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A Comprehensive PvP Analysis on the GBL Season 3 Move Rebalance
Hello again, fellow travelers! It's that PvP article guy (LXP and Community Day/Elite TM analysis), back with a look at the seemingly regular move shakeup we just got with the kickoff of GO Battle League's third season. It's not the seismic shift we've had during other past rebalances, but there IS still plenty to discuss! A disclaimer: I am examining these strictly from a PvP usability standpoint. Yes, there ARE some impacts in terms of raids and PVE damage rankings and all, but there are a myriad of other folks that already look into all that. I am a PvP analyst, so that's what I'll be focusing on here. One more note: while I usually try and bring in at least some information on shieldless and 2v2 shielding scenarios, I chose to stick with just the standard 1v1 shielding matchups in the sims below, partly because it still tells the story fine on its own and represents the pros and cons of the changes well, and also partly to spare you from this dragging on any longer than it already does! 😅 So without further ado, let's dive in, starting with the fast moves and working our way down. Buckle up!
SNOWBALL FIGHT!!
Arguably the biggest winner of all in this shakeup is a Pokémon that has long been the butt of jokes: Abomasnow. It has an intriguing Grass/Ice typing combination that seems like it should be good (resistances to Electric, Grass, Ground, and Water), but in the end is much more curse than blessing (vulnerable to seemingly everything under the sun: Bug, Fighting, Flying, Poison, Rock, Steel, and of course doubly weak to Fire). Add to that the fact that the best charge moves it could muster were Energy Ball (which isn't bad) and the slow Outrage or Blizzard, and not even a good energy generating move like POWDER SNOWcould get there fast enough to overcome its many Achilles' heels, relegating it to typically being a clumsy Razor Leafer. But Aboma just got a DOUBLE shot in the arm. First of all, Powder Snow got a straight buff in this update, going from the 2.0 Damage Per Turn and 4.0 Energy Per Turn it generated before to now 2.5 DPT and the same 4.0 EPT, making it a clone of the awesome Vine Whip and trailing just behind top notch moves Shadow Claw and Volt Switch with their 4.0 EPT and 3.0 DPT. No other move generates as much energy as Powder Snow while dealing any higher than 2.0 DPT, putting the new and improved Powder Snow in pretty elite company. Shoutout to fellow analyst u/ytxpikachu25 for pointing out that this buff means Aboma's Powder Snows each deal one more damage than before to Galarian Stunfisk, Bastiodon, Steelix, Cherrim, Escavalier, and Shiftry, among others. The other good news for Abomasnow is that it also recieved a new charge move in this update, and it's just what it needed most: an inexpensive move to pair with Energy Ball. Say hello to the only non-Castform recipient of Ice WEATHER BALL. Put that together with the improved Powder Snow and the steady Energy Ball from before, and what do you get? A genuine contender. That's an improvement of 20% to its previously best win total, specifically eight new wins--Cresselia, Dewgong, AS Tropius, Venusaur, Shiftry, Cherrim, Galvantula, and HaunteGengar--while still beating everything pre-buff "Obama" already could. Snowbama has finally arrived to occupy a chunk of the Great League stage. But Weather Ball is also a boon to Razor Leaf Abomasnow, improving on its previous best by adding several notable new wins like Cresselia, Probopass, Razor Leaf Tropius, and big bad Meganium, as well as greatly improving on wins versus Haunter and Sableye (30 and 50 more HP, respectively, after beating them with IWB). Ice Weather Ball immediately becomes one of the best moves in the game to pair with Razor Leaf, being spammy enough for even slow-charging Razor Leaf to get there--often even in multiples!--and offering very good coverage and giving RL Obama some good versatility. And there's more... there is also Shadow Abomasnow to consider, which seems to be all the rage so far in this early GBL season. It's both a little better and a little worse than regular Aboma. Sticking with Razor Leaf Abomashadow for the moment, new wins appear against Froslass, Ferrothorn, and Galvantula, though at the cost of giving up wins against Haunter and Hypno that non-Shadow Aboma gets. Digging a little deeper, while both regular and Shadow win against Cresselia, Mantine, Probopass, Tropius and others, regular Abomasnow gets out with more HP, often 20+ more, while Abomashadow doesn't escape with more remaining HP often at all, and even when it does, rarely for more than 5 or so more HP. And likewise with Powder Snow. Here, you can see right away that the case for Abomashadow is a little shakier, as it shows one less win than normal PS Aboma, but once again there's more to see when you peel back the layers. Shadow gets unique wins over Lapras, Toxicroak, and Galarian Stunfisk, all big names to be sure. But it also loses to Dewgong, Hypno, Cherrim, and Mew, all of which non-Shadow Aboma can take out. Personally, I still give the (slight) edge to non-Shadow Aboma in Great League, so don't fret if you don't have a good Abomashadow! But there is STILL more. Because while Abomasnow tops out below 2400 CP, it is now even a potential option in Ultra League, beating most notable Grasses, Charmers, Dragons (Dragonite AND potentially both Giratinas), Ghosts (Gengar and suddenly relevant Drifblim), and of course Waters like Swampert, Empoleon, Blastoise, and Feraligatr thanks to Energy Ball. Not bad! Maxing an Abomashadow would be painful, but it is worth noting that doing so could net you Cresselia and Snorlax (but you give up Granbull and Empoleon). I'm not saying a maxed Aboma is something I would outright recommend for Ultra League, but there are many worse ideas. So what's the verdict? In Great League, while it has been a laughing stock many times over, Abomasnow may now get the last laugh. With either fast move, Energy Ball and the new Ice Weather Ball have taken Aboma from plodding and unintimindating to spammy and terrifying overnight. You have probably run into at least one in this young GBL season already. It won't be the last. Abomasnow is now here to stay. Good news if you haven't invested yet: you can run with a cheaper, non-Shadow one and still be just fine, IMO. Check the slight differences above, but either snow white or dirty snow Aboma work well. Other Benefactors? While only Abomasnow recieved Ice Weather Ball, there are many Pokémon that have Powder Snow and stand to benefit.
Snowy Castform was probably a bit underrated already, but the buff to Powder Snow has the potential to take it to new, lofty heights. It's the only other 'mon that has Ice Weather Ball, and it makes very good use of it (and its above average bulk) to set up a killer Blizzard. SO good is this combination that Snowy can even beat things it really shouldn't, like Machamp and Skarmory, while also outlasting big bulky stuff like Umbreon, Munchlax, and Hypno... all assuming it gets the first shield with a bait. If not, hey, Snowy can still take down Flyers and Grasses and Charmers and Dragons and Mud Boys and things like Stunfisk and Haunter and Cresselia with just Weather Ball spam, and that's still pretty good. I haven't seen any yet myself, but expect them to start popping up as the season drags on. May want to consider investing yourself and getting ahead of the curve.
However, I still don't think this is enough to save Piloswine. Unlike Aboma, it just cannot seem to overcome its awful typing. (Ground and Ice just don't do each other many favors.) Even Mamoswine in the best possible circumstances ML Premier Cup just doesn't do enough for me to give any kind of endorsement to the Swines. Too bad. They really should be better with their good moves. If you've made them work for you, congrats, but it's really in spite of their typings that they find any success at all.
THROW A HEX ON THE WHOLE FAMILY
Yes, this 40-year-old white boy is throwing out a Puff Daddy (and The Notorious B.I.G. and Lil' Kim) lyrical reference... what of it? 😎 Powder Snow got buffed, but it's not the only fast move that did. Two moves recieved a straight buff to their energy generation, from 3.67 EPT to a simpler 4.0 EPT, and one of those, as you likely surmised by now, is long-forgotten Ghost move HEX. While still strictly inferior to well-known Ghost move Shadow Claw (which has the same energy generation but deals 50% more damage--3.0 rather than Hex's 2.0--per turn), this improvement at least makes Hex usable, now sporting the same stats as Fury Cutter and Spark. Not the greatest of moves, fair enough, but viable for anything that has Hex but cannot use Shadow Claw instead. And even this small tweak is a boon to several Pokémon, propelling them up the ranks. Probably the biggest beneficiary is Drifblim. A standout star early in the now-ending Silph Arena Season 2, back then Blim relied on big Shadow Balls baited out with a still-useful-then Ominous Wind. Its non-Ghost move, Icy Wind, was buffed in another move update in December, but still mostly ignored until Ominous Wind was itself nerfed in yet ANOTHER move rebalancing in April. (Yeah, Niantic has been pretty rebalance-happy the last few months. 😓) Anyway, all that to say that despite the goings-on with its charge moves, Drifblim never really broke out fully. Hex was (and still is) its only viable fast move, and frankly, that held it back, with it losing several close matchups, just not quite being able to get over the hump and dying before it could let loose with its own winning charge moves. No longer. With Hex now generating a bit more energy more quickly, Drifblim is rising again. As you would probably expect, it handles Psychics and Fighters and even other Ghosts (not named Haunter) quite capably, though that wasn't always the case... it used to lose to Jirachi and Alolan Marowak with the old Hex stats, but now beats both, and convincingly. It also adds Registeel (granted, the nerf Regi faces don't help, but still), Azumarill, and Ferrothorn to the win column. And again, all that with just a 0.33 boost in energy generation per turn. And Blim still handles Grasses and Swampert and even traditional Flying killer Melmetal as it did before, with each win obviously coming a bit easier (read as: with more remaining HP afterwards) than it did before. And it gets even better, as with very good PvP IVs, Drifblim can even emerge victorious over Skarmory, Galarian Stunfisk, Mantine, and Altaria. The difference in Ultra League (yes, viable there too!) is a bit more subtle, as the only new win it really picks up against the core meta is Charizard, but as in Great League, it has more HP remaining in its wins, including about 50 more against Ferrothorn and as much as 90 more HP remaining against Cresselia. So what's the verdict? Drifblim was arguably better than people gave it credit for already, but the buff to Hex can lead to some HUGE new wins (especially Azu, Regi, and potentially even Altaria) in Great League and more consistency overall. Give it another look... Blim may surprise you, and at least early in the GBL season, your opponent as well! Other Benefactors? Not everything that has Hex stands to benefit, as most still have better fast moves, but there are a few dark horses....
Castform has cropped up here and there, and for good reason, but I bet you've never seen a Normal-type Castform in battle. Well little known fact: while the other Castforms get an on-type fast move, Normal Casty has only the terrible Tackle and... Hex, of all things. Combined with Normal-type Weather Ball and either Energy Ball or Hurricane, Castform still doesn't wow with its volume of wins, but it at least gets some good ones in there, such as Cresselia, Swampert, Meganium, Stunfisk, Whiscash, Cherrim, Venusaur, Tropius, and of course Ghosts like Haunter and A-Wak and Froslass and Drifblim. It's a spice option, to be sure, but one that does enough to at least think about.
Dusclops is another that has long been buried behind other Pokémon of its type. It's sort of the Hitmonchan of Ghosts, with all manner of "Punch" charge moves, namely Fire, Ice, and Shadow. And yes, its best fast move is Hex. Combining the two elemental Punches for the best of both worlds, Dusclops has always been capable of beating stuff like the major Fighters, most all Grasses, and a smattering of Psychics (DDeoxys, AhChu, etc.) and Steels (Melmetal, Skarmory, etc.) and things like Altaria too. With the charge moves coming a little bit faster now, you can add Venusaur and Registeel to the win column as well. And yes, Shadow Clops is a viable alternative, giving up several Grass wins to instead gain the Stunfisks and Hypno. Either way, while Dusclops does not have blow-you-away numbers, there are some good wins in there that could give Dusclops a place on the right team.
AND UH... INFESTATION
Yeah, not even a catchy title for this one, because honestly, the ripples from the buff to INFESTATION are rather small. It got the same treatment as Hex (going from 3.67 EPT to 4.0 EPT, with the same 2.0 DPT), but there just aren't any particularly interesting Pokémon that actually want it, even in its improved state. The top ones that can even HAVE Infestation are Beedrill (wants Poison Jab), Tangrowth (definitely wants Vine Whip, which is strictly better), Cradily and Jumpluff (not since Bullet Seed was buffed!), and then you're into things like Muk and Drapion which I can't see ever choosing Infestation over their other fast moves. This is mostly just a boon to fringe options like Weezing and Garbodor and Swalot. At least that last one has SOME potential... wins over Fighters and Grasses and Darks and Charmers and tanky Psychics and even Azumarill all make you at least go "hmmmm". But truthfully, the buff to Infestation, while certainly welcome, isn't dragging new stuff to the top of the meta anytime soon.
LAND OF THE DEE (BUFF), HOME OF THE BRAVE (BIRDS)
And now probably the move that will cause the most ongoing debate, because while BRAVE BIRD got a huge damage buff (formerly 55 energy for 90 damage, and now 55 for a whopping 130), there is a steep penalty: a drop of three stages (nearly 50%) of the user's Defense stat. I talked about this some recently with the only other move to carry a -3 drop in the game so far: Victini's V-Create. If you can charge two and fire them in close succession, you can drastically mitigate at least the initial pain of so drastically crushing your Pokémon's bulk. But V-Create costs 40 energy... and Brave Bird costs 55, so that's going to be much harder to pull off. Fortunately, there are a couple birds with fast moves that get there quickly. Honchkrow has Snarl, one of the fastest charging fast moves in the game. And perhaps even better, Honch also has the mighty Sky Attack, which can be sprung a bit earlier to hopefully bait a shield and leave you 10 energy closer to a Brave Bird than double charging BB allows. Sky Attack also obviously has no drawbacks as far as debuffing goes, so you can rely on it more fully and save BB for big moments. There was no reason to ever use Brave Bird before, and so Honchkrow instead relied on Dark Pulse for its second move, which was okay-ish but left Honch as a very fringey option. Now, though, it has the potential to fly quite high with double Flying moves. You might expect Honch to lose a matchup or two by shedding its one and only Dark charge move, but amazingly that's not the case at all... it actually holds or improves upon every win it got with Dark Pulse (meaning has the same HP or more left over at the end), and tacks on wins versus Whiscash, Ferrothorn, Umbreon, Zweilous, Tropius, Toxicroak, and Altaria. That's mighty impressive, and I feel very confident calling Brave Bird--even just the threat of Brave Bird--a clear improvement for Honchkrow in Great League. And the improvement is even more striking in Ultra League, with Honchkrow again holding the (shaky) line established with Dark Pulse and just adding to it, with Poliwrath, Swampert, Typhlosion, Scizor, Escavalier, Feraligatr, Charizard, and Dragonite all now falling to Honch. So what's the verdict? Honchkrow just become meta before our eyes. It may take people a little while to catch on in Great League, but expect to see it start to emerge here and there and possibly be more common by the time Ultra rolls around. It's an expensive investment for Ultra, needing to be leveled into the upper 30s, but it's not a crazy idea to do so. Other Benefactors? Part of the reason Brave Bird works so well for Honch is that it has that second, threatening charge move (Sky Attack) that it can mostly rely on and reserve Brave Bird for the most opportune moment. Not all Pokémon have that option, so how does this affect them?
