampert, Quagsire, Quaquaval, AND Registeel. You don’t often see that kind of disparity between Shadow and non-Shadow versions, but here we are. There are some real cases for running Ice Beam (beating Grass types Cradily in 1shield and Ferrothorn in 2shield), but I think I lean Crunch for more neutral beats and hard wins versus Jellicent in most shielding scenarios, and fellow Shadow Claw user Golisopod in 1shield.
GOLISOPOD
Golisopod
BugWater
Shadow Claw | X-Scissor & Liquidation
KInd of a cheat, since it’s not cheap/”thrifty” to gather the 400 candy needed to evolve it, but eh… close enough. Golisopod is a decent all-arounder, but while its Bug subtyping gives it some advantages over Feraligatr (specifically resisting Fighting, Ground, and making Grass deal only neutral damage, giving it some wins like Poliwrath, Ludicolo, Swampert, and Escavalier across various shielding scenarios), it also comes with big drawbacks like critical weaknesses to Rock and Flying that are common throughout the meta. Even its neutrality to Fire (rather than a straight resistance like most Waters) is problematic versus stuff like Mawile. It can work, and work well, on the right team, but before you just roll with it again this year, at least consider the Gatr as a potentially better fit.
QUAQUAVAL 💥
Quaquaval
WaterFighting
Wing Attack | Aerial Ace & Close Combat
Well hello there, General Kenobi. Our first all-new addition to the Fossil Cup meta, performing just as well overall as the actual Flying Water types that also utilize Wing Attack, Quaquaquaquaquaval stands out from Mantine and Pelipper thanks to being a Fighter and utilizing Close Combat. This makes it worse than the Flyers versus Razor Leafers (Kartana, Ludicolo) and it loses to Mantine and Pelipper too, but on the flipside Quaquaquaquaquaquaval can smash through things like Ferrothorn, Cradily, Alolan Sandslash, and Mawile. I won’t lie… Poliwrath (mostly) does it better, as we’ll see later, but Quaquaquaquaquaquaquaval is cheaper and certainly less expected. And you CAN always run both….
MANTINE (Baby Discount™) 💪
Mantine
Water
Wing Attack | Aerial Ace & Ice Beam/Water Pulse
On the one hand, you might expect Mantine to flop here, as its attacks are ineffective versus Rocks and especially Steels (with no tricksy weapon to spring on them like Quaquaval), and it will perish quickly to the Electrics that are popular here. But just like a honey badger, Mantine don’t care. Mantine don’t give a–oh wait, this is a kids’ show, sorry. 😅 Seriously though, Mantine makes the most of what its got to tear through much of the meta anyway… for example, Razor Leafers and other Wing Attack Waters (Pelipper and Quaquaval itself) that give Quaqua trouble, as well as having obvious advantages versus Ground types. I recommend Ice Beam, but worth noting that the improved Water Pulse at least gives it a neutral beatstick against Steels, and it can maneuver around Lucario more easily that way.
PRIMARINA
Primarina
WaterFairy
Charm | Disarming Voice & Moonblast
And here we have a Water starter that operates like anything but. Prima just needs Charm, and that’s really it. While that obviously stifles her against Steel types, I believe that Prima still has a unique role to play. At least there’s barely any Poison around to hold her back, and she nicely suppresses some of the scarier Shadows. Higher attack is recommended if possible to have a shot at stuff like Mawile and Pelipper.
BIBAREL
Bibarel
NormalWater
Water Gun | Surf & Hyper Fang
I will come right and admit that, yes, this is a spice/niche pick. The niche? As a Normal type, it resists Ghost, giving it a big leg up versus stuff like Jellicent, Golisopod, Feraligatr, A-Slash and the like. It also handles the primary Mud Boys surprisingly well, beating them in even shield scenarios more often than not. And it slaps Azu around as long as it doesn’t have Play Rough. That’s about it, but that should have value on somebody’s team.
ALOLAN ROCKS
Alola Golem
RockElectric
Volt Switch | Rock Blast & Wild Charge/Stone Edge
Look, I get it… they’re risky here, no bones about it. Battles against Waters becomes a stess-filled race against time, and they have NO real answer to Ground and Grass types that remain popular. But even with all that holding them back, they have a role to play. The Waters and Flyers (and crushable Golisopod) on that list are likely no surprise, but the appearances of Mawile and even Lanturn are very, very nice wins that the opponent likely won’t see coming.
