Trubbish in Doubles, Goodra in Singles

Art by LifeisDANK.

Introduction

Is controlling two Pokémon at a time demanding? Do you wanna user fatter Pokémon like Chansey and Toxapex? Or maybe you like the feeling of beating a bulkier team with your wallbreakers and stallbreakers (trust me, it's pretty nice to KO a Toxapex)? Well, singles could be an interesting twist to most doubles players, just keep in mind games will take a little longer: if it's something like offense versus offense the match ends in a couple turns just like in doubles, but if both you and your opponent have the idea to bring a stall team to the table, well, it can take very long... For you to get used to singles, there's a couple Pokémon that you should become familiar with that you don't see as often in DOU but are pretty common in OU. Without further ado, let's analyze each one!

Heatran

Stinky Situation

At a first glance, Heatran may look like a solid pick in DOU. After all, its outstanding typing and stats can greatly impress newer players. Still, even with the rise of Gengar, Genesect, Tapu Bulu, and Incineroar in DOU, the likes of Zygarde and Kommo-o gaining traction isn't by any means good news to Heatran, as they both tank any hit and demolish it back with their STAB moves. It also struggles against most common Water- and Ground-types, whereas other Fire-types such as Volcanion and Mega Charizard Y can play around them. In general, it just has a pretty Trubbish matchup against most of the metagame.

Fabled Folklore

In OU, Heatran can put its typing to Goodra use by checking several threatening Fairy-types and being an outstanding stallbreaker, trapping even would-be checks in Toxapex and Chansey. Its versatility is also a big part of its success, being able to run several different Z-Crystals (Steelium Z, Firium Z, and Grassium Z), status moves (Taunt, Stealth Rock, and Will-O-Wisp), and sets (offensive, defensive, utility, and even Choice Scarf), all at the very least moderately viably.

Digging Deeper

There are two main factors for all this discrepancy on Heatran's viability. First, the lack of more defensive builds in DOU, as opposed to OU, makes Heatran lose its main quality, as stallbreaking won't get it anywhere in DOU. Its poor matchup against most of the DOU metagame is also far from ideal, with titans such as Tapu Fini, Stomping Tantrum Mega Metagross, and Volcanion being either not as common or banned in OU. Heatran's status as quite a solid user of Stealth Rock is also less valuable, with the move being metagame defining in OU but just a solid pick in DOU.

Clefable

Stinky Situation

Clefable has absolutely no place in DOU. There's no real press for walls in Doubles, and Clefable can't really redeem itself in any other department, with the sole exception of Follow Me; however, the likes of Amoongus and Togekiss completely outperform it in that regard. Poor attacking stats and Speed as well as lackluster bulk leave a lot to be desired and make it ultimately quite a Trubbish pick.

Fabled Folklore

In OU, though, between setting up Stealth Rock or Calm Mind and blanket checking most physical attackers, Clefable truly shines, making it quite a Goodra pick. Solid typing, wonderful abilities, unpredictability, and reliable recovery also give it a big portion of its viability. For one, Magic Guard lets it come in on hazards, Toxic, burns, whatever, and Clefable won't take any damage; this may seem minor for Doubles players, but this is actually crucial in OU, letting it be a reliable Wish user or Calm Mind sweeper. On the other hand, Unaware lets it invalidate most setup sweepers when used on stall teams, most notably keeping the likes of Mega Heracross and Zygarde at bay.

Digging Deeper

Stealth Rock is a lot more valuable in OU, and Clefable's viability mostly comes from the move. Magic Guard and Unaware are also a lot more notable in singles, with hazards, status ailments, and setup sweepers being a lot more common. Finally, the press for walls in DOU is, simply put, nonexistent, as thanks to double targeting, DOU is quite an offense-oriented metagame when compared to OU, thus stripping Clefable of its nearly defining quality that it has there.

Ash-Greninja

Stinky Situation

While Ash-Greninja lacks immediate power in both tiers, in DOU it'd also often be KOed before it can get an attack off with its transformed form, as even if it could take down something, the ally of its target would likely take Ash-Greninja down itself. Between its poor defensive stats and having to meet such delicate conditions to trigger its transformation, Ash-Greninja just isn't worth it.

Fabled Folklore

In OU, though, it's quite a Goodra wallbreaker if it does manage to snag a KO. The combo of Hydro Pump and Dark Pulse is often a pain to switch into, requiring nearly all teams to pack a Grass- or Water-type that takes it on, such as Tangrowth, Toxapex, or Tapu Bulu, and even these get somewhat worn down by Spikes from Greninja itself. To display its influence, even several offensive playstyles appreciate having a check to it thanks to its huge power most notably on Water Shuriken. Sticky Web runs Ribombee or Araquanid, Trick Room runs Crawdaunt or Tapu Bulu, and, most notably, rain runs Assault Vest Magearna or Ferrothorn. Of course these Pokémon aren't picked just because of Ash-Greninja, but it just goes to show how much impact it has.

Digging Deeper

Aside from the issues with its transformation for Doubles, Spikes is also a big part of Ash-Greninja's viability. In OU, it can set up Spikes as most of its would-be checks come in only to be worn down, whereas in Doubles, Spikes is quite an underwhelming move. Ash-Greninja also suffers a terrible matchup with some DOU titans, most notably Tapu Fini, but also Choice Scarf Tapu Bulu, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Kyurem-B.

Tornadus-T

Stinky Situation

A measly damage output and rather lacking bulk make Tornadus-T pretty Trubbish in DOU. While high Speed and U-turn are surely valuable traits, simply put, there are far better options for offensive and defensive prowess in the tier and, in all honesty, Tornadus-T achieves neither in DOU.

