Generation 6 OU — Singles Format Reference
Gen 6 OU is the format Mega Evolution defined. Aegislash centralised the meta until its late-ORAS ban, Talonflame's Gale Wings produced the era's defining priority engine, and Knock Off's rebuff to 65 BP made it the most-used move in the format.
Cartridge
X & Y / ORAS
Type
6v6 Singles
Status
Frozen tier
Mechanic
Mega Evolution intro
Until late ORAS, every team-building decision in Gen 6 OU was "does this answer Aegislash?" The most centralising Pokémon Smogon OU has ever produced.
At a glance
Gen 6 OU is the format that broke offense and defense simultaneously. Mega Evolution gave Pokémon new typings, abilities, and stat distributions; the Fairy type ended Dragon dominance; Knock Off rebuffed to 65 BP redrew the defensive landscape.
The format is now frozen. Aegislash was banned in late ORAS — the most contested suspect cycle in Smogon's history. Most other defining bans (Mega Kangaskhan, Mega Salamence, Mega Lucario, Mega Gengar) happened earlier and stayed.
- Format type6v6 Singles, all six brought to battle
- MechanicsMega Evolution (one per team, persistent until faint)
- StatusFrozen — meta stable since Gen 7 succession
- Where it's playedPokémon Showdown ladder + retro tournaments. Live tier page: /xy/ou.
- Sister formatsUbers (above), UU (below)
Format rules
Gen 6 OU applies the standard Smogon Singles clauses. Mega Evolution is fully legal as a mechanic; specific Mega forms are banned by individual Pokémon vote.
| Clause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Sleep Clause | Only one opposing Pokémon may be put to sleep at a time. |
| Species Clause | Each team can only carry one of any given species. |
| Evasion Clause | Evasion-boosting moves and abilities are banned. |
| OHKO Clause | Sheer Cold, Fissure, Horn Drill, Guillotine are banned. |
| Endless Battle Clause | Battle states that cannot end are forbidden. |
| Moody Clause | Moody is banned outright. |
| Mega Clause | Mega Evolution is LEGAL — one per team, per battle. |
| Swagger Clause | Swagger is banned (introduced in Gen 6). |
Banlist
Gen 6 OU's banlist is dominated by Mega forms. Several Megas were banned at launch and stayed banned for the entire generation; Aegislash was the most contested suspect.
Notable Gen 6 OU bans
| Pokémon | Why it was banned |
|---|---|
| Kangaskhan | Mega form. Parental Bond + 125 Atk = effective two STAB attacks every turn. Banned within months of XY launch. |
| Salamence | Mega form. Aerilate + 145 Atk + 120 Spe + Dragon Dance. Banned in ORAS. |
| Gengar | Mega form. Shadow Tag trap + 170 SpA + 130 Spe. |
| Lucario | Mega form. Adaptability + Close Combat + Bullet Punch + Swords Dance. |
| Mawile | Mega form. Huge Power + 105 Atk = effective 210. Initially banned in XY; returned briefly; stayed banned in ORAS. |
| Aegislash | Stance Change + King's Shield + Sacred Sword + Substitute. The most centralising Pokémon of the gen; banned in late ORAS. |
| Greninja | Protean + 122 Spe + Specs Hydro Pump / Ice Beam coverage. Banned mid-cycle; returned to OU briefly via cycle. |
| Blaziken | Speed Boost + Hidden Ability distribution. Permanent Ubers across multiple gens. |
| Hoopa-Unbound | ORAS addition. 170 SpA + 160 Atk on a Dark/Psychic frame. |
| Deoxys-Speed | 180 Speed + Stealth Rock setup. Permanent Ubers. |
| Rayquaza | Mega Rayquaza permanent Ubers from ORAS launch. |
| Mewtwo | Mega Mewtwo X (190 Atk) and Mega Mewtwo Y (194 SpA). Permanent Ubers. |
Mega Evolution & the Aegislash era
Two structural decisions defined Gen 6 OU. The first was the introduction of Mega Evolution itself. The second was Aegislash — a Pokémon so centralising that its presence (and eventual ban) reshaped the format twice.
Mega Evolution — refer to Era page
Mega Evolution is one Pokémon per team, persistent until faint, with stat / ability / often typing changes. For the underlying mechanic, refer to the Mega Evolution section of the Gen 6 Era guide.
Aegislash — the centralising threat
Aegislash is the most centralising Pokémon Smogon OU has produced. Stance Change let it switch between Shield Forme (defensive: 60/150/150/60/150/60) and Blade Forme (offensive: 60/150/60/150/60/60) based on its move category. King's Shieldreverted it to Shield Forme AND lowered the attacker's Attack on contact. The result: a Steel/Ghost frame with offensive AND defensive ceilings, in the same Pokémon, switchable each turn.
The standard set was Sacred Sword + Shadow Ball + Shadow Sneak + King's Shield, with King's Shield + Substitute variants emerging mid-cycle. Every defensive answer (Mega Sableye, Hippowdon, Choice Banded Pursuit users) was structurally part of Aegislash's matchup.
Talonflame Gale Wings
Beyond Aegislash, Talonflame with Gale Wingsshaped the format's priority bracket. Brave Bird gained +1 priority — guaranteed first-strike STAB on every switch-in. Combined with Talonflame's 126 Speed for non-priority moves, the Pokémon was both a top revenge killer AND an aggressive lead. The ability was nerfed in Gen 7 to require full HP; in Gen 6, it triggered unconditionally.