Skarmory has been very meta in Great League from the moment PvP arrived in the game, a rare centerpiece of GBL and Silph Arena teams alike. But if there's been one knock on it, it's been Skarmory's lack of a truly impactful second charge move to go with its own Sky Attack. To this point, if another move had any place, it was Flash Cannon to try and at least maim (though rarely actually flip) some of its harder counters like Bastiodon and Probopass. But especially with Flash Cannon now getting a slight nerf (which we'll look into more later), I think the second move you want now is Brave Bird. As compared to Flash Cannon, BB can pick up wins over Hypno, Lapras, Ferrothorn, Whiscash, Ferrothorn, Munchlax, and the mirror match versus FC Skarm. As with Honchkrow, BB works well here because Skarmory can do plenty of work with Sky Attack and save Brave Bird as a knockout move. Skarm was already good, but just got a little bit scarier.
I already wrote aboutGalarian Farfetch'd back when it was introduced to the game, and now it's back as a possible reward encounter in GO Battle League starting at Rank 7. Back then, I was already leaning towards Brave Bird for closing power, paired with Leaf Blade, giving it wins over Mud Boys, most Grasses, most big Fighters (Cham, Croak, etc.), Stunfisk, and Azumarill and Zweilous and even Probopass. But now, with BB being an even more beastly closer, all the changes are positive ones, with G-Fetch'd now able to take down Umbreon, Sableye, DDeoxys, Froslass, Tropius (with either fast move), Ferrothorn, and even Melmetal. And just like that, Galarian Farfetch'd has gone from fringe to potential meta option in Great League. Of course, some of those wins only come with Leaf Blade baiting a shield or two, but honestly, there's not much that wants to take a Blade to the face either. G-Fetch'd is one to keep an eye on now.
It's still kind of on the fringe, but Legacy Wing Attack Pidgeot with the souped up Brave Bird is a clear improvement on the Hurricane variant, with BB keeping (and often improving on) all the same wins, plus Altaria and the also-improved Drifblim. It's more on par with Noctowl now, though still trails Mr. Owl slightly and probably needs a more limited meta than wide open GBL (say, a Silph Cup) to really shine. But if you really like Pidgeot, then sure, you can use it and succeed with it on the right team, and that just got a bit easier.
The other Pokémon with Brave Bird either don't typically want it (Blaziken, Braviary) or just aren't good enough for BB to save them now. One possible exception is Ho-Oh in Master League. The only truly meta things it could beat before were Heatran, Metagross, Mamoswine, Snorlax, and (just barely) Groudon. Now that close win against Groudon turns into a much more sure bet, and new potential wins show up against Togekiss, Garchomp, and even Gyarados (WITH future CD move Aqua Tail). But MAN, does Ho-Oh still desperately need a better fast move. Free him from this purgatory, Niantic!
There is one more big bird that gets Brave Bird, but I want to break it down separately... right now!
BRAVIARY IN ACTION
I looked into Braviary shortly after Rufflet arrived in the game, but with pre-tweaked Brave Bird and slow charging Heat Wave as the only moves to go alongside the all-but-necessary Rock Slide, it just didn't do enough to deserve a full writeup. But now it gets CLOSE COMBAT, which makes it at least a little more intriguing should it ever arrive in small enough form to fit in Great League, gaining new wins over Galarian Stunfisk, Swampert, Munchlax, and potentially even Registeel. But in Ultra League, it makes a few more inroads, with Close Combat bringing home new wins over Empoleon, Obstagoon, and Alolan Muk. Or you can bring the reworked BRAVE BIRD into the mix and reach for Altered Giratina, Typhlosion, and fellow buffed Pokémon Drifblim, while still holding on to Obstagoon and Empoleon (though A-Muk may slip away). And while Braviary crosses the 3000 CP threshold and can do some work in Master League (and a bit more in ML Premier Cup), now preferring Rock Slide again, it has a rather niche role. So what's the verdict? Eh, I like the potential of Braviary in Great League and Master League more than the actual win/loss columns. A Flyer with moves that cover many of its toughest counters (Close Combat for Rocks and Ices) and counter fellow Flyers (Rock Slide, which doubles up on Ices and provides other good coverage) is going to matter at some point, just perhaps more in The Silph Arena than in GBL. But in Ultra League, there may be something to it, especially in the projected Ultra League Premier Cup. Consider prepping one now to get ahead of the curve. Put those GBL Rufflet candies to good use!
PECK TO THE SIDES, TO THE FRONT, TO THE BACK
🎼 Well, look at old Jim, he's pecking on his back! ♩ Peckin' to me is a lot of fun, ♫ Well, you peck one, and I'll peck one, well, we'll all peck one! ♪ You peck to the east, and then you peck to the west, 🎶 Then you peck, peck, peck 'til you've pecked your best. ♭ Well, then okay, well, a-hey, hey, ♬ We'll peck up, we'll peck up, we'll peck up the floor, Yeah! Apologies to Cab Calloway, but you knew I'd have to have ONE butchered song in here! Anyway, let's talk DRILL PECK. It's a very rare move, available on only two viable Pokémon in PvP: Zapdos, and as of the start of Season 3, Empoleon. Zapdos first. I already wrote about Thunder Shock Zapdos to kick off my early review of Elite TM targets, so rather than rehashing all that, would encourage you to go read that again. I'll wait. ... ... ...you back? Okay, good. Because with Drill Peck now dealing five more damage (65 now, 60 previously) for the same low 40 energy cost, Zapdos is even a little bit better now. Shadow Zapdos in Great League picks up a new win against Medicham (the little bit of extra damage from Drill Peck finishing Cham off before it can reach a second Ice Punch). I didn't see any significant new wins in Ultra or Master (though feel free to point them out if you know of any!), but it does give Zapdos a little more elbow room in some of its wins. I wouldn't say this tweak is now the reason to suddenly start using Zapdos (the fact that you could get Thunder Shock in any league was that reason), but if you already planned to, the improvements to Drill Peck make Zappy a hair better overall. The bigger story is perhaps Empoleon, you FINALLY gets a coverage move against the Fighters and Grasses that plague it. The best thing it had to combine with Hydro Cannon before was Flash Cannon, which just got nerfed a bit. Drill Peck gives it a new win over Aboma(powder)snow and brings Azumarill to well within the margin of error, though without Flash Cannon you DO lose out on Altaria. in Ultra League, Empie with Drill Peck maintains its current roles and adds wins against Dragonite and now Shadow Abomasnow, while in Master League, Empoleon basically stays where it was, since it usually only needs Hydro Cannon anyway. (Though the hard-to-sim coverage against Fighters is nice to have, so I'd still call this a gain.) Nothing awe-inspiring, but overall, this makes Empoleon a mostly better version of itself. So what's the verdict? This isn't a huge change, and that shows in the minutia in the win/loss changes. But it IS a straight upgrade for Zapdos, and gives Empoleon the best move it has had yet to pair with Hydro Cannon. While the loss to Altaria in GL is unfortunate, I think I still give it a thumbs up as the second move to roll with on Empoleon moving forward. Other Benefactors? Honestly, not really. Murkrow and Dodrio get Drill Peck, but they still don't really have any play. Zapdos and now Empoleon are the beginning and end of the Drill Peck book.
GOODNESS, GRACIOUS, GREAT BALLS OF...WATER?
So with stats (~125 Attack, 127 Defense, 113 HP) basically the same as Togekiss and overall comparable to things like Venusaur and Cherrim, it's not that Pelipper doesn't have what it takes to hang in there in Great League. The problem has always been the complete lack of any charge moves cheaper than Hurricane and its 65 energy requirement. Sure, Hydro Pump and Blizzard are awesome when they hit, and Wing Attack (3.5 Energy Per Turn) in particular generates energy fast enough to get there at some point, but Pump and Blizzard both cost 75 energy. What Pelipper has so desperately needed is a bait/spam move, and now it finally has it with Water WEATHER BALL. So while Pelipper has been quite pathetic to this point, with WWB, suddenly it doesn't look too shabby. With just Wing Attack and WWB alone (so no baits), it can eliminate Registeel, Mud Boys Swampert and Whiscash, Galarian Stunfisk, Shiftry, A-Wak, Haunter, and basically anything Fighting, a very good start. Bringing in Hurricane (still the best bet as the second move) you can add on things like Azumarill, Lapras, Tropius, and Cherrim, plus Mantine with good bulk IVs. Not the greatest Flying Water type ever--I'd still say, in Great League, that that title rests with Mantine itself)--but Pelipper is legit close to that... and Mantine doesn't usually get Registeel. You also have the option of Water Gun rather than Wing Attack, losing 0.5 EPT but gaining 0.5 DPT and a steadier dose of Water-type damage, which is worse overall BUT does gain things like Probopass and a better showing against A-Marowak and Registeel while giving up Grasses, Lapras, and Azumarill. Like I said, it's worse, but it IS an option and may be better in certain limited formats like future Silph Arena Cups. For now, just something to keep in mind... towards the back. So what's the verdict? Wing Attack/Water Weather Ball/Hurricane Pelipper has some legit play, with some very good wins under its belt, uh, beak, from Mud Boys to Fighters to Ghosts to G-Fisk to Registeel and even some of the biggest of big name Grasses. It's sort of a mini-Mantine, one that may even be better on certain teams and/or in certain more-restricted-than-GBL formats. Recommend looking for a good Wingull and making a Pelipper out of it when you're able.
...AND ALL THE REST
BLIZZARD got a slight buff to damage without costing any more, which is nice. Skull Bash, Gunk Shot, and Hydro Pump all deal 130 damage for 75 energy, and that's where Blizzard used to be too, but it now surpasses them by dealing 140 damage for the same cost. The problem is that, even after this, most things that have Blizzard don't actually want it. Lapras is STILL better off with Skull Bash for the neutral coverage, Articuno prefers Hurricane still for similar reasons, and even newly buffed Abomasnow and Pelipper have better alternatives. Kyogre and Milotic and Regice appreciate the buff in Master League, but it's really just a "kill more" finisher now that I don't see suddenly leading to new wins they wouldn't have gotten already. It's nice to have but you likely won't see a big difference in success rates with things that use Blizzard.
Poor Registeel. I mean, not that I really feel too bad, since I hate that big dumb doorknob with every fiber of my PvP player being, but it gets a double whammy with FLASH CANNON AND FOCUS BLAST both getting nerfed. Cannon still deals the same 110 damage, but now for 5 more energy, making those races to the next charge move a little harder now, and Blast still costs the same but deals 10 less damage, making it harder to turn the tables against Regi's biggest counters. I think it will come out fine in both Great League... it's still very powerful and still beats many of the things it always did, it's just a bit more mortal now. There are more troubling signs in Ultra League though, with new losses showing against Origin Giratina, Meganium, Snorlax, and Lickilicky and slight (though expected) dip in performance in many of its other wins. I DO think you'll still see plenty of it though, and should, as it's still very potent and downright oppressive in many matchups. Love Regi or hate it, if you're honest with yourself, you have to admit that kicking Regi back a small step should be good for the game in the end.
Similarly, the Flash Cannon nerf is a slight hit to things like Ferrothorn (and makes me reconsider my formerly wise decision to roll with it on my Bastiodon, primarily for the mirror) and the nerf to Focus Blast hurts things that like it as a closer, like Gengar and Mewtwo, but they're not really going to go anywhere. This irks them and their users, sure, but their places in their respective metas is still very secure. With Focus Blast in particular, keep in mind that the 75 energy for 140 damage it has been reduced to is still better than any other 75-cost move except (just promoted) Blizzard. Blast was pretty overpowered already, so like Registeel, this is just bringing it back to the rest of the pack a bit, and was probably overdue.
TL;DR
Yes, as it says in the title, this is a comprehensive (read as: LONG) analysis article, but I know some people just want to skip to the end and get a summary. So before you ask, this is for you:
Abomasnow is now a very real part of the Great and Ultra League metas, especially Powder Snow variants. Look for regular AND Shadow to start popping up, as both are quite viable. Snowy Castform is scary in Great League now as well.
Drifblim had a few close losses with old Hex that now flip to wins with new Hex, and it too is notably improved in Great and Ultra Leagues. Be on the lookout, and remember that in addition to powerful Shadow Ball, it also totes around Icy Wind. Shield accordingly.
The changes to Brave Bird seem to be mostly a net gain for Honchkrow and Skarmory, who both now want it as the second move they've been waiting for to run alongside Sky Attack. It works well for them because SA still does most of the heavy lifting, with BB being primarily a closeout move, thus mitigating the steep -3 Defense drop.
You should finally be able to put all those GBL reward Rufflets to good use, as Braviary looks viable in all three leagues. In Great League, it doesn't really want Brave Bird (preferring Rock Slide and the new Close Combat instead), but BB serves it well in the bigger leagues.
The slight buffs to Drill Peck and Infestation are nice to have, but don't change much for those that use them. Empoleon appreciates it for coverage, especially in Ultra League, but the needle doesn't move very far.
Registeel will be fine. Not quite as dominant now, which is a good thing really, but still very good despite nerfs to both of its primary charge moves. Reports of its demise have been greatly exaggerated.