Fabled Folklore

In OU, however, the combo of Regenerator and Defog makes Tornadus-T an excellent form of hazard removal, both offensively and defensively, not to mention its fast pivoting tool in U-turn. It also compresses the role of a Kartana and Tapu Bulu check even with offensive sets. And while it's by far not the strongest Pokémon in the tier, with rather unimpressive offensive stats, Supersonic Skystrike from Hurricane can be pretty strong letting it threaten a Goodra number of Stealth Rock setters such as Clefable and Landorus-T.

Digging Deeper

The discrepancy on Tornadus-T's viability in both tiers most likely comes from the fact that the two aspects key to its success in OU are somewhat lacking in DOU. Firstly, Regenerator isn't as good in doubles as it is in singles. Singles matches have a lot more switches than doubles ones, so Regenerator is a lot better in the former. Secondly, despite Stealth Rock rising a bit to prominence in DOU, it barely compares to how important it is in OU. Since Tornadus-T is a Defogger in OU, losing its main niche when transitioning to DOU makes it leave a lot to be desired.

Stall

Stinky Situation

Most wall Pokémon don't really work in DOU, so imagine how poorly a whole playstyle revolving around them will fare. Toxapex, Pyukumuku, Hippowdon, and several others are solid choices in OU, but they're pretty bad in DOU, with some having to resort to other strategies to have an actual niche, like Chansey, and others like Toxapex and Mega Sableye completely struggling to find anything close to a niche thanks to their complete passiveness.

Fabled Folklore

Stall is quite a potent playstyle in OU, capable of walling several unprepared teams and only really crumbling to select stallbreakers. Six Pokémon with defensive synergy can often pivot out to each other to win the game in the long run via PP stall or chip damage. Strategies like Magic Bounce, Unaware, multiple Defog users, and Heal Bell are often employed to not let offensive teams overpower the playstyle.

Digging Deeper

It should be pretty clear why stall doesn't work in DOU. The whole concept of double targeting renders most stall strategies completely useless. Of course, teams can be bulkier in DOU, but a passive Pokémon that doesn't support its ally in a meaningful way is an absolute no-no.

Fighting-types

Stinky Situation

Most of OU's notable Fighting-types are quite Trubbish in DOU; Mega Medicham, Hawlucha, Mega Heracross, and Mega Lopunny are notable examples. While Kommo-o and Scrafty still redeem the type's reputation in DOU, it's still clear that the typing is quite lackluster. Mega Medicham, for example, suffers from a speed control-oriented metagame letting teams easily tackle it, not to mention the omnipresence of the likes of Tapu Fini and Zapdos.

Fabled Folklore

Mega Medicham is undoubtedly one of USM OU's strongest wallbreakers. It hits the entire tier hard with High Jump Kick, and, mind you, even some Pokémon that resist it can't stomach two of these. Colorful coverage in Ice Punch and Thunder Punch, as well as a surprisingly strong Fake Out, also add a lot to its roster. In spite of Clefable's omnipresence, Hawlucha is a devastating sweeper in USM OU, getting to blistering Speed tiers and making use of its added bulk with Terrain Seeds to get at least one Swords Dance up. Mega Heracross is also a deadly wallbreaker between having access to Swords Dance and being the proud owner of the highest base Attack stat in the tier. Mega Lopunny on the other hand makes use of high Speed and Scrappy for an unresisted STAB combo. All four are solid picks in USM OU, and while Fighting isn't in its glory days anymore, it’s still quite a potent typing.

Digging Deeper

There isn't all that much to explain here. Simply put, High Jump Kick's unreliability in Doubles is mostly what condemns Kommo-o and Scrafty to be the only viable Fighting-types. Mega Medicham, Hawlucha, and Mega Lopunny have their viability in Doubles removed basically for the same reason. Marshadow did show that Fighting-types not reliant on High Jump Kick can undoubtedly succeed during its short stay in DOU. Now if you're wondering about Mega Heracross, the lack of dedicated walls often means there’s not enough need for dedicated wallbreakers like Mega Heracross, and a terrible matchup with Tapu Fini and Intimidate doesn’t help either.

Honorable Mentions

The following Pokémon were banned from OU but are nowhere near as threatening in doubles. I'll give a brief explanation as to why:

Pheromosa

Pheromosa has probably one of the most extreme stat distributions: jaw-dropping offensive stats, and extremely lackluster defenses. This made it a deadly sweeper in OU between Quiver Dance with several Z-Move options, Rapid Spin + 3 Attacks, Choice Scarf, and several other deadly sets. In the realm of Doubles, though, even if knocks out a Pokémon, it's very likely that the ally of the Pokémon it just KOed is taking it down. Frail Pokémon are just not really efficient in Doubles; you can't really sweep or be a consistent threat in DOU without defensive stats, unless you really make up in attacking power (read: Deoxys-A Z-Psycho Boost in Psychic Terrain).

Mega Blaziken

Speed Boost is a big thing on a Pokémon as strong as Mega Blaziken; even its base forme is already worthy of the banhammer thanks to high Speed and offensive stats as well as an easy way to get offensive boosts with Swords Dance, letting it terrify any archetype of team, from offense to stall. As for Doubles, Mega Blaziken also shares the trait of being overly reliant on High Jump Kick, as its best next option is Sky Uppercut, and that's not cutting it. Yes, it can still hit hard on the Fire-type side of the spectrum, but Mega Blaziken also has another flaw. The frail sweeper curse also affects it somewhat, making Mega Blaziken struggle to set up a Swords Dance without getting taken down. And to top things off, do you really wanna run Mega Blaziken in a metagame filled with Intimidate and Tapu Fini? Yeah, I figured!