Archetypes
Gen 6 OU's archetypes cluster around the Mega slot decision. Each team-build picked one Mega as its cornerstone; the remaining five Pokémon supported that choice.
Aggressive
Bird Spam
Talonflame + Mega Pinsir (Aerilate Return) + Stealth Rock support. Defining Gen 6 HO archetype — three Flying-type STAB users overwhelm Steel-poor teams.
Aggressive
Hyper Offense
Six offensive Pokémon with hazard support. Common Mega: Mega Charizard X (Tough Claws Dragon Dance), Mega Lopunny (Scrappy Fake Out), Mega Heracross (Skill Link multi-hit).
Balance
Aegislash Balance
Pre-ban: Aegislash + bulky pivots + Mega cornerstone. The format's most-played balance pattern; reshaped after the late-ORAS ban into Mega Sableye / Mega Slowbro stall.
Defensive
Stall — ORAS Mega Sableye
Mega Sableye + Chansey + Skarmory + Mega-removal answers. Magic Bounce reflected hazards back at the setter; Will-O-Wisp + Recover + Foul Play turned Mega Sableye into a near-impenetrable stall member.
Specialty
Sun · Sand
Sand: Tyranitar + Excadrill (Sand Rush). Sun: Mega Charizard Y (Drought) + Chlorophyll abusers. Rain less central in Gen 6 (no permanent Drizzle in OU).
Specialty
Sticky Web
Galvantula + offensive sweepers. Sticky Web introduced in Gen 6 — its first format. Lowered Speed of grounded switch-ins by one stage.
The seven team roles
The seven structural roles apply to Gen 6 OU. The Pokémon filling them are mostly pre-Gen 6 staples plus the new Mega forms.
Defining setters: Heatran, Garchomp, Skarmory, Ferrothorn. Sticky Web: Galvantula.
Defining removers: Excadrill (Rapid Spin), Latios (Defog), Mandibuzz (Defog), Mega Sableye (Magic Bounce hazard prevention).
Defining options: Talonflame Gale Wings priority, Mega Lopunny Scrappy Fake Out, Greninja Choice Scarf revenge.
Defining absorbers: Clefable Magic Guard (defining XY OU pivot), Chansey Natural Cure, Heatran Flash Fire.
Defining pivots: Landorus-Therian U-turn, Rotom-Wash Volt Switch, Tornadus-Therian U-turn (BW2 returner viable in XY OU), Mega Scizor U-turn.
Defining breakers: Specs Latios, Banded Talonflame, Specs Keldeo, Mega Charizard Y Drought Fire Blast.
Defining wincons: Mega Charizard X Dragon Dance, Volcarona Quiver Dance, Manaphy Tail Glow, Aegislash (pre-ban) Substitute + setup.
What makes Gen 6 OU different
Gen 6 OU sits at the inflection point between Gen 5 permaweather and Gen 7's Z-Move + Mega coexistence. Its structural innovations were the new mechanic (Mega) and the type chart rebalance (Fairy + Knock Off rebuff).
65
Knock Off BP
Rebuffed from 20; defining offensive option
✗
Permaweather
Killed by Gen 6's 5-turn weather rule
↑
Mega impact
Format-cornerstone slot every team had
- Mega Evolution restructured offense and defense — Mega Charizard X gained Dragon-typing and Tough Claws, Mega Venusaur gained Thick Fat, Mega Sableye gained Magic Bounce. Each Mega produced a fundamentally different competitive Pokémon.
- The Fairy type ended Dragon dominance — Gen 5's Dragon-spam (Latias, Latios, Hydreigon, Salamence, Garchomp) ran into Clefable / Sylveon / Mega Gardevoir hard counters.
- Knock Off became universal — 65 BP + 1.5× when removing an item made Knock Off the most-used move in Gen 6 OU. Removed Leftovers, Choice items, defensive utility items by the millions.
- Aegislash centralisation — until late ORAS, Aegislash defined every team-building decision. Its ban produced a meta shift no other Pokémon had triggered.
How to get started
Gen 6 OU has the deepest tournament archive of any Singles format — SPL, Smogon Tour, Smogon Premier League ran on Gen 6 OU for years. The community analysis is exhaustive.
- Read Smogon's Gen 6 OU tier page — banlist, Pokémon analyses, sample teams all final.
- Choose your Mega slot — Mega Charizard X (offense), Mega Charizard Y (sun), Mega Venusaur (defense), Mega Scizor (priority pivot), Mega Sableye (stall, ORAS only).
- Pair with Aegislash if pre-ban — most XY-era teams ran Aegislash. ORAS-late teams worked around its absence with Mega Sableye / Mega Slowbro defensive cores.
- Copy a sample team — Smogon's vetted Gen 6 OU samples are stable and well-documented.
- Ladder Pokémon Showdown — Gen 6 OU has an active retro ladder. Tournament play continues via Smogon Tour and SPL.
Where to go from here
The above is the static reference for Gen 6 OU. Live frozen-tier data lives in the rest of Pokékipe.
- Live tier data — /xy/ou for Gen 6 OU usage and Pokémon stats.
- Mechanics — Gen 6 — X & Y covers Mega Evolution, the Fairy type addition, and the type chart rebalance.
- Adjacent formats — Gen 7 OU covers the Sun & Moon format that succeeded Gen 6.
- Tournament history — Timeline tracks Smogon Tour and SPL Gen 6 OU results.