And that's a wrap, folks! I did quite a bit of analysis on all this over the last two days, and while this is an informed opinion, it is still just that: my opinion. Hopefully it helps, but take that for what it's worth! Alright, I'll bow out now and let you get back to your day and your GBL matches. Thanks for sticking with me through this and other long articles I have written. I appreciate your time and attention, and sincerely hope this assists you in navigating these new GBL waters. For more PvP tidbits, you can find me on Twitter for near-daily PvP analysis nuggets, or Patreon and its tie-in exclusive Discord servesecret lair. And please, feel free to comment here with your own thoughts or questions and I'll try to get back to you! Stay safe out there, Pokéfriends. Thanks again for reading, and catch you next time!
Hello again, folks! I know I've been somewhat quiet the last couple weeks, but that does mean I've been idle! I'm back with a look at the seemingly regular move shakeup we just got with the kickoff of GO Battle League's third season. It's not the seismic shift we've had during other past rebalances, but there IS still plenty to discuss! One quick disclaimer before we jump in: while I usually try and bring in at least some information on shieldless and 2v2 shielding scenarios, I chose to stick with just the standard 1v1 shielding matchups in the sims below, partly because it still tells the story fine on its own and represents the pros and cons of the changes well, and also partly to spare you from this dragging on any longer than it already does! 😅 So without further ado, let's dive in, starting with the fast moves and working out way down. Buckle up!
SNOWBALL FIGHT!!
Arguably the biggest winner of all in this shakeup is a Pokémon that has long been the butt of jokes: Abomasnow. It has an intriguing Grass/Ice typing combination that seems like it should be good (resistances to Electric, Grass, Ground, and Water), but in the end is much more curse than blessing (vulnerable to seemingly everything under the sun: Bug, Fighting, Flying, Poison, Rock, Steel, and of course doubly weak to Fire). Add to that the fact that the best charge moves it could muster were Energy Ball (which isn't bad) and the slow Outrage or Blizzard, and not even a good energy generating move like POWDER SNOWcould get there fast enough to overcome its many Achilles' heels, relegating it to typically being a clumsy Razor Leafer. But Aboma just got a DOUBLE shot in the arm. First of all, Powder Snow got a straight buff in this update, going from the 2.0 Damage Per Turn and 4.0 Energy Per Turn is generated before to now 2.5 DPT and the same 4.0 EPT, making it a clone of the awesome Vine Whip and trailing just behind top notch moves Shadow Claw and Volt Switch with their 4.0 EPT and 3.0 DPT. No other move generates as much energy as Powder Snow while dealing any higher than 2.0 DPT, putting the new and improved Powder Snow in pretty elite company. Shoutout to fellow analyst u/ytxpikachu25 for pointing out that this buff means Aboma's Powder Snows each deal one more damage than before to Galarian Stunfisk, Bastiodon, Steelix, Cherrim, Escavalier, and Shiftry, among others. The other good news for Abomasnow is that it also recieved a new charge move in this update, and it's just what it needed most: an inexpensive move to pair with Energy Ball. Say hello to the only non-Castform recipient of Ice WEATHER BALL. Put that together with the improved Powder Snow and the steady Energy Ball from before, and what do you get? A genuine contender. That's an improvement of 20% to its previously best win total, specifically eight new wins--Cresselia, Dewgong, AS Tropius, Venusaur, Shiftry, Cherrim, Galvantula, and HaunteGengar--while still beating everything pre-buff "Obama" already could. Snowbama has finally arrived to occupy a chunk of the Great League stage. But Weather Ball is also a boon to Razor Leaf Abomasnow, improving on its previous best by adding several notable new wins like Cresselia, Probopass, Razor Leaf Tropius, and big bad Meganium, as well as greatly improving on wins versus Haunter and Sableye (30 and 50 more HP, respectively, after beating them with IWB). Ice Weather Ball immediately becomes one of the best moves in the game to pair with Razor Leaf, being spammy enough for even slow-charging Razor Leaf to get there--often even in multiples!--and offering very good coverage and giving RL Obama some good versatility. And there's more... there is also Shadow Abomasnow to consider, which seems to be all the rage so far in this early GBL season. It's both a little better and a little worse than regular Aboma. Sticking with Razor Leaf Abomashadow for the moment, new wins appear against Froslass, Ferrothorn, and Galvantula, though at the cost of giving up wins against Haunter and Hypno that non-Shadow Aboma gets. Digging a little deeper, while both regular and Shadow win against Cresselia, Mantine, Probopass, Tropius and others, regular Abomasnow gets out with more HP, often 20+ more, while Abomashadow doesn't escape with more remaining HP often at all, and even when it does, rarely for more than 5 or so more HP. And likewise with Powder Snow. Here, you can see right away that the case for Abomashadow is a little shakier, as it shows one less win than normal PS Aboma, but once again there's more to see when you peel back the layers. Shadow gets unique wins over Lapras, Toxicroak, and Galarian Stunfisk, all big names to be sure. But it also loses to Dewgong, Hypno, Cherrim, and Mew, all of which non-Shadow Aboma can take out. Personally, I still give the (slight) edge to non-Shadow Aboma in Great League, so don't fret if you don't have a good Abomashadow! But there is STILL more. Because while Abomasnow tops out below 2400 CP, it is now even a potential option in Ultra League, beating most notable Grasses, Charmers, Dragons (Dragonite AND potentially both Giratinas), Ghosts (Gengar and suddenly relevant Drifblim), and of course Waters like Swampert, Empoleon, Blastoise, and Feraligatr thanks to Energy Ball. Not bad! Maxing a Abomashadow would be painful, but it is worth noting that doing so could net you Cresselia and Snorlax (but you give up Granbull and Empoleon). I'm not saying a maxed Aboma is something I would outright recommend for Ultra League, but there are many worse ideas. So what's the verdict? In Great League, while it has been a laughing stock many times over, Abomasnow may now get the last laugh. With either fast move, Energy Ball and the new Ice Weather Ball have taken Aboma from plodding and unintimindating to spammy and terriftying overnight. You have probably run into at least one in this young GBL season already. It won't be the last. Abomasnow is now here to stay. Good news if you haven't invested yet: you can run with a cheaper, non-Shadow one and still be just fine, IMO. Check the slight differences above, but either snow white or dirty snow Aboma work well. Other Benefactors? While only Abomasnow recieved Ice Weather Ball, there are many Pokémon that have Powder Snow and stand to benefit.
Snowy Castform was probably a bit underrated already, but the buff to Powder Snow has the potential to take it to new, lofty heights. It's the only other 'mon that has Ice Weather Ball, and it makes very good use of it (and its above average bulk) to set up a killer Blizzard. SO good is this combination that Snowy can even beat things it really shouldn't, like Machamp and Skarmory, while also outlasting big bulky stuff like Umbreon, Munchlax, and Hypno... all assuming it gets the first shield with a bait. If not, hey, Snowy can still take down Flyers and Grasses and Charmers and Dragons and Mud Boys and things like Stunfisk and Haunter and Cresselia with just Weather Ball spam, and that's still pretty good. I haven't seen any yet myself, but expect them to start popping up as the season drags on. May want to consider investing yourself and getting ahead of the curve.
However, I still don't think this is enough to save Piloswine. Unlike Aboma, it just cannot seem to overcome its awful typing. (Ground and Ice just don't do each other many favors.) Even Mamoswine in the best possible circumstances ML Premier Cup just doesn't do enough for me to give any kind of endorsement to the Swines. Too bad. They really should be better with their good moves. If you've made them work for you, congrats, but it's really in spite of their typings that they find any success at all.
THROW A HEX ON THE WHOLE FAMILY
Yes, this 40-year-old white boy is throwing out a Puff Daddy (and The Notorious B.I.G. and Lil' Kim) lyrical reference... what of it? 😎 Powder Snow got buffed, but it's not the only fast move that did. Two moves recieved a straight buff to their energy generation, from 3.67 EPT to a simpler 4.0 EPT, and one of those, as you likely surmised by now, is long-forgotten Ghost move HEX. While still strictly inferior to well-known Ghost move Shadow Claw (which has the same energy generation but deals 50% more damage--3.0 rather than Hex's 2.0--per turn), this improvement at least makes Hex usable, now sporting the same stats as Fury Cutter and Spark. Not the greatest of moves, fair enough, but viable for anything that has Hex but cannot use Shadow Claw instead. And even this small tweak is a boon to several Pokémon, propelling them up the ranks. Probably the biggest beneficiary is Drifblim. A standout star early in the now-ending Silph Arena Season 2, back then Blim relied on big Shadow Balls baited out with a still-useful-then Ominous Wind. Its non-Ghost move, Icy Wind, was buffed in another move update in December, but still mostly ignored until Ominous Wind was itself nerfed in yet ANOTHER move rebalancing in April. (Yeah, Niantic has been pretty rebalance-happy the last few months. 😓) Anyway, all that to say that despite the goings-on with its charge moves, Drifblim never really broke out fully. Hex was (and still is) its only viable fast move, and frankly, that held it back, with it losing several close matchups, just not quite being able to get over the hump and dying before it could let loose with its own winning charge moves. No longer. With Hex now generating a bit more energy more quickly, Drifblim is rising again. As you would probably expect, it handles Psychics and Fighters and even other Ghosts (not named Haunter) quite capably, though that wasn't always the case... it used to lose to Jirachi and Alolan Marowak with the old Hex stats, but now beats both, and convincingly. It also adds Registeel (granted, the nerf Regi faces don't help, but still), Azumarill, and Ferrothorn to the win column. And again, all that with just a 0.33 boost in energy generation per turn. And Blim still handles Grasses and Swampert and even traditional Flying killer Melmetal as it did before, with each win obviously coming a bit easier (read as: with more remaining HP afterwards) than it did before. And it gets even better, as with very good PvP IVs, Drifblim can even emerge victorious over Skarmory, Galarian Stunfisk, Mantine, and Altaria. The difference in Ultra League (yes, viable there too!) is a bit more subtle, as the only new win it really picks up against the core meta is Charizard, but as in Great League, it has more HP remaining in its wins, including about 50 more against Ferrothorn and as much as 90 more HP remaining against Cresselia. So what's the verdict? Drifblim was arguably better than people gave it credit for already, but the buff to Hex can lead to some HUGE new wins (especially Azu, Regi, and potentially even Altaria) in Great League and more consistency overall. Give it another look... Blim may surprise you, and at least early in the GBL season, your opponent as well! Other Benefactors? Not everything that has Hex stands to benefit, as most still have better fast moves, but there are a few dark horses....
Castform has cropped up here and there, and for good reason, but I bet you've never seen a Normal-type Castform in battle. Well little known fact: while the other Castforms get an on-type fast move, Normal Casty has only the terrible Tackle and... Hex, of all things. Combined with Normal-type Weather Ball and either Energy Ball or Hurricane, Castform still doesn't wow with its volume of wins, but it at least gets some good ones in there, such as Cresselia, Swampert, Meganium, Stunfisk, Whiscash, Cherrim, Venusaur, Tropius, and of course Ghosts like Haunter and A-Wak and Froslass and Drifblim. It's a spice option, to be sure, but one that does enough to at least think about.
Dusclops is another that has long been buried behind other Pokémon of its type. It's sort of the Hitmonchan of Ghosts, with all manner of "Punch" charge moves, namely Fire, Ice, and Shadow. And yes, its best fast move is Hex. Combining the two elemental Punches for the best of both worlds, Dusclops has always been capable of beating stuff like the major Fighters, most all Grasses, and a smattering of Psychics (DDeoxys, AhChu, etc.) and Steels (Melmetal, Skarmory, etc.) and things like Altaria too. With the charge moves coming a little bit faster now, you can add Venusaur and Registeel to the win column as well. And yes, Shadow Clops is a viable alternative, giving up several Grass wins to instead gain the Stunfisks and Hypno. Either way, while Dusclops does not have blow-you-away numbers, there are some good wins in there that could give Dusclops a place on the right team.
AND UH... INFESTATION
Yeah, not even a catchy title for this one, because honestly, the ripples from the buff to INFESTATION are rather small. It got the same treatment as Hex (going from 3.67 EPT to 4.0 EPT, with the same 2.0 DPT), but there just aren't any particularly interesting Pokémon that actually want it, even in its improved state. The top ones that can even HAVE Infestation are Beedrill (wants Poison Jab), Tangrowth (definitely wants Vine Whip, which is strictly better), Cradily and Jumpluff (not since Bullet Seed was buffed!), and then you're into things like Muk and Drapion which I can't see ever choosing Infestation over their other fast moves. This is mostly just a boon to fringe options like Weezing and Garbodor and Swalot. At least that last one has SOME potential... wins over Fighters and Grasses and Darks and Charmers and tanky Psychics and even Azumarill all make you at least go "hmmmm". But truthfully, the buff to Infestation, while certainly welcome, isn't dragging new stuff to the top of the meta anytime soon.
LAND OF THE DEE (BUFF), HOME OF THE BRAVE (BIRDS)
And now probably the move that will cause the most ongoing debate, because while BRAVE BIRD got a huge damage buff (formerly 55 energy for 90 damage, and now 55 for a whopping 130), there is a steep penalty: a drop of three stages (nearly 50%) of the user's Defense stat. I talked about this some recently with the only other move to carry a -3 drop in the game so far: Victini's V-Create. If you can charge two and fire them in close succession, you can drastically mitigate at least the initial pain of so drastically crushing your Pokémon's bulk. But V-Create costs 40 energy... and Brave Bird costs 55, so that's going to be much harder to pull off. Fortunately, there are a couple birds with fast moves that get there quickly. Honchkrow has Snarl, one of the fastest charging fast moves in the game. And perhaps even better, Honch also has the mighty Sky Attack, which can be sprung a bit earlier to hopefully bait a shield and leave you 10 energy closer to a Brave Bird than double charging BB allows. Sky Attack also obviously has no drawbacks as far as debuffing goes, so you can rely on it more fully and save BB for big moments. There was no reason to ever use Brave Bird before, and so Honchkrow instead relied on Dark Pulse for its second move, which was okay-ish but left Honch as a very fringey option. Now, though, it has the potential to fly quite high with double Flying moves. You might expect Honch to lose a matchup or two by shedding its one and only Dark charge move, but amazingly that's not the case at all... it actually holds or improves upon every win it got with Dark Pulse (meaning has the same HP or more left over at the end), and tacks on wins versus Whiscash, Ferrothorn, Umbreon, Zweilous, Tropius, Toxicroak, and Altaria. That's mighty impressive, and I feel very confident calling Brave Bird--even just the threat of Brave Bird--a clear improvement for Honchkrow in Great League. And the improvement is even more striking in Ultra League, with Honchkrow again holding the (shaky) line established with Dark Pulse and just adding to it, with Poliwrath, Swampert, Typhlosion, Scizor, Escavalier, Feraligatr, Charizard, and Dragonite all now falling to Honch. So what's the verdict? Honchkrow just become meta before our eyes. It may take people a little while to catch on in Great League, but expect to see it start to emerge here and there and possibly be more common by the time Ultra rolls around. It's an expensive investment for Ultra, needing to be leveled into the upper 30s, but it's not a crazy idea to do so. Other Benefactors? Part of the reason Brave Bird works so well for Honch is that it has that second, threatening charge move (Sky Attack) that it can mostly rely on and reserve Brave Bird for the most opportune moment. Not all Pokémon have that option, so how does this affect them?