MAGCARGO
Magcargo
FireRock
Incinerate | Rock Tomb & Overheat
Crazy to consider something double weak to Water and Ground in a format like this? Maybe a little. But you know what? As time marches on, somehow things seem to get better rather than worse for Mags in Foosil Cup. There’s not a core meta Steel, Grass, or Bug that it can’t burn through, even the potentially scary ones like Lucario, Escavalier, and Cradily, with the added benefit of taking down stuff like Mantine too. Yes, there’s blowout potential here, but at least that works both ways! 🔥
LUCARIO (Baby Discount™) 💪
Lucario
FightingSteel
Counter/Force Palmᴸ | Power-Up Punch & …uh, take your pick
Counter almost singlehandedly beats down Steels AND Rocks, and as a Steel type itself, Lucario also resists Steel and important Grass moves. I recommend Power-Up Punch to make that (or even Force Palm if you prefer that to Counter) more reliable, but after that… just about anything else works. Blaze Kick is obviously great versus Steels and Grasses, but Fighting damage alone usually does okay with those. It helps out versus Golisopod, at least. Thunder Punch emerges as a potent option with all the Waters around, also beating Golisopod and usually snagging Mantine too. Old reliable Shadow Ball is a neutral beatstick that can also clap Mantine and sometimes Lanturn, but is a little too slow to reliably handle stuff like Poliwrath and Golis. And finally, Close Combat can be brutal (beating Lanturn no matter which fast move it’s running), but has obvious limitations versus Flyers and Fighting-resistant stuff like Golis. So uh… like I said, take your pick! Good luck with that.
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POLIWRATH 💪
Poliwrath
WaterFighting
Counterᴸ | Icy Wind & Dynamic Punch/Scald
Well, quite a bit has happened for Poliwrath since last time, the biggest being the addition of Icy Wind, which allows Wrath to overcome Ferrothorn, Escavalier, and even Azumarill (as long as it’s not running Play Rough), as well as Swampert, Golisopod, and even Lanturn in 2v2 shielding. This in addition to being one of very few Waters able to outlast Kartana and Shadow Magnezone, while also walloping Steels in general (really only Togedemaru and Jirachi are unattainable), every Rock type but Carbink, and the vast majority of Waters too. Folks, this things has nearly a 90% win rate versus the entire format! (No wonder it’s ranked #1!) ShadoWrath is unsurprisingly a solid alternative that trades things like Escav, Ferro, and Cradily to instead overcome Golisopod and Lanturn (with either of its viable fast moves) in 1shield, though it’s slightly worse with shields down (gains Ludicolo and Registeel, but loses Lucario, Azu, Cradily, and Ferro) and 2shield (drops Azu and Spark Lanturn). I lean non-Shadow but hey, that’s your call!
ESCAVALIER
Escavalier
BugSteel
Counter | Drill Run & Aerial Ace/Megahorn
Combine Counter with Drill Run to strike terror into the heart of Steels and Rocks everywhere, not to mention stuff like Lanturn, Ludicolo, Quagsire, and thanks to Aerial Ace, Golisopod too. Ace IS my second move recommendation, but it’s well worth pointing out that Megahorn remains close in 1shield, and performs VERY well with shields down, beating everything Ace can plus Quagsire, Swampert, Golisopod, and the mirror match.
ARAQUANID
Araquanid
WaterBug
Bug Bite | Bug Buzz & Bubble Beam/Water Pulse
As a Bug, ‘Nid conveniently resists Ground damage, and thus rather easily overcomes the Mud Boys, as well as fellow Bugs Escavalier and Golisopod and the format’s big Grass types. Add on pretty consistent wins over Azumarill and Alolan Sandslash and Araquanid’s potential superstardom in this format is pretty obvious. Just watch out for Flyers and the few Rock moves that might be flung your way… Bugs do NOT like those.