Skarmory has been very meta in Great League from the moment PvP arrived in the game, a rare centerpiece of GBL and Silph Arena teams alike. But if there's been one knock on it, it's been Skarmory's lack of a truly impactful second charge move to go with its own Sky Attack. To this point, if another move had any place, it was Flash Cannon to try and at least maim (though rarely actually flip) some of its harder counters like Bastiodon and Probopass. But especially with Flash Cannon now getting a slight nerf (which we'll look into more later), I think the second move you want now is Brave Bird. As compared to Flash Cannon, BB can pick up wins over Hypno, Lapras, Ferrothorn, Whiscash, Ferrothorn, Munchlax, and the mirror match versus FC Skarm. As with Honchkrow, BB works well here because Skarmory can do plenty of work with Sky Attack and save Brave Bird as a knockout move. Skarm was already good, but just got a little bit scarier.
I already wrote aboutGalarian Farfetch'd back when it was introduced to the game, and now it's back as a possible reward encounter in GO Battle League starting at Rank 7. Back then, I was already leaning towards Brave Bird for closing power, paired with Leaf Blade, giving it wins over Mud Boys, most Grasses, most big Fighters (Cham, Croak, etc.), Stunfisk, and Azumarill and Zweilous and even Probopass. But now, with BB being an even more beastly closer, all the changes are positive ones, with G-Fetch'd now able to take down Umbreon, Sableye, DDeoxys, Froslass, Tropius (with either fast move), Ferrothorn, and even Melmetal. And just like that, Galarian Farfetch'd has gone from fringe to potential meta option in Great League. Of course, some of those wins only come with Leaf Blade baiting a shield or two, but honestly, there's not much that wants to take a Blade to the face either. G-Fetch'd is one to keep an eye on now.
It's still kind of on the fringe, but Legacy Wing Attack Pidgeot with the souped up Brave Bird is a clear improvement on the Hurricane variant, with BB keeping (and often improving on) all the same wins, plus Altaria and the also-improved Drifblim. It's more on par with Noctowl now, though still trails Mr. Owl slightly and probably needs a more limited meta than wide open GBL (say, a Silph Cup) to really shine. But if you really like Pidgeot, then sure, you can use it and succeed with it on the right team, and that just got a bit easier.
The other Pokémon with Brave Bird either don't typically want it (Blaziken, Braviary) or just aren't good enough for BB to save them now. One possible exception is Ho-Oh in Master League. The only truly meta things it could beat before were Heatran, Metagross, Mamoswine, Snorlax, and (just barely) Groudon. Now that close win against Groudon turns into a much more sure bet, and new potential wins show up against Togekiss, Garchomp, and even Gyarados (WITH future CD move Aqua Tail). But MAN, does Ho-Oh still desperately need a better fast move. Free him from this purgatory, Niantic!
There is one more big bird that gets Brave Bird, but I want to break it down separately... right now!
BRAVIARY IN ACTION
I looked into Braviary shortly after Rufflet arrived in the game, but with pre-tweaked Brave Bird and slow charging Heat Wave as the only moves to go alongside the all-but-necessary Rock Slide, it just didn't do enough to deserve a full writeup. But now it gets CLOSE COMBAT, which makes it at least a little more intriguing should it ever arrive in small enough form to fit in Great League, gaining new wins over Galarian Stunfisk, Swampert, Munchlax, and potentially even Registeel. But in Ultra League, it makes a few more inroads, with Close Combat bringing home new wins over Empoleon, Obstagoon, and Alolan Muk. Or you can bring the reworked BRAVE BIRD into the mix and reach for Altered Giratina, Typhlosion, and fellow buffed Pokémon Drifblim, while still holding on to Obstagoon and Empoleon (though A-Muk may slip away). And while Braviary crosses the 3000 CP threshold and can do some work in Master League (and a bit more in ML Premier Cup), now preferring Rock Slide again, it has a rather niche role. So what's the verdict? Eh, I like the potential of Braviary in Great League and Master League more than the actual win/loss columns. A Flyer with moves that cover many of its toughest counters (Close Combat for Rocks and Ices) and counter fellow Flyers (Rock Slide, which doubles up on Ices and provides other good coverage) is going to matter at some point, just perhaps more in The Silph Arena than in GBL. But in Ultra League, there may be something to it, especially in the projected Ultra League Premier Cup. Consider prepping one now to get ahead of the curve. Put those GBL Rufflet candies to good use!
PECK TO THE SIDES, TO THE FRONT, TO THE BACK
🎼 Well, look at old Jim, he's pecking on his back! ♩ Peckin' to me is a lot of fun, ♫ Well, you peck one, and I'll peck one, well, we'll all peck one! ♪ You peck to the east, and then you peck to the west, 🎶 Then you peck, peck, peck 'til you've pecked your best. ♭ Well, then okay, well, a-hey, hey, ♬ We'll peck up, we'll peck up, we'll peck up the floor, Yeah! Apologies to Cab Calloway, but you knew I'd have to have ONE butchered song in here! Anyway, let's talk DRILL PECK. It's a very rare move, available on only two viable Pokémon in PvP: Zapdos, and as of the start of Season 3, Empoleon. Zapdos first. I already wrote about Thunder Shock Zapdos to kick off my early review of Elite TM targets, so rather than rehashing all that, would encourage you to go read that again. I'll wait. ... ... ...you back? Okay, good. Because with Drill Peck now dealing five more damage (65 now, 60 previously) for the same low 40 energy cost, Zapdos is even a little bit better now. Shadow Zapdos in Great League picks up a new win against Medicham (the little bit of extra damage from Drill Peck finishing Cham off before it can reach a second Ice Punch). I didn't see any significant new wins in Ultra or Master (though feel free to point them out if you know of any!), but it does give Zapdos a little more elbow room in some of its wins. I wouldn't say this tweak is now the reason to suddenly start using Zapdos (the fact that you could get Thunder Shock in any league was that reason), but if you already planned to, the improvements to Drill Peck make Zappy a hair better overall. The bigger story is perhaps Empoleon, you FINALLY gets a coverage move against the Fighters and Grasses that plague it. The best thing it had to combine with Hydro Cannon before was Flash Cannon, which just got nerfed a bit. Drill Peck gives it a new win over Aboma(powder)snow and brings Azumarill to well within the margin of error, though without Flash Cannon you DO lose out on Altaria. in Ultra League, Empie with Drill Peck maintains its current roles and adds wins against Dragonite and now Shadow Abomasnow, while in Master League, Empoleon basically stays where it was, since it usually only needs Hydro Cannon anyway. (Though the hard-to-sim coverage against Fighters is nice to have, so I'd still call this a gain.) Nothing awe-inspiring, but overall, this makes Empoleon a mostly better version of itself. So what's the verdict? This isn't a huge change, and that shows in the minutia in the win/loss changes. But it IS a straight upgrade for Zapdos, and gives Empoleon the best move it has had yet to pair with Hydro Cannon. While the loss to Altaria in GL is unfortunate, I think I still give it a thumbs up as the second move to roll with on Empoleon moving forward. Other Benefactors? Honestly, not really. Murkrow and Dodrio get Drill Peck, but they still don't really have any play. Zapdos and now Empoleon are the beginning and end of the Drill Peck book.
GOODNESS, GRACIOUS, GREAT BALLS OF...WATER?
So with stats (~125 Attack, 127 Defense, 113 HP) basically the same as Togekiss and overall comparable to things like Venusaur and Cherrim, it's not that Pelipper doesn't have what it takes to hang in there in Great League. The problem has always been the complete lack of any charge moves cheaper than Hurricane and its 65 energy requirement. Sure, Hydro Pump and Blizzard are awesome when they hit, and Wing Attack (3.5 Energy Per Turn) in particular generates energy fast enough to get there at some point, but Pump and Blizzard both cost 75 energy. What Pelipper has so desperately needed is a bait/spam move, and now it finally has it with Water WEATHER BALL. So while Pelipper has been quite pathetic to this point, with WWB, suddenly it doesn't look too shabby. With just Wing Attack and WWB alone (so no baits), it can eliminate Registeel, Mud Boys Swampert and Whiscash, Galarian Stunfisk, Shiftry, A-Wak, Haunter, and basically anything Fighting, a very good start. Bringing in Hurricane (still the best bet as the second move) you can add on things like Azumarill, Lapras, Tropius, and Cherrim, plus Mantine with good bulk IVs. Not the greatest Flying Water type ever--I'd still say, in Great League, that that title rests with Mantine itself)--but Pelipper is legit close to that... and Mantine doesn't usually get Registeel. You also have the option of Water Gun rather than Wing Attack, losing 0.5 EPT but gaining 0.5 DPT and a steadier dose of Water-type damage, which is worse overall BUT does gain things like Probopass and a better showing against A-Marowak and Registeel while giving up Grasses, Lapras, and Azumarill. Like I said, it's worse, but it IS an option and may be better in certain limited formats like future Silph Arena Cups. For now, just something to keep in mind... towards the back. So what's the verdict? Wing Attack/Water Weather Ball/Hurricane Pelipper has some legit play, with some very good wins under its belt, uh, beak, from Mud Boys to Fighters to Ghosts to G-Fisk to Registeel and even some of the biggest of big name Grasses. It's sort of a mini-Mantine, one that may even be better on certain teams and/or in certain more-restricted-than-GBL formats. Recommend looking for a good Wingull and making a Pelipper out of it when you're able.
...AND ALL THE REST
BLIZZARD got a slight buff to damage without costing any more, which is nice. Skull Bash, Gunk Shot, and Hydro Pump all deal 130 damage for 75 energy, and that's where Blizzard used to be too, but it now surpasses them by dealing 140 damage for the same cost. The problem is that, even after this, most things that have Blizzard don't actually want it. Lapras is STILL better off with Skull Bash for the neutral coverage, Articuno prefers Hurricane still for similar reasons, and even newly buffed Abomasnow and Pelipper have better alternatives. Kyogre and Milotic and Regice appreciate the buff in Master League, but it's really just a "kill more" finisher now that I don't see suddenly leading to new wins they wouldn't have gotten already. It's nice to have but you likely won't see a big difference in success rates with things that use Blizzard.
Poor Registeel. I mean, not that I really feel too bad, since I hate that big dumb doorknob with every fiber of my PvP player being, but it gets a double whammy with FLASH CANNON AND FOCUS BLAST both getting nerfed. Cannon still deals the same 110 damage, but now for 5 more energy, making those races to the next charge move a little harder now, and Blast still costs the same but deals 10 less damage, making it harder to turn the tables against Regi's biggest counters. I think it will come out fine in both Great League... it's still very powerful and still beats many of the things it always did, it's just a bit more mortal now. There are more troubling signs in Ultra League though, with new losses showing against Origin Giratina, Meganium, Snorlax, and Lickilicky and slight (though expected) dip in performance in many of its other wins. I DO think you'll still see plenty of it though, and should, as it's still very potent and downright oppressive in many matchups. Love Regi or hate it, if you're honest with yourself, you have to admit that kicking Regi back a small step should be good for the game in the end.
Similarly, the Flash Cannon nerf is a slight hit to things like Ferrothorn (and makes me reconsider my formerly wise decision to roll with it on my Bastiodon, primarily for the mirror) and the nerf to Focus Blast hurts things that like it as a closer, like Gengar and Mewtwo, but they're not really going to go anywhere. This irks them and their users, sure, but their places in their respective metas is still very secure. With Focus Blast in particular, keep in mind that the 75 energy for 140 damage it has been reduced to is still better than any other 75-cost move except (just promoted) Blizzard. Blast was pretty overpowered already, so like Registeel, this is just bringing it back to the rest of the pack a bit, and was probably overdue.
TL;DR
Yes, as it says in the title, this is a comprehensive (read as: LONG) analysis article, but I know some people just want to skip to the end and get a summary. So before you ask, this is for you:
Abomasnow is now a very real part of the Great and Ultra League metas, especially Powder Snow variants. Look for regular AND Shadow to start popping up, as both are quite viable. Snowy Castform is scary in Great League now as well.
Drifblim had a few close losses with old Hex that now flip to wins with new Hex, and it too is notably improved in Great and Ultra Leagues. Be on the lookout, and remember that in addition to powerful Shadow Ball, it also totes around Icy Wind. Shield accordingly.
The changes to Brave Bird seem to be mostly a net gain for Honchkrow and Skarmory, who both now want it as the second move they've been waiting for to run alongside Sky Attack. It works well for them because SA still does most of the heavy lifting, with BB being primarily a closeout move, thus mitigating the steep -3 Defense drop.
You should finally be able to put all those GBL reward Rufflets to good use, as Braviary looks viable in all three leagues. In Great League, it doesn't really want Brave Bird (preferring Rock Slide and the new Close Combat instead), but BB serves it well in the bigger leagues.
The slight buffs to Drill Peck and Infestation are nice to have, but don't change much for those that use them. Empoleon appreciates it for coverage, especially in Ultra League, but the needle doesn't move very far.
Registeel will be fine. Not quite as dominant now, which is a good thing really, but still very good despite nerfs to both of its primary charge moves. Reports of its demise have been greatly exaggerated.