CRADILY
Cradily
RockGrass
Bullet Seed | Grass Knot & Stone Edge/Rock Slide
So this meta being what it is, “Fossil Cup” is a very inappropriate name, seeing as how Cradily is basically the ONLY actual Fossil Pokémon that has a chance of doing much here. Why is that? Because it happens to be a Grass type in a meta chock full of Waters and Rocks that are inherently weak to Grass. So even though Cradily has a very average Grass moveset with Bullet Seed and Grass Knot, it does quite well anyway, walloping the vast majority of Water and Rock types, all Ground types but Steelix, and (with Stone Edge) even Mawile. Stone Edge also beats Golisopod and the mirror match with shields down, though well worth noting that Rock Slide is not far behind, and has the advantage in 2v2 shielding by gaining Azumarill, Pelipper, Golisopod and the mirror again. And I do think ShadowDilly will prefer Rock Slide, missing out on Mantine that Stone Edge can beat but gaining Pelipper, Ludicolo, Golisopod, and Mawile instead.
LUDICOLO 💪
Ludicolo
WaterGrass
Bubble/Razor Leaf | Scald & Leaf Storm/Ice Beam
Another rare Grass (the second of only three “families” of Grass types in this meta), there are two pretty distinct ways to utilize the Dancing Pinapple. Razor Leaf is obviously best for pure Water/Rock shredding (beating ALL Waters that are not also Bugs, Poisons, or named “Mantine” or “Pelipper”). Bubble basically gives away the mirror and the Fighting Waters (Poliwrath and Quaquaval) to instead handle Cradily, Mawile, and Alolan Sandslash. (Or even more prizes with shields down like Pelipper, Lucario, Escavalier, Golisopod, Mawile, and Kartana!) Pick your pleasure and dance your way to victory. 🍍
TOGEDEMARU
Togedemaru
ElectricSteel
Thunder Shock | Fell Stinger & Wild Charge
On paper, it has the looks of being better than Magnezone? But that’s slightly deceiving, as Togedemaru is even more bait-reliant with Fell Stinger setting up big Wild Charges later. IF that all works out, Toge can beat basically everything Zone can except sometimes Mawile and A-Slash (Zone’s Mirror Shot helps out against those) and better handles Lanturn, Cradily, Kartana, Quaquaval, and sometimes even Lucario across various shielding scenarios. But it all comes down to bait-and-shield timing. Good luck!
QUAGSIRE 💪
Quagsire
WaterGround
Mud Shot | Mud Bomb/Aqua Tailᴸ & Earthquake/Stone Edge
Last year it was Mud Bomb that was new. This year, it’s Aqua Tail. Does it want both? Probably not, because in this meta, I think Lord Quag always wants Earthquake, which is huge versus basically everything not Flying in Fossil Cup. After that, Aqua Tail helps win the mirror, whereas Mud Bomb is better for other Waters (like beating Jellicent, and sometimes Azumarill). Shadow Quag is a hair worse, but somehow a bit better with Stone Edge, able to knock out Golisopod, sometimes Escavalier, and definitely Pelipper that way.
GASTRODON
Gastrodon
WaterGround
Mud Slap/Hidden Power (Grass) | Body Slam & Earth Power
The less heralded Mud Boy, but still very viable. It can Mud Slap nearly all Steels to death (particularly if you have good PvP IVs and gain Shadow Quag and Quaquaval). Nothing fancy… a good workmanlike performance. But even here there’s a fun alternative. Grass is so good in this meta that, if you happen to have a Gastro with Hidden Power (Grass), it too can shred, giving up Lucario and Registeel to brutally smoke Waters and/or Grounds.
POLITOED
Politoed
Water
Mud Shot | Weather Ball (Water) & Earthquakeᴸ
And the honorary Mud Boy. Not actually being part Ground means no resistances to Rock, Poison, or Electric, but ALSO means straight up resistances to Ice and Water types, and no fatal double vulnerability to Grass. Some of those are more relevant than others in this particular meta, but however you slice it, Politoed is itself relevant in this meta. Like the Muds, it capably handles big Steel types, and handles things that give the actual Mud Boys issues like Azumarill and Jellicent too. And don’t forget ShadowToed if you have it!
PELIPPER
Pelipper
Water
Wing Attack | Weather Ball (Water) & Hurricane
The secret to how good Pelipper is is LONG out of the bag by now, but it’s even better in this format than normal. This is no tame, new life-carrying stork, but instead brings death from above to Muds, Bugs, Razor Leafers, Fighters, and even stuff like Azumarill and Jellicent. It may be buried a bit in this article, but Pelipper should be near the top of your considerations. It handles Lucario (with Thunder Punch) more reliably than Mantine, for one thing, thanks to having a good Water move (Weather Ball) to throw rather than Mantine’s standard all-resisted-by-Steels moveset.