And that's a wrap, folks! I did quite a bit of analysis on all this over the last two days, and while this is an informed opinion, it is still just that: my opinion. Hopefully it helps, but take that for what it's worth! Alright, I'll bow out now and let you get back to your day and your GBL matches. Thanks for sticking with me through this and other long articles I have written. I appreciate your time and attention, and sincerely hope this assists you in navigating these new GBL waters. For more PvP tidbits, you can find me on Twitter for near-daily PvP analysis nuggets, or Patreon and its tie-in exclusive Discord servesecret lair. And please, feel free to comment here with your own thoughts or questions and I'll try to get back to you! Stay safe out there, Pokéfriends. Thanks again for reading, and catch you next time!
Results from Moderna’s Phase 1 human trial revealed the 100-mcg dose vaccine — which had a 100% side effect ratio after the second dose — is proceeding to Phase 3 trial assessment
Moderna has no legal rights to a key patent for its vaccine delivery system. Moderna sought to invalidate the patent for lipid nanotechnology owned by Arbutus Biopharma but lost the challenge at the end of July 2020
Executives at Moderna have cashed in stock options, raking in about $90 million in personal profits since January. Two Moderna executives have now sold off all of their stock holdings in the company, and its general counsel has sold nearly all of hers
AstraZeneca has temporarily halted its Phase 3 vaccine trials due to “a suspected serious and unexpected adverse reaction” in a British participant
AstraZeneca did not divulge the nature of the adverse reaction, but an anonymous source claims the trial participant was found to have transverse myelitis, an inflammatory condition that affects the spinal cord and is frequently triggered by viral infections
The U.S. Health and Human Services' Operation Warp Speed has pledged to deliver 300 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine by 2021,1 if not sooner.2 However, developing a safe and effective vaccine normally takes years and begins with animal studies. The COVID-19 vaccines are all being rushed straight into human clinical tests, forgoing lengthy animal trials altogether. Such fast-tracked vaccines pose unknown risks, which are further magnified since governments are granting COVID-19 vaccine makers immunity from liability for all vaccine injuries and deaths that occur after the vaccines are recommended (or mandated) by public health officials.3 At the end of July 2020, AstraZeneca announced4 most countries it expects to supply with COVID-19 vaccine will grant the pharmaceutical company complete liability protection if people are harmed. In the U.S., vaccine makers already have something of a "free pass" when it comes to vaccine injury liability and lawsuits through the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 19865 and the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act, passed in 2005.6 The main concern is that the combination of COVID-19 vaccines being fast-tracked to market at "warp speed" with minimal testing, together with blanket liability protection against vaccine injuries could be a public health nightmare in the making.
Problems With Moderna’s Vaccine Are Becoming Apparent
Early warning signs that something might be amiss have already started emerging. As detailed in “Gates Tries to Justify Side Effects of Fast-Tracked Vaccine,” results7 from Moderna’s Phase 1 human trial revealed 100% of volunteers in the high-dose group suffered systemic side effects. Side effects included fatigue, chills, headache and myalgia (muscle pain); 21% suffered “one or more severe events.” According to Bill Gates, those side effects are largely due to the high dosages Moderna had to use in order to achieve desired antibody levels. But, if high dosages are required to create a robust-enough immune response, and higher dosages also cause systemic side effects in nearly all people, just how safe will this vaccination campaign be? In the 20 years that vaccine makers have tried to develop a coronavirus vaccine, efforts have failed due to dangerous, many times lethal, side effects. In July, it was reported8 that the 100-mcg dose vaccine — despite its 100% side effect ratio after the second dose — would proceed to Phase 3 trial assessment. In a May 26, 2020, article9 in STAT news, Ian Haydon, one of the Phase 1 study participants who suffered severe side effects requiring hospitalization, stated that while he recovered, the inoculation left him feeling “as sick as he’d ever felt.” As noted by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.:10
“Three of the 15 human guinea pigs in the high dose cohort (250 mcg) suffered a ‘serious adverse event’ within 43 days of receiving Moderna’s jab. Moderna … acknowledged that three volunteers developed Grade 3 systemic events defined by the FDA as ‘Preventing daily activity and requiring medical intervention.’ Moderna allowed only exceptionally healthy volunteers to participate in the study. A vaccine with those reaction rates could cause grave injuries in 1.5 billion humans if administered to ‘every person on earth.’ That is the threshold that Gates has established for ending the global lockdown. Moderna did not explain why it reported positive antibody tests for only eight participants. These outcomes are particularly disappointing because the most hazardous hurdle for the inoculation is still ahead; challenging participants with wild COVID infection. Past attempts at developing COVID vaccines have always faltered at this stage as both humans and animals achieved robust antibody response then sickened and died when exposed to the wild virus.”
Moderna Patent Problems
Other signs of trouble include reports that Moderna has no legal rights to a key patent for its vaccine delivery system, and that company executives are now dumping their stocks. There are also questions emerging as to whether Moderna had some sort of foreknowledge that a coronavirus pandemic might be in the making. In the video above, independent journalist Ben Swann reports Moderna filed a patent amendment in March 2019, nine months before the COVID-19 pandemic started, stating there was a need for this vaccine technology out of concern for “reemergence or deliberate release of the SARS coronavirus.” The amendment was done to a patent application that had been repeatedly rejected since its initial filing in 2015. The March 2019 amendment stressed the importance of obtaining this patent due to concerns of a beta coronavirus pandemic. Of all the viruses in the world, why would they suspect a coronavirus pandemic? In December 2019, the U.S. Patent Office issued a final rejection of Moderna’s patent application, yet when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in early 2020, Moderna was among the first to state they had the ability to address the problem. It wasn’t until May 2020, months after it had already entered into partnership with the U.S. National Institutes of Health to develop the vaccine, that Moderna was finally issued the patent for it. And, even then, a key patent for the technology already belonged to another company. The NIH also holds many patents on the core mRNA technology used by Moderna. David E. Martin, Ph.D., a national intelligence analyst featured in Swann’s video report, points out that even though Moderna “very clearly did not have the legal right, and they did not have the contractual rights, they didn’t have the licensing rights” required to enter into a federal contract, they were still somehow pushed to the front of the line by the NIH and Dr. Anthony Fauci.
“This is a situation in which the horse that was being bet on, Moderna, is actually not even qualified to run in the race,” Martin says.
Martin goes on to explain how both Moderna and the NIH are essentially engaged in patent infringement, as a core part of the technology — the lipid nanoparticle technology that is part of the vaccine delivery system — belongs to another company. Moderna sought to invalidate the patent owned by Arbutus Biopharma, but lost the challenge at the end of July 2020.11,12 As a result, Arbutus might be able to make a royalty claim in the vaccine, and news of the failed patent challenge caused Moderna’s stock to drop by 9.5%.13
Moderna Executives Have Raked in Millions on Dumped Stocks
As reported by NPR14 September 4, 2020, executives at Moderna have also cashed in stock options, raking in tens of millions of dollars of personal profit in the process. Considering the patent problems now emerging and the lingering safety and efficacy questions, this move has raised significant concerns among financial experts:
“’On a scale of one to 10, one being less concerned and 10 being the most concerned,’ said Daniel Taylor, an associate professor of accounting at the Wharton School, ‘this is an 11.’ Taylor said Moderna's stock-selling practices appear well outside the norm, and raise questions about the company's internal controls to prevent insider trading. Since January, CEO Stéphane Bancel has sold roughly $40 million worth of Moderna stock held by himself or associated investment funds; Chief Medical Officer Tal Zaks has sold around $60 million; and President Stephen Hoge has sold more than $10 million … Advocates have questioned whether it's appropriate for executives to privately profit before bringing the vaccine to market, especially when American taxpayers have committed roughly $2.5 billion to the company's vaccine development and manufacture.”
Importantly, NPR discovered that several of the executives appear to have made “questionable modifications to stock sale plans” shortly before key announcements were made about the vaccine — in some cases just a single day ahead of the announcements. In order to be legal, prescheduled stock sale plans must be made at a time when no confidential inside information is available that may influence their sales decisions, so the timing of their modifications appears suspicious. What’s more, as a general rule, corporate best practices call for leadership to maintain stock in the company to ensure they have sufficient incentive to improve company performance. Two Moderna executives, however, have sold all of their stock holdings, and its general counsel has sold “nearly all” of hers, NPR reports.15
What Do Moderna Execs Know That We Don’t?
Why would executives unload their stocks before the vaccine is even launched? Do they suspect or know something has, or is about to go awry? As of right now, there’s no evidence whatsoever that the company’s novel vaccine will actually work, let alone be safe. According to NPR:16
"Friday, March 13, three Moderna executives adopted new 10b5-1 plans, according to records reviewed by NPR: Zaks, Chief Technical Operations and Quality Officer Juan Andres, and then-Chief Financial Officer Lorence H. Kim … On Monday, March 16 — one business day later — the company announced that it had given a participant the first dose of their vaccine as part of its phase 1 trial. The stock ended that day up 24% compared to the previous day's close … ’Every company and individual is entitled to the presumption of innocence. That said, from the public's perspective, this trading behavior looks very problematic,’ said Taylor … who first pointed out the timing of these changes to NPR. ‘If I put on my SEC enforcement hat, I would certainly be asking, 'What caused you to change the plan on a Friday?'’ said Kurt Wolfe, who works as a defense attorney in securities cases for the firm Troutman Pepper. ‘I don't think it's a good fact pattern.’"
Coronavirus Vaccines Have Never Been Successfully Made
As I’ve discussed in several previous articles, COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers have several hurdles to overcome, as coronavirus vaccine development has been notoriously challenging. In the 20 years that vaccine makers have tried to develop a coronavirus vaccine, efforts have failed due to dangerous, many times lethal, side effects. Adding to the problem is that many of them are relying on novel mRNA technology that has never been used in vaccines before.17 Making matters even worse, the vaccines are not safety tested against inert placebo, as is the gold standard for drug safety research. Oxford University’s mRNA vaccine, ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, for example, is being compared to a meningitis vaccine.18 As discussed in “Dangerous Placebos Used in Medical Trials,” using an active substance such as another vaccine destroys any hope of a valid safety study. This is just one way in which vaccine makers cheat in their safety studies to minimize the appearance of adverse effects. In the case of a COVID-19 vaccine, establishing safety is of utmost importance, as previous coronavirus vaccines have caused paradoxical immune enhancement — a situation in which the vaccine actually makes you more susceptible to severe illness and death once you’re infected with the actual virus. Kennedy explained this in my interview with him, featured in “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Explains Well-Known Hazards of Coronavirus Vaccines.” Aside from the possibility of a paradoxical immune response, mRNA vaccines may in and of themselves be problematic. According to researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Duke University:19,20
“mRNA vaccines have potential safety issues, including local and systemic inflammation and stimulation of auto-reactive antibodies and autoimmunity, as well as development of edema (swelling) and blood clots.”
AstraZeneca Stopped Its Vaccine Trial Due to Side Effects
September 8, 2020, STAT News reported21 that AstraZeneca has temporarily halted its Phase 3 vaccine trials due to “a suspected serious and unexpected adverse reaction” in a British participant. The company did not divulge the nature of the adverse reaction. The New York Times claims22 “a person familiar with the situation, and who spoke on the condition of anonymity” said the individual ”had been found to have transverse myelitis, an inflammatory syndrome that affects the spinal cord and is often sparked by viral infections.” AstraZeneca, in collaboration with the University of Oxford, is conducting Phase 2/3 trials for their mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, a chimpanzee adenovirus modified to carry and deliver coronavirus genes into human cells) in the U.K. and India, as well as Phase 3 trials in Brazil, South Africa and the U.S.23 According to STAT News:24
“The [AstraZeneca] spokesperson described the pause as ‘a routine action which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the trials, while it is investigated, ensuring we maintain the integrity of the trials.’ The spokesperson also said that the company is ‘working to expedite the review of the single event to minimize any potential impact on the trial timeline.’”
AstraZeneca Vaccine Has High Rates of Side Effects Too
Like the Moderna vaccine, the AstraZeneca/Oxford University vaccine also appears to come with a shockingly high rate of side effects. Results25 from one of its Phase 1/2 studies published August 15, 2020, revealed a clear majority of participants experienced side effects. Results showed:26
“Fatigue and headache were the most commonly reported systemic reactions. Fatigue was reported in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group by 340 (70%) participants without paracetamol and 40 (71%) with paracetamol … Headaches were reported in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group by 331 (68%) participants without paracetamol and 34 (61%) with paracetamol … Other systemic adverse reactions were common in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group:
muscle ache (294 [60%] participants without paracetamol and 27 [48%] with paracetamol)
malaise (296 [61%] and 27 [48%])
chills (272 [56%] and 15 [27%])
feeling feverish (250 [51%] and 20 [36%]). In the of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group, 87 (18%) participants without paracetamol and nine (16%) participants with paracetamol reported a temperature of at least 38°C, and eight (2%) patients without paracetamol had a temperature of at least 39°C”
I am about to post the 3000 most common words in the English lexicon. Wish me luck...