AZUMARILL
Azumarill
WaterFairy
Bubble | Play Rough & Ice Beam/Hydro Pump
And now the Blue Bunny Of Doom. Before I even get into what moves to run with, I want to first point out that its IVs really matter in this meta, particularly in 1v1 shielding, where high rank IVs can easily account for 3-5 new wins against the core meta. As for the moves, last year I highly recommended always running Hydro Pump for how it was needed to take down Bastiodon and Galarian Stunfisk. But this year, I’m not so sure they’ll be as big a part of the shifting meta, so I now recommend Play Rough as THE move to make sure you have… it’s needed for things like Jellicent and, of course, the rising Water/Fighting duo. (Even Poliwrath’s all-resisted moves wear Azu down without Play Rough.) PR/Pump still works (those high IVs I mentioned specifically adding Shadow Quag, Shadow A-Slash, and Jelli), but I think I actually recommend PR/Ice Beam, which can match all that except A-Slash and further tacks on Golisopod, Mantine, and Pelipper (as long as you have high rank IVs, as I mentioned). Just my two cents, though… there’s no truly wrong way to go.
JELLICENT
Jellicent
WaterGhost
Bubble/Hex | Surf & Shadow Ball
A quick move comparison for JelliBelli: Hex is not surprisingly better versus most opposing Waters, with Mantine as the most notable standout, but Bubble is just as good (if not even better) in Fossil Cup and is superior against Quagsire. Tough choice, right?
I’ll take this opportunity to point out that WALREIN and DEWGONG are still in the meta, but it’s a harsher environment for them now, and I’m having trouble strongly recommending either despite their on-paper ability to turn the tables on Steels and Rocks thanks to their Ground moves.
ALOLAN SANDSLASH
Alola Sandslash
IceSteel
Shadow Clawᴸ | Ice Punch & Drill Run
Not a ton better than the Icy Waters I just mentioned, but A-Slash is better. It at least manages to give Grass types a consistently hard time. The meta really is much less friendly to Ice types in general now, but A-Slash is the best one still standing, and pretty convincingly too. You CAN mess around with Blizzard (beats Skarmory) and/or Aerial Ace (can beat Quaquaval), but then you start giving up stuff like Azu, Lanturn, and Pelipper… probably not worth it.
PERRSERKER 💪
Perrserker
Steel
Shadow Claw | Close Combat & Trailblaze
The numbers still aren’t all that great. Perrserker still has to watch out for anything Fighting and Ground, and even many Waters, which doesn’t leave it much room. But it is an excellent anti-Grass and anti-Steel option that also handles Jellicent, Skarmory, and now Mantine thanks to the addition of Trailblaze. Brought out at the right time, with the right teammates to clear the field ahead of it, Perrserker could absolutely rake.
LANTURN
Lanturn
WaterElectric
Spark | Surf & Thunderbolt
There ARE edge cases for Water Gun (mostly in 2v2 shielding, where it can finish off things like Escavalier and Lucario), but overall this really is a format that still favors Spark despite its nerf. There are just too many Waters and/or Flyers to ignore.
SLOWBRO
Slowbro
WaterPsychic
Confusion | Surfᴸ & Ice Beam
For when you absolutely have to kill Poliwrath dead, there are few harder counters. Lucario sadly gets away (thanks to Thunder Punch and/or Shadow Ball), but other Fighters crumble, as do Azumarill, Mawile, Mantine, and Mud Boys. Not a super impressive number of wins, but definitely some very impactful ones!
BRUXISH
Bruxish
WaterPsychic
Confusion | Psychic Fangs & Aqua Tail/Crunch
Honestly, though, Bruxish remains a bit better than Slowbro, beating everything Bro can except Shadow Quagsire and sometimes Mantine or Escavalier, and adding on Lucario, Pelipper, and WG Lanturn. If your goal is to literally confuse the opponent to death, I think Brux may be the superior way to try and do it.
TOXAPEX
Toxapex
PoisonWater
Poison Jab | Brine & Sludge Wave
The Water type that wallops Grasses (other than pesky Ferrothorn), and a good deal more. Things get messy where Poison-resistant Steels or Rocks are involved, but there’s plenty of intrigue left for Toxapex to make its mark on this meta. Expect it to grind away at your team at some point, and be prepared with an answer!