a abandon ability able abortion about above abroad absence absolute absolutely absorb abuse academic accept access accident accompany accomplish according account accurate accuse achieve achievement acid acknowledge acquire across act action active activist activity actor actress actual actually ad adapt add addition additional address adequate adjust adjustment administration administrator admire admission admit adolescent adopt adult advance advanced advantage adventure advertising advice advise adviser advocate affair affect afford afraid African African-American after afternoon again against age agency agenda agent aggressive ago agree agreement agricultural ah ahead aid aide AIDS aim air aircraft airline airport album alcohol alive all alliance allow ally almost alone along already also alter alternative although always AM amazing American among amount analysis analyst analyze ancient and anger angle angry animal anniversary announce annual another answer anticipate anxiety any anybody anymore anyone anything anyway anywhere apart apartment apparent apparently appeal appear appearance apple application apply appoint appointment appreciate approach appropriate approval approve approximately Arab architect area argue argument arise arm armed army around arrange arrangement arrest arrival arrive art article artist artistic as Asian aside ask asleep aspect assault assert assess assessment asset assign assignment assist assistance assistant associate association assume assumption assure at athlete athletic atmosphere attach attack attempt attend attention attitude attorney attract attractive attribute audience author authority auto available average avoid award aware awareness away awful baby back background bad badly bag bake balance ball ban band bank bar barely barrel barrier base baseball basic basically basis basket basketball bathroom battery battle be beach bean bear beat beautiful beauty because become bed bedroom beer before begin beginning behavior behind being belief believe bell belong below belt bench bend beneath benefit beside besides best bet better between beyond Bible big bike bill billion bind biological bird birth birthday bit bite black blade blame blanket blind block blood blow blue board boat body bomb bombing bond bone book boom boot border born borrow boss both bother bottle bottom boundary bowl box boy boyfriend brain branch brand bread break breakfast breast breath breathe brick bridge brief briefly bright brilliant bring British broad broken brother brown brush buck budget build building bullet bunch burden burn bury bus business busy but butter button buy buyer by cabin cabinet cable cake calculate call camera camp campaign campus can Canadian cancer candidate cap capability capable capacity capital captain capture car carbon card care career careful carefully carrier carry case cash cast cat catch category Catholic cause ceiling celebrate celebration celebrity cell center central century CEO ceremony certain certainly chain chair chairman challenge chamber champion championship chance change changing channel chapter character characteristic characterize charge charity chart chase cheap check cheek cheese chef chemical chest chicken chief child childhood Chinese chip chocolate choice cholesterol choose Christian Christmas church cigarette circle circumstance cite citizen city civil civilian claim class classic classroom clean clear clearly client climate climb clinic clinical clock close closely closer clothes clothing cloud club clue cluster coach coal coalition coast coat code coffee cognitive cold collapse colleague collect collection collective college colonial color column combination combine come comedy comfort comfortable command commander comment commercial commission commit commitment committee common communicate communication community company compare comparison compete competition competitive competitor complain complaint complete completely complex complicated component compose composition comprehensive computer concentrate concentration concept concern concerned concert conclude conclusion concrete condition conduct conference confidence confident confirm conflict confront confusion Congress congressional connect connection consciousness consensus consequence conservative consider considerable consideration consist consistent constant constantly constitute constitutional construct construction consultant consume consumer consumption contact contain container contemporary content contest context continue continued contract contrast contribute contribution control controversial controversy convention conventional conversation convert conviction convince cook cookie cooking cool cooperation cop cope copy core corn corner corporate corporation correct correspondent cost cotton couch could council counselor count counter country county couple courage course court cousin cover coverage cow crack craft crash crazy cream create creation creative creature credit crew crime criminal crisis criteria critic critical criticism criticize crop cross crowd crucial cry cultural culture cup curious current currently curriculum custom customer cut cycle dad daily damage dance danger dangerous dare dark darkness data date daughter day dead deal dealer dear death debate debt decade decide decision deck declare decline decrease deep deeply deer defeat defend defendant defense defensive deficit define definitely definition degree delay deliver delivery demand democracy Democrat democratic demonstrate demonstration deny department depend dependent depending depict depression depth deputy derive describe description desert deserve design designer desire desk desperate despite destroy destruction detail detailed detect determine develop developing development device devote dialogue die diet differ difference different differently difficult difficulty dig digital dimension dining dinner direct direction directly director dirt dirty disability disagree disappear disaster discipline discourse discover discovery discrimination discuss discussion disease dish dismiss disorder display dispute distance distant distinct distinction distinguish distribute distribution district diverse diversity divide division divorce DNA do doctor document dog domestic dominant dominate door double doubt down downtown dozen draft drag drama dramatic dramatically draw drawing dream dress drink drive driver drop drug dry due during dust duty each eager ear early earn earnings earth ease easily east eastern easy eat economic economics economist economy edge edition editor educate education educational educator effect effective effectively efficiency efficient effort egg eight either elderly elect election electric electricity electronic element elementary eliminate elite else elsewhere e-mail embrace emerge emergency emission emotion emotional emphasis emphasize employ employee employer employment empty enable encounter encourage end enemy energy enforcement engage engine engineer engineering English enhance enjoy enormous enough ensure enter enterprise entertainment entire entirely entrance entry environment environmental episode equal equally equipment era error escape especially essay essential essentially establish establishment estate estimate etc ethics ethnic European evaluate evaluation even evening event eventually ever every everybody everyday everyone everything everywhere evidence evolution evolve exact exactly examination examine example exceed excellent except exception exchange exciting executive exercise exhibit exhibition exist existence existing expand expansion expect expectation expense expensive experience experiment expert explain explanation explode explore explosion expose exposure express expression extend extension extensive extent external extra extraordinary extreme extremely eye fabric face facility fact factor factory faculty fade fail failure fair fairly faith fall false familiar family famous fan fantasy far farm farmer fashion fast fat fate father fault favor favorite fear feature federal fee feed feel feeling fellow female fence few fewer fiber fiction field fifteen fifth fifty fight fighter fighting figure file fill film final finally finance financial find finding fine finger finish fire firm first fish fishing fit fitness five fix flag flame flat flavor flee flesh flight float floor flow flower fly focus folk follow following food foot football for force foreign forest forever forget form formal formation former formula forth fortune forward found foundation founder four fourth frame framework free freedom freeze French frequency frequent frequently fresh friend friendly friendship from front fruit frustration fuel full fully fun function fund fundamental funding funeral funny furniture furthermore future gain galaxy gallery game gang gap garage garden garlic gas gate gather gay gaze gear gender gene general generally generate generation genetic gentleman gently German gesture get ghost giant gift gifted girl girlfriend give given glad glance glass global glove go goal God gold golden golf good government governor grab grade gradually graduate grain grand grandfather grandmother grant grass grave gray great greatest green grocery ground group grow growing growth guarantee guard guess guest guide guideline guilty gun guy habit habitat hair half hall hand handful handle hang happen happy hard hardly hat hate have he head headline headquarters health healthy hear hearing heart heat heaven heavily heavy heel height helicopter hell hello help helpful her here heritage hero herself hey hi hide high highlight highly highway hill him himself hip hire his historian historic historical history hit hold hole holiday holy home homeless honest honey honor hope horizon horror horse hospital host hot hotel hour house household housing how however huge human humor hundred hungry hunter hunting hurt husband hypothesis I ice idea ideal identification identify identity ie if ignore ill illegal illness illustrate image imagination imagine immediate immediately immigrant immigration impact implement implication imply importance important impose impossible impress impression impressive improve improvement in incentive incident include including income incorporate increase increased increasing increasingly incredible indeed independence independent index Indian indicate indication individual industrial industry infant infection inflation influence inform information ingredient initial initially initiative injury inner innocent inquiry inside insight insist inspire install instance instead institution institutional instruction instructor instrument insurance intellectual intelligence intend intense intensity intention interaction interest interested interesting internal international Internet interpret interpretation intervention interview into introduce introduction invasion invest investigate investigation investigator investment investor invite involve involved involvement Iraqi Irish iron Islamic island Israeli issue it Italian item its itself jacket jail Japanese jet Jew Jewish job join joint joke journal journalist journey joy judge judgment juice jump junior jury just justice justify keep key kick kid kill killer killing kind king kiss kitchen knee knife knock know knowledge lab label labor laboratory lack lady lake land landscape language lap large largely last late later Latin latter laugh launch law lawn lawsuit lawyer lay layer lead leader leadership leading leaf league lean learn learning least leather leave left leg legacy legal legend legislation legitimate lemon length less lesson let letter level liberal library license lie life lifestyle lifetime lift light like likely limit limitation limited line link lip list listen literally literary literature little live living load loan local locate location lock long long-term look loose lose loss lost lot lots loud love lovely lover low lower luck lucky lunch lung machine mad magazine mail main mainly maintain maintenance major majority make maker makeup male mall man manage management manager manner manufacturer manufacturing many map margin mark market marketing marriage married marry mask mass massive master match material math matter may maybe mayor me meal mean meaning meanwhile measure measurement meat mechanism media medical medication medicine medium meet meeting member membership memory mental mention menu mere merely mess message metal meter method Mexican middle might military milk million mind mine minister minor minority minute miracle mirror miss missile mission mistake mix mixture mm-hmm mode model moderate modern modest mom moment money monitor month mood moon moral more moreover morning mortgage most mostly mother motion motivation motor mount mountain mouse mouth move movement movie Mr Mrs Ms much multiple murder muscle museum music musical musician Muslim must mutual my myself mystery myth naked name narrative narrow nation national native natural naturally nature near nearby nearly necessarily necessary neck need negative negotiate negotiation neighbor neighborhood neither nerve nervous net network never nevertheless new newly news newspaper next nice night nine no nobody nod noise nomination none nonetheless nor normal normally north northern nose not note nothing notice notion novel now nowhere n't nuclear number numerous nurse nut object objective obligation observation observe observer obtain obvious obviously occasion occasionally occupation occupy occur ocean odd odds of off offense offensive offer office officer official often oh oil ok okay old Olympic on once one ongoing onion online only onto open opening operate operating operation operator opinion opponent opportunity oppose opposite opposition option or orange order ordinary organic organization organize orientation origin original originally other others otherwise ought our ourselves out outcome outside oven over overall overcome overlook owe own owner pace pack package page pain painful paint painter painting pair pale Palestinian palm pan panel pant paper parent park parking part participant participate participation particular particularly partly partner partnership party pass passage passenger passion past patch path patient pattern pause pay payment PC peace peak peer penalty people pepper per perceive percentage perception perfect perfectly perform performance perhaps period permanent permission permit person personal personality personally personnel perspective persuade pet phase phenomenon philosophy phone photo photograph photographer phrase physical physically physician piano pick picture pie piece pile pilot pine pink pipe pitch place plan plane planet planning plant plastic plate platform play player please pleasure plenty plot plus PM pocket poem poet poetry point pole police policy political politically politician politics poll pollution pool poor pop popular population porch port portion portrait portray pose position positive possess possibility possible possibly post pot potato potential potentially pound pour poverty powder power powerful practical practice pray prayer precisely predict prefer preference pregnancy pregnant preparation prepare prescription presence present presentation preserve president presidential press pressure pretend pretty prevent previous previously price pride priest primarily primary prime principal principle print prior priority prison prisoner privacy private probably problem procedure proceed process produce producer product production profession professional professor profile profit program progress project prominent promise promote prompt proof proper properly property proportion proposal propose proposed prosecutor prospect protect protection protein protest proud prove provide provider province provision psychological psychologist psychology public publication publicly publish publisher pull punishment purchase pure purpose pursue push put qualify quality quarter quarterback question quick quickly quiet quietly quit quite quote race racial radical radio rail rain raise range rank rapid rapidly rare rarely rate rather rating ratio raw reach react reaction read reader reading ready real reality realize really reason reasonable recall receive recent recently recipe recognition recognize recommend recommendation record recording recover recovery recruit red reduce reduction refer reference reflect reflection reform refugee refuse regard regarding regardless regime region regional register regular regularly regulate regulation reinforce reject relate relation relationship relative relatively relax release relevant relief religion religious rely remain remaining remarkable remember remind remote remove repeat repeatedly replace reply report reporter represent representation representative Republican reputation request require requirement research researcher resemble reservation resident resist resistance resolution resolve resort resource respect respond respondent response responsibility responsible rest restaurant restore restriction result retain retire retirement return reveal revenue review revolution rhythm rice rich rid ride rifle right ring rise risk river road rock role roll romantic roof room root rope rose rough roughly round route routine row rub rule run running rural rush Russian sacred sad safe safety sake salad salary sale sales salt same sample sanction sand satellite satisfaction satisfy sauce save saving say scale scandal scared scenario scene schedule scheme scholar scholarship school science scientific scientist scope score scream screen script sea search season seat second secret secretary section sector secure security see seed seek seem segment seize select selection self sell Senate senator send senior sense sensitive sentence separate sequence series serious seriously serve service session set setting settle settlement seven several severe sex sexual shade shadow shake shall shape share sharp she sheet shelf shell shelter shift shine ship shirt shit shock shoe shoot shooting shop shopping shore short shortly shot should shoulder shout show shower shrug shut sick side sigh sight sign signal significance significant significantly silence silent silver similar similarly simple simply sin since sing singer single sink sir sister sit site situation six size ski skill skin sky slave sleep slice slide slight slightly slip slow slowly small smart smell smile smoke smooth snap snow so so-called soccer social society soft software soil solar soldier solid solution solve some somebody somehow someone something sometimes somewhat somewhere son song soon sophisticated sorry sort soul sound soup source south southern Soviet space Spanish speak speaker special specialist species specific specifically speech speed spend spending spin spirit spiritual split spokesman sport spot spread spring square squeeze stability stable staff stage stair stake stand standard standing star stare start state statement station statistics status stay steady steal steel step stick still stir stock stomach stone stop storage store storm story straight strange stranger strategic strategy stream street strength strengthen stress stretch strike string strip stroke strong strongly structure struggle student studio study stuff stupid style subject submit subsequent substance substantial succeed success successful successfully such sudden suddenly sue suffer sufficient sugar suggest suggestion suicide suit summer summit sun super supply support supporter suppose supposed Supreme sure surely surface surgery surprise surprised surprising surprisingly surround survey survival survive survivor suspect sustain swear sweep sweet swim swing switch symbol symptom system table tablespoon tactic tail take tale talent talk tall tank tap tape target task taste tax taxpayer tea teach teacher teaching team tear teaspoon technical technique technology teen teenager telephone telescope television tell temperature temporary ten tend tendency tennis tension tent term terms terrible territory terror terrorism terrorist test testify testimony testing text than thank thanks that the theater their them theme themselves then theory therapy there therefore these they thick thin thing think thinking third thirty this those though thought thousand threat threaten three throat through throughout throw thus ticket tie tight time tiny tip tire tired tissue title to tobacco today toe together tomato tomorrow tone tongue tonight too tool tooth top topic toss total totally touch tough tour tourist tournament toward towards tower town toy trace track trade tradition traditional traffic tragedy trail train training transfer transform transformation transition translate transportation travel treat treatment treaty tree tremendous trend trial tribe trick trip troop trouble truck true truly trust truth try tube tunnel turn TV twelve twenty twice twin two type typical typically ugly ultimate ultimately unable uncle under undergo understand understanding unfortunately uniform union unique unit United universal universe university unknown unless unlike unlikely until unusual up upon upper urban urge us use used useful user usual usually utility vacation valley valuable value variable variation variety various vary vast vegetable vehicle venture version versus very vessel veteran via victim victory video view viewer village violate violation violence violent virtually virtue virus visible vision visit visitor visual vital voice volume volunteer vote voter vs vulnerable wage wait wake walk wall wander want war warm warn warning wash waste watch water wave way we weak wealth wealthy weapon wear weather wedding week weekend weekly weigh weight welcome welfare well west western wet what whatever wheel when whenever where whereas whether which while whisper white who whole whom whose why wide widely widespread wife wild will willing win wind window wine wing winner winter wipe wire wisdom wise wish with withdraw within without witness woman wonder wonderful wood wooden word work worker working works workshop world worried worry worth would wound wrap write writer writing wrong yard yeah year yell yellow yes yesterday yet yield you young your yours yourself youth zone