HISUIAN ARCANINE 💥
Hisuian Arcanine
FireRock
Fire Fang | Rock Slide & Wild Charge
Admittedly Fire Fang is the main attraction and does the vast majority of the work, but the charge moves can also snag things like Mantine, Golisopod, and Skarmory if you can work them in past shields.
75,000 Dust/75 Candy
FERROTHORN
Ferrothorn
GrassSteel
Bullet Seed | Power Whip & Mirror Shot/Thunder
And here we are, our third and final Grass family in Fossil Cup. (Though one more solo Grass does remain.) I imagine I’ve made the case for Grass moves in this format already, but what makes Ferro particularly interesting is that it’s the only one of the three (so far) that resists other Grass moves (doubly so), and thus rather easily bests Cradily and Ludicolo, while still doing much the same job as they do versus the rest of the meta. The only things it somewhat struggles against that the others can handle are Poliwrath (sometimes) and Fire damage (for rather obvious reasons). All the Grasses make a good case here, but perhaps Ferro most of all?
MAWILE
Mawile
SteelFairy
Fire Fang | Power-Up Punch & Iron Head
Honestly, while Mawile is a unique part of the meta, its contributions are just okay. It DOES do a nice job crossing out some of the more difficult threats in the meta, from Registeel to Lucario to Escavalier to Araquanid to Skarmory and Ferrothorn and, thanks to Play Rough, Mantine too. Shadow Mawile does… well, the same things, except it often falls to Registeel and beats Skarmory instead.
SKARMORY 💪
Skarmory
Steel
Steel Wing | Sky Attack & Brave Bird
As with every other meta it’s in, Skarmory is now SO much better with the improved Steel Wing, gaining Azumarill, Mawile, Alolan Sandslash, and Shadow Quagsire. The improvement is even more notable with Shadow Skarm, who gains Azu, A-Slash, regular and Shadow Quag, and also Escavalier and Pelipper. I’ve seen people running Air Slash and/or Flash Cannon, and while I appreciate the outside-the-box thinking… just run the new standard set, folks. It’s SO much better than anything else, perhaps especially in this meta.
BASTIODON
Bastiodon
RockSteel
Smack Down | Stone Edge & Flash Cannon/Flamethrower
Is it still viable here? I’ve mentioned a few times how previously good stuff like Bastie is facing more of an uphill climb this year (even silently removing stuff like Excadrill and Probopass that used to be covered in this article). I mean, it is SO bulky that it still manages to do some good, but this is an increasingly hostile meta for Bastie and friends.
Carbink
RockFairy
CARBINK has some very similar frustrations, but at least it can (sometimes) beat Poliwrath and Escavalier that tear through Bastiodon. (On the flipside, Binkie loses to some Grasses that Bastie can take on.) I just think there’s just too much working against grindy Rocks like Carbink and Bastiodon for them to work except on carefully crafted teams. Too much Steel and Water and Ground and Fighting and/or Grass around for them to contend with, I think.
GALARIAN STUNFISK
Galarian Stunfisk
GroundSteel
Mud Shot | Rock Slide & Earthquake
At first it looks like the exact same mediocrity I just warned about, but at least in this case, high rank IVs help out with new wins like Quaquaval, Cradily, and even Lucario. If you have a really good one, it may still be worth it.
LAPRAS
Lapras
WaterIce
Water Gun | Surf & Ice Beamᴸ
I’m not nearly as enthused about Lappie here as I have been in the past (same theme of an increasingly anti-Ice meta), but it’s still viable if you run it with Water Gun, which adds on wins like Azumarill, Registeel, Quagsire, and Alolan Sandslash.
SUDOWOODO 💪
Sudowoodo
Rock
Counter | Rock Slide & Trailblaze/Meteor Beam
It’s been borderline in the past, and still is now, but I like what the addition of Trailblaze brings to the table… specifically new wins against Quagsire and Magnezone (by boosting Counter). It’s still a bit fringey, but taking down Mantine and Pelipper, A-Slash and Mawile, Golisopod and sometimes even Lanturn, and even outslugging Lucario ain’t half bad.
STEELIX 💥💪
Steelix
GroundSteel
Thunder Fang | Psychic Fangs/Breaking Swipe & Earthquake/Crunch
Another one I left out of the analysis last year, but with Thunder Fang, Steelix is certainly interesting. There’s a little variance in what it can beat with different charge moves — slight differences between Pyschic Fangs and Breaking Swipe, but especially between Crunch, better versus stuff like Jellicent, and Earthquake, which can beat stuff like Registeel — but it generally can handle stuff like Mantine and Pelipper (unsurprisingly with them being double weak to Electric damage), Skarmory, Golisopod, Kartana, Ludicolo, Spark Lanturn, and even Quaquaval and Shadow Poliwrath.
100,000 Dust/100 Candy
It’s not that the Legendary and Mythical Pokémon aren’t good, it’s just that I’m running out of space (and your brain likely is too!), so I’ll go through these expensive options in rapid fire style!
Registeel
Steel
- Oh yeah, REGISTEEL will be a frequent encounter here. But in many ways, the core meta forms around it, so there’s plenty to keep it in check with Fighting, Ground, or even Fire damage. Just scan that loss list and you’ll get the idea, but make sure you’re packing at least one solid Registeel counter among your three… ideally more than one!
Kartana
GrassSteel
- KARTANA is excellent here for anyone who has one in Great League (which would require getting it from research during the Ultra Beast Arrival event, and trading for sub-10-10-10 IVs. (Even an 8-10-10 or the like works, so it’s not overly difficult.) Let’s just say it this way: it can handle all the format’s Rock types except Magcargo and Hisuian Growlithe, all Ground types but G-Fisk and Shadow Steelix, and all Waters but Poliwrath, Mantine, Pelipper, Toxapex, and Araquanid. That’s over an 80% win rate, folks. This is a GREAT meta for a Kartana breakout.
Celesteela
Steel
- And just for funsies, you could run CELESTEELA acquired during the same events as Great League Kartana if you really want to, and no funky trading required, But uh… Skarmory is still better overall, at least in this meta.
Melmetal
Steel
- For once, I think MELMETAL does NOT want Rock Slide as much as Thunderbolt. Specifically, it picks up Lucario this way and wins many of its other matchups a bit more convincingly, though it does drops, rather ironically, Jellicent, having enough time to reach three Rock Slides but only two Thunderbolt, which is not quite enough. As for Double Iron Bash… just not enough good targets in this meta to make up for all the Steels and Waters that resist it, IMO.
Tapu Fini
WaterFairy
- For those of you lucky enough to have traded for one under 1500 CP, I think you’ll enjoy using TAPU FINI in this meta just as you likely did in Fantasy Cup. It’s a very suitable replacement for Azumarill, especially if you don’t have a top IV Azu.
Heatran
FireSteel
- On the absolute opposite end, we have fiery HEATRAN 💥 available for the first time in Fossil Cup now. Need I remind you that Fire is good here? Fire that double resists Grass, Steel, and Ice and takes only neutral from stuff like Rock and Flying is great, though still being weak to Water and double weak to Ground isn’t great and leaves it on the wrong end of losses to them all except stuff like Ludicolo, Araquanid, Golisopod, Steelix, and G-Fisk.
FEELIN’ LUCKY?
Here I cover ‘mons that are no less “nifty” than those in the main article above, but require maxing or at least almost maxing out, so they are FAR from “thrifty”! Best acquired in a Lucky trade for good IVs and less investment. I’ll also cover these in bulletized format to bring this article home!
Lileep
RockGrass
- The first XL thought on many players’ mind here, especially after I highlighted Cradily and other Grasses, is surely LILEEP 💪. Bullet Seed is now available for everyone (huzzah!), and Lileep is very viable here. Show me those ABB Cradily/Lileep teams, trainers!
Lombre
WaterGrass
- Another Grass pre-evolution: LOMBRE. Puts on a decent imitation of Ludicolo, no? More ABB potential.
Hisuian Growlithe
FireRock
- It requires FULLY maxing, but I’d be remiss to not point out that HISUIAN GROWLITHE is some very nice spice. 🔥
And 50+ Pokémon later, we’re done! Yes, in a massive format like this, there are surely other viable options I didn’t even cover that are on the cusp of potential greatness too. But I had to cut off somewhere, and hopefully this is sufficient to hit most of the highlights and help you balance the cost of where to save yourself some hard-earned dust (and candy!).
Until next time, you can always find me on Twitter with regular Pokémon GO analysis nuggets, or Patreon if you like. And 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 the ever-evolving Fossil Cup, and in the most affordable way possible. Best of luck, and catch you next time, Pokéfriends!