3000 most common words in the English lexicon a abandon ability able abortion about above abroad absence absolute absolutely absorb abuse academic accept access accident accompany accomplish according account accurate accuse achieve achievement acid acknowledge acquire across act action active activist activity actor actress actual actually ad adapt add addition additional address adequate adjust adjustment administration administrator admire admission admit adolescent adopt adult advance advanced advantage adventure advertising advice advise adviser advocate affair affect afford afraid African African-American after afternoon again against age agency agenda agent aggressive ago agree agreement agricultural ah ahead aid aide AIDS aim air aircraft airline airport album alcohol alive all alliance allow ally almost alone along already also alter alternative although always AM amazing American among amount analysis analyst analyze ancient and anger angle angry animal anniversary announce annual another answer anticipate anxiety any anybody anymore anyone anything anyway anywhere apart apartment apparent apparently appeal appear appearance apple application apply appoint appointment appreciate approach appropriate approval approve approximately Arab architect area argue argument arise arm armed army around arrange arrangement arrest arrival arrive art article artist artistic as Asian aside ask asleep aspect assault assert assess assessment asset assign assignment assist assistance assistant associate association assume assumption assure at athlete athletic atmosphere attach attack attempt attend attention attitude attorney attract attractive attribute audience author authority auto available average avoid award aware awareness away awful baby back background bad badly bag bake balance ball ban band bank bar barely barrel barrier base baseball basic basically basis basket basketball bathroom battery battle be beach bean bear beat beautiful beauty because become bed bedroom beer before begin beginning behavior behind being belief believe bell belong below belt bench bend beneath benefit beside besides best bet better between beyond Bible big bike bill billion bind biological bird birth birthday bit bite black blade blame blanket blind block blood blow blue board boat body bomb bombing bond bone book boom boot border born borrow boss both bother bottle bottom boundary bowl box boy boyfriend brain branch brand bread break breakfast breast breath breathe brick bridge brief briefly bright brilliant bring British broad broken brother brown brush buck budget build building bullet bunch burden burn bury bus business busy but butter button buy buyer by cabin cabinet cable cake calculate call camera camp campaign campus can Canadian cancer candidate cap capability capable capacity capital captain capture car carbon card care career careful carefully carrier carry case cash cast cat catch category Catholic cause ceiling celebrate celebration celebrity cell center central century CEO ceremony certain certainly chain chair chairman challenge chamber champion championship chance change changing channel chapter character characteristic characterize charge charity chart chase cheap check cheek cheese chef chemical chest chicken chief child childhood Chinese chip chocolate choice cholesterol choose Christian Christmas church cigarette circle circumstance cite citizen city civil civilian claim class classic classroom clean clear clearly client climate climb clinic clinical clock close closely closer clothes clothing cloud club clue cluster coach coal coalition coast coat code coffee cognitive cold collapse colleague collect collection collective college colonial color column combination combine come comedy comfort comfortable command commander comment commercial commission commit commitment committee common communicate communication community company compare comparison compete competition competitive competitor complain complaint complete completely complex complicated component compose composition comprehensive computer concentrate concentration concept concern concerned concert conclude conclusion concrete condition conduct conference confidence confident confirm conflict confront confusion Congress congressional connect connection consciousness consensus consequence conservative consider considerable consideration consist consistent constant constantly constitute constitutional construct construction consultant consume consumer consumption contact contain container contemporary content contest context continue continued contract contrast contribute contribution control controversial controversy convention conventional conversation convert conviction convince cook cookie cooking cool cooperation cop cope copy core corn corner corporate corporation correct correspondent cost cotton couch could council counselor count counter country county couple courage course court cousin cover coverage cow crack craft crash crazy cream create creation creative creature credit crew crime criminal crisis criteria critic critical criticism criticize crop cross crowd crucial cry cultural culture cup curious current currently curriculum custom customer cut cycle dad daily damage dance danger dangerous dare dark darkness data date daughter day dead deal dealer dear death debate debt decade decide decision deck declare decline decrease deep deeply deer defeat defend defendant defense defensive deficit define definitely definition degree delay deliver delivery demand democracy Democrat democratic demonstrate demonstration deny department depend dependent depending depict depression depth deputy derive describe description desert deserve design designer desire desk desperate despite destroy destruction detail detailed detect determine develop developing development device devote dialogue die diet differ difference different differently difficult difficulty dig digital dimension dining dinner direct direction directly director dirt dirty disability disagree disappear disaster discipline discourse discover discovery discrimination discuss discussion disease dish dismiss disorder display dispute distance distant distinct distinction distinguish distribute distribution district diverse diversity divide division divorce DNA do doctor document dog domestic dominant dominate door double doubt down downtown dozen draft drag drama dramatic dramatically draw drawing dream dress drink drive driver drop drug dry due during dust duty each eager ear early earn earnings earth ease easily east eastern easy eat economic economics economist economy edge edition editor educate education educational educator effect effective effectively efficiency efficient effort egg eight either elderly elect election electric electricity electronic element elementary eliminate elite else elsewhere e-mail embrace emerge emergency emission emotion emotional emphasis emphasize employ employee employer employment empty enable encounter encourage end enemy energy enforcement engage engine engineer engineering English enhance enjoy enormous enough ensure enter enterprise entertainment entire entirely entrance entry environment environmental episode equal equally equipment era error escape especially essay essential essentially establish establishment estate estimate etc ethics ethnic European evaluate evaluation even evening event eventually ever every everybody everyday everyone everything everywhere evidence evolution evolve exact exactly examination examine example exceed excellent except exception exchange exciting executive exercise exhibit exhibition exist existence existing expand expansion expect expectation expense expensive experience experiment expert explain explanation explode explore explosion expose exposure express expression extend extension extensive extent external extra extraordinary extreme extremely eye fabric face facility fact factor factory faculty fade fail failure fair fairly faith fall false familiar family famous fan fantasy far farm farmer fashion fast fat fate father fault favor favorite fear feature federal fee feed feel feeling fellow female fence few fewer fiber fiction field fifteen fifth fifty fight fighter fighting figure file fill film final finally finance financial find finding fine finger finish fire firm first fish fishing fit fitness five fix flag flame flat flavor flee flesh flight float floor flow flower fly focus folk follow following food foot football for force foreign forest forever forget form formal formation former formula forth fortune forward found foundation founder four fourth frame framework free freedom freeze French frequency frequent frequently fresh friend friendly friendship from front fruit frustration fuel full fully fun function fund fundamental funding funeral funny furniture furthermore future gain galaxy gallery game gang gap garage garden garlic gas gate gather gay gaze gear gender gene general generally generate generation genetic gentleman gently German gesture get ghost giant gift gifted girl girlfriend give given glad glance glass global glove go goal God gold golden golf good government governor grab grade gradually graduate grain grand grandfather grandmother grant grass grave gray great greatest green grocery ground group grow growing growth guarantee guard guess guest guide guideline guilty gun guy habit habitat hair half hall hand handful handle hang happen happy hard hardly hat hate have he head headline headquarters health healthy hear hearing heart heat heaven heavily heavy heel height helicopter hell hello help helpful her here heritage hero herself hey hi hide high highlight highly highway hill him himself hip hire his historian historic historical history hit hold hole holiday holy home homeless honest honey honor hope horizon horror horse hospital host hot hotel hour house household housing how however huge human humor hundred hungry hunter hunting hurt husband hypothesis I ice idea ideal identification identify identity ie if ignore ill illegal illness illustrate image imagination imagine immediate immediately immigrant immigration impact implement implication imply importance important impose impossible impress impression impressive improve improvement in incentive incident include including income incorporate increase increased increasing increasingly incredible indeed independence independent index Indian indicate indication individual industrial industry infant infection inflation influence inform information ingredient initial initially initiative injury inner innocent inquiry inside insight insist inspire install instance instead institution institutional instruction instructor instrument insurance intellectual intelligence intend intense intensity intention interaction interest interested interesting internal international Internet interpret interpretation intervention interview into introduce introduction invasion invest investigate investigation investigator investment investor invite involve involved involvement Iraqi Irish iron Islamic island Israeli issue it Italian item its itself jacket jail Japanese jet Jew Jewish job join joint joke journal journalist journey joy judge judgment juice jump junior jury just justice justify keep key kick kid kill killer killing kind king kiss kitchen knee knife knock know knowledge lab label labor laboratory lack lady lake land landscape language lap large largely last late later Latin latter laugh launch law lawn lawsuit lawyer lay layer lead leader leadership leading leaf league lean learn learning least leather leave left leg legacy legal legend legislation legitimate lemon length less lesson let letter level liberal library license lie life lifestyle lifetime lift light like likely limit limitation limited line link lip list listen literally literary literature little live living load loan local locate location lock long long-term look loose lose loss lost lot lots loud love lovely lover low lower luck lucky lunch lung machine mad magazine mail main mainly maintain maintenance major majority make maker makeup male mall man manage management manager manner manufacturer manufacturing many map margin mark market marketing marriage married marry mask mass massive master match material math matter may maybe mayor me meal mean meaning meanwhile measure measurement meat mechanism media medical medication medicine medium meet meeting member membership memory mental mention menu mere merely mess message metal meter method Mexican middle might military milk million mind mine minister minor minority minute miracle mirror miss missile mission mistake mix mixture mm-hmm mode model moderate modern modest mom moment money monitor month mood moon moral more moreover morning mortgage most mostly mother motion motivation motor mount mountain mouse mouth move movement movie Mr Mrs Ms much multiple murder muscle museum music musical musician Muslim must mutual my myself mystery myth naked name narrative narrow nation national native natural naturally nature near nearby nearly necessarily necessary neck need negative negotiate negotiation neighbor neighborhood neither nerve nervous net network never nevertheless new newly news newspaper next nice night nine no nobody nod noise nomination none nonetheless nor normal normally north northern nose not note nothing notice notion novel now nowhere n't nuclear number numerous nurse nut object objective obligation observation observe observer obtain obvious obviously occasion occasionally occupation occupy occur ocean odd odds of off offense offensive offer office officer official often oh oil ok okay old Olympic on once one ongoing onion online only onto open opening operate operating operation operator opinion opponent opportunity oppose opposite opposition option or orange order ordinary organic organization organize orientation origin original originally other others otherwise ought our ourselves out outcome outside oven over overall overcome overlook owe own owner pace pack package page pain painful paint painter painting pair pale Palestinian palm pan panel pant paper parent park parking part participant participate participation particular particularly partly partner partnership party pass passage passenger passion past patch path patient pattern pause pay payment PC peace peak peer penalty people pepper per perceive percentage perception perfect perfectly perform performance perhaps period permanent permission permit person personal personality personally personnel perspective persuade pet phase phenomenon philosophy phone photo photograph photographer phrase physical physically physician piano pick picture pie piece pile pilot pine pink pipe pitch place plan plane planet planning plant plastic plate platform play player please pleasure plenty plot plus PM pocket poem poet poetry point pole police policy political politically politician politics poll pollution pool poor pop popular population porch port portion portrait portray pose position positive possess possibility possible possibly post pot potato potential potentially pound pour poverty powder power powerful practical practice pray prayer precisely predict prefer preference pregnancy pregnant preparation prepare prescription presence present presentation preserve president presidential press pressure pretend pretty prevent previous previously price pride priest primarily primary prime principal principle print prior priority prison prisoner privacy private probably problem procedure proceed process produce producer product production profession professional professor profile profit program progress project prominent promise promote prompt proof proper properly property proportion proposal propose proposed prosecutor prospect protect protection protein protest proud prove provide provider province provision psychological psychologist psychology public publication publicly publish publisher pull punishment purchase pure purpose pursue push put qualify quality quarter quarterback question quick quickly quiet quietly quit quite quote race racial radical radio rail rain raise range rank rapid rapidly rare rarely rate rather rating ratio raw reach react reaction read reader reading ready real reality realize really reason reasonable recall receive recent recently recipe recognition recognize recommend recommendation record recording recover recovery recruit red reduce reduction refer reference reflect reflection reform refugee refuse regard regarding regardless regime region regional register regular regularly regulate regulation reinforce reject relate relation relationship relative relatively relax release relevant relief religion religious rely remain remaining remarkable remember remind remote remove repeat repeatedly replace reply report reporter represent representation representative Republican reputation request require requirement research researcher resemble reservation resident resist resistance resolution resolve resort resource respect respond respondent response responsibility responsible rest restaurant restore restriction result retain retire retirement return reveal revenue review revolution rhythm rice rich rid ride rifle right ring rise risk river road rock role roll romantic roof room root rope rose rough roughly round route routine row rub rule run running rural rush Russian sacred sad safe safety sake salad salary sale sales salt same sample sanction sand satellite satisfaction satisfy sauce save saving say scale scandal scared scenario scene schedule scheme scholar scholarship school science scientific scientist scope score scream screen script sea search season seat second secret secretary section sector secure security see seed seek seem segment seize select selection self sell Senate senator send senior sense sensitive sentence separate sequence series serious seriously serve service session set setting settle settlement seven several severe sex sexual shade shadow shake shall shape share sharp she sheet shelf shell shelter shift shine ship shirt shit shock shoe shoot shooting shop shopping shore short shortly shot should shoulder shout show shower shrug shut sick side sigh sight sign signal significance significant significantly silence silent silver similar similarly simple simply sin since sing singer single sink sir sister sit site situation six size ski skill skin sky slave sleep slice slide slight slightly slip slow slowly small smart smell smile smoke smooth snap snow so so-called soccer social society soft software soil solar soldier solid solution solve some somebody somehow someone something sometimes somewhat somewhere son song soon sophisticated sorry sort soul sound soup source south southern Soviet space Spanish speak speaker special specialist species specific specifically speech speed spend spending spin spirit spiritual split spokesman sport spot spread spring square squeeze stability stable staff stage stair stake stand standard standing star stare start state statement station statistics status stay steady steal steel step stick still stir stock stomach stone stop storage store storm story straight strange stranger strategic strategy stream street strength strengthen stress stretch strike string strip stroke strong strongly structure struggle student studio study stuff stupid style subject submit subsequent substance substantial succeed success successful successfully such sudden suddenly sue suffer sufficient sugar suggest suggestion suicide suit summer summit sun super supply support supporter suppose supposed Supreme sure surely surface surgery surprise surprised surprising surprisingly surround survey survival survive survivor suspect sustain swear sweep sweet swim swing switch symbol symptom system table tablespoon tactic tail take tale talent talk tall tank tap tape target task taste tax taxpayer tea teach teacher teaching team tear teaspoon technical technique technology teen teenager telephone telescope television tell temperature temporary ten tend tendency tennis tension tent term terms terrible territory terror terrorism terrorist test testify testimony testing text than thank thanks that the theater their them theme themselves then theory therapy there therefore these they thick thin thing think thinking third thirty this those though thought thousand threat threaten three throat through throughout throw thus ticket tie tight time tiny tip tire tired tissue title to tobacco today toe together tomato tomorrow tone tongue tonight too tool tooth top topic toss total totally touch tough tour tourist tournament toward towards tower town toy trace track trade tradition traditional traffic tragedy trail train training transfer transform transformation transition translate transportation travel treat treatment treaty tree tremendous trend trial tribe trick trip troop trouble truck true truly trust truth try tube tunnel turn TV twelve twenty twice twin two type typical typically ugly ultimate ultimately unable uncle under undergo understand understanding unfortunately uniform union unique unit United universal universe university unknown unless unlike unlikely until unusual up upon upper urban urge us use used useful user usual usually utility vacation valley valuable value variable variation variety various vary vast vegetable vehicle venture version versus very vessel veteran via victim victory video view viewer village violate violation violence violent virtually virtue virus visible vision visit visitor visual vital voice volume volunteer vote voter vs vulnerable wage wait wake walk wall wander want war warm warn warning wash waste watch water wave way we weak wealth wealthy weapon wear weather wedding week weekend weekly weigh weight welcome welfare well west western wet what whatever wheel when whenever where whereas whether which while whisper white who whole whom whose why wide widely widespread wife wild will willing win wind window wine wing winner winter wipe wire wisdom wise wish with withdraw within without witness woman wonder wonderful wood wooden word work worker working works workshop world worried worry worth would wound wrap write writer writing wrong yard yeah year yell yellow yes yesterday yet yield you young your yours yourself youth zone
I am about to post the 3000 most common words in the English lexicon. Wish me luck... a abandon ability able abortion about above abroad absence absolute absolutely absorb abuse academic accept access accident accompany accomplish according account accurate accuse achieve achievement acid acknowledge acquire across act action active activist activity actor actress actual actually ad adapt add addition additional address adequate adjust adjustment administration administrator admire admission admit adolescent adopt adult advance advanced advantage adventure advertising advice advise adviser advocate affair affect afford afraid African African-American after afternoon again against age agency agenda agent aggressive ago agree agreement agricultural ah ahead aid aide AIDS aim air aircraft airline airport album alcohol alive all alliance allow ally almost alone along already also alter alternative although always AM amazing American among amount analysis analyst analyze ancient and anger angle angry animal anniversary announce annual another answer anticipate anxiety any anybody anymore anyone anything anyway anywhere apart apartment apparent apparently appeal appear appearance apple application apply appoint appointment appreciate approach appropriate approval approve approximately Arab architect area argue argument arise arm armed army around arrange arrangement arrest arrival arrive art article artist artistic as Asian aside ask asleep aspect assault assert assess assessment asset assign assignment assist assistance assistant associate association assume assumption assure at athlete athletic atmosphere attach attack attempt attend attention attitude attorney attract attractive attribute audience author authority auto available average avoid award aware awareness away awful baby back background bad badly bag bake balance ball ban band bank bar barely barrel barrier base baseball basic basically basis basket basketball bathroom battery battle be beach bean bear beat beautiful beauty because become bed bedroom beer before begin beginning behavior behind being belief believe bell belong below belt bench bend beneath benefit beside besides best bet better between beyond Bible big bike bill billion bind biological bird birth birthday bit bite black blade blame blanket blind block blood blow blue board boat body bomb bombing bond bone book boom boot border born borrow boss both bother bottle bottom boundary bowl box boy boyfriend brain branch brand bread break breakfast breast breath breathe brick bridge brief briefly bright brilliant bring British broad broken brother brown brush buck budget build building bullet bunch burden burn bury bus business busy but butter button buy buyer by cabin cabinet cable cake calculate call camera camp campaign campus can Canadian cancer candidate cap capability capable capacity capital captain capture car carbon card care career careful carefully carrier carry case cash cast cat catch category Catholic cause ceiling celebrate celebration celebrity cell center central century CEO ceremony certain certainly chain chair chairman challenge chamber champion championship chance change changing channel chapter character characteristic characterize charge charity chart chase cheap check cheek cheese chef chemical chest chicken chief child childhood Chinese chip chocolate choice cholesterol choose Christian Christmas church cigarette circle circumstance cite citizen city civil civilian claim class classic classroom clean clear clearly client climate climb clinic clinical clock close closely closer clothes clothing cloud club clue cluster coach coal coalition coast coat code coffee cognitive cold collapse colleague collect collection collective college colonial color column combination combine come comedy comfort comfortable command commander comment commercial commission commit commitment committee common communicate communication community company compare comparison compete competition competitive competitor complain complaint complete completely complex complicated component compose composition comprehensive computer concentrate concentration concept concern concerned concert conclude conclusion concrete condition conduct conference confidence confident confirm conflict confront confusion Congress congressional connect connection consciousness consensus consequence conservative consider considerable consideration consist consistent constant constantly constitute constitutional construct construction consultant consume consumer consumption contact contain container contemporary content contest context continue continued contract contrast contribute contribution control controversial controversy convention conventional conversation convert conviction convince cook cookie cooking cool cooperation cop cope copy core corn corner corporate corporation correct correspondent cost cotton couch could council counselor count counter country county couple courage course court cousin cover coverage cow crack craft crash crazy cream create creation creative creature credit crew crime criminal crisis criteria critic critical criticism criticize crop cross crowd crucial cry cultural culture cup curious current currently curriculum custom customer cut cycle dad daily damage dance danger dangerous dare dark darkness data date daughter day dead deal dealer dear death debate debt decade decide decision deck declare decline decrease deep deeply deer defeat defend defendant defense defensive deficit define definitely definition degree delay deliver delivery demand democracy Democrat democratic demonstrate demonstration deny department depend dependent depending depict depression depth deputy derive describe description desert deserve design designer desire desk desperate despite destroy destruction detail detailed detect determine develop developing development device devote dialogue die diet differ difference different differently difficult difficulty dig digital dimension dining dinner direct direction directly director dirt dirty disability disagree disappear disaster discipline discourse discover discovery discrimination discuss discussion disease dish dismiss disorder display dispute distance distant distinct distinction distinguish distribute distribution district diverse diversity divide division divorce DNA do doctor document dog domestic dominant dominate door double doubt down downtown dozen draft drag drama dramatic dramatically draw drawing dream dress drink drive driver drop drug dry due during dust duty each eager ear early earn earnings earth ease easily east eastern easy eat economic economics economist economy edge edition editor educate education educational educator effect effective effectively efficiency efficient effort egg eight either elderly elect election electric electricity electronic element elementary eliminate elite else elsewhere e-mail embrace emerge emergency emission emotion emotional emphasis emphasize employ employee employer employment empty enable encounter encourage end enemy energy enforcement engage engine engineer engineering English enhance enjoy enormous enough ensure enter enterprise entertainment entire entirely entrance entry environment environmental episode equal equally equipment era error escape especially essay essential essentially establish establishment estate estimate etc ethics ethnic European evaluate evaluation even evening event eventually ever every everybody everyday everyone everything everywhere evidence evolution evolve exact exactly examination examine example exceed excellent except exception exchange exciting executive exercise exhibit exhibition exist existence existing expand expansion expect expectation expense expensive experience experiment expert explain explanation explode explore explosion expose exposure express expression extend extension extensive extent external extra extraordinary extreme extremely eye fabric face facility fact factor factory faculty fade fail failure fair fairly faith fall false familiar family famous fan fantasy far farm farmer fashion fast fat fate father fault favor favorite fear feature federal fee feed feel feeling fellow female fence few fewer fiber fiction field fifteen fifth fifty fight fighter fighting figure file fill film final finally finance financial find finding fine finger finish fire firm first fish fishing fit fitness five fix flag flame flat flavor flee flesh flight float floor flow flower fly focus folk follow following food foot football for force foreign forest forever forget form formal formation former formula forth fortune forward found foundation founder four fourth frame framework free freedom freeze French frequency frequent frequently fresh friend friendly friendship from front fruit frustration fuel full fully fun function fund fundamental funding funeral funny furniture furthermore future gain galaxy gallery game gang gap garage garden garlic gas gate gather gay gaze gear gender gene general generally generate generation genetic gentleman gently German gesture get ghost giant gift gifted girl girlfriend give given glad glance glass global glove go goal God gold golden golf good government governor grab grade gradually graduate grain grand grandfather grandmother grant grass grave gray great greatest green grocery ground group grow growing growth guarantee guard guess guest guide guideline guilty gun guy habit habitat hair half hall hand handful handle hang happen happy hard hardly hat hate have he head headline headquarters health healthy hear hearing heart heat heaven heavily heavy heel height helicopter hell hello help helpful her here heritage hero herself hey hi hide high highlight highly highway hill him himself hip hire his historian historic historical history hit hold hole holiday holy home homeless honest honey honor hope horizon horror horse hospital host hot hotel hour house household housing how however huge human humor hundred hungry hunter hunting hurt husband hypothesis I ice idea ideal identification identify identity ie if ignore ill illegal illness illustrate image imagination imagine immediate immediately immigrant immigration impact implement implication imply importance important impose impossible impress impression impressive improve improvement in incentive incident include including income incorporate increase increased increasing increasingly incredible indeed independence independent index Indian indicate indication individual industrial industry infant infection inflation influence inform information ingredient initial initially initiative injury inner innocent inquiry inside insight insist inspire install instance instead institution institutional instruction instructor instrument insurance intellectual intelligence intend intense intensity intention interaction interest interested interesting internal international Internet interpret interpretation intervention interview into introduce introduction invasion invest investigate investigation investigator investment investor invite involve involved involvement Iraqi Irish iron Islamic island Israeli issue it Italian item its itself jacket jail Japanese jet Jew Jewish job join joint joke journal journalist journey joy judge judgment juice jump junior jury just justice justify keep key kick kid kill killer killing kind king kiss kitchen knee knife knock know knowledge lab label labor laboratory lack lady lake land landscape language lap large largely last late later Latin latter laugh launch law lawn lawsuit lawyer lay layer lead leader leadership leading leaf league lean learn learning least leather leave left leg legacy legal legend legislation legitimate lemon length less lesson let letter level liberal library license lie life lifestyle lifetime lift light like likely limit limitation limited line link lip list listen literally literary literature little live living load loan local locate location lock long long-term look loose lose loss lost lot lots loud love lovely lover low lower luck lucky lunch lung machine mad magazine mail main mainly maintain maintenance major majority make maker makeup male mall man manage management manager manner manufacturer manufacturing many map margin mark market marketing marriage married marry mask mass massive master match material math matter may maybe mayor me meal mean meaning meanwhile measure measurement meat mechanism media medical medication medicine medium meet meeting member membership memory mental mention menu mere merely mess message metal meter method Mexican middle might military milk million mind mine minister minor minority minute miracle mirror miss missile mission mistake mix mixture mm-hmm mode model moderate modern modest mom moment money monitor month mood moon moral more moreover morning mortgage most mostly mother motion motivation motor mount mountain mouse mouth move movement movie Mr Mrs Ms much multiple murder muscle museum music musical musician Muslim must mutual my myself mystery myth naked name narrative narrow nation national native natural naturally nature near nearby nearly necessarily necessary neck need negative negotiate negotiation neighbor neighborhood neither nerve nervous net network never nevertheless new newly news newspaper next nice night nine no nobody nod noise nomination none nonetheless nor normal normally north northern nose not note nothing notice notion novel now nowhere n't nuclear number numerous nurse nut object objective obligation observation observe observer obtain obvious obviously occasion occasionally occupation occupy occur ocean odd odds of off offense offensive offer office officer official often oh oil ok okay old Olympic on once one ongoing onion online only onto open opening operate operating operation operator opinion opponent opportunity oppose opposite opposition option or orange order ordinary organic organization organize orientation origin original originally other others otherwise ought our ourselves out outcome outside oven over overall overcome overlook owe own owner pace pack package page pain painful paint painter painting pair pale Palestinian palm pan panel pant paper parent park parking part participant participate participation particular particularly partly partner partnership party pass passage passenger passion past patch path patient pattern pause pay payment PC peace peak peer penalty people pepper per perceive percentage perception perfect perfectly perform performance perhaps period permanent permission permit person personal personality personally personnel perspective persuade pet phase phenomenon philosophy phone photo photograph photographer phrase physical physically physician piano pick picture pie piece pile pilot pine pink pipe pitch place plan plane planet planning plant plastic plate platform play player please pleasure plenty plot plus PM pocket poem poet poetry point pole police policy political politically politician politics poll pollution pool poor pop popular population porch port portion portrait portray pose position positive possess possibility possible possibly post pot potato potential potentially pound pour poverty powder power powerful practical practice pray prayer precisely predict prefer preference pregnancy pregnant preparation prepare prescription presence present presentation preserve president presidential press pressure pretend pretty prevent previous previously price pride priest primarily primary prime principal principle print prior priority prison prisoner privacy private probably problem procedure proceed process produce producer product production profession professional professor profile profit program progress project prominent promise promote prompt proof proper properly property proportion proposal propose proposed prosecutor prospect protect protection protein protest proud prove provide provider province provision psychological psychologist psychology public publication publicly publish publisher pull punishment purchase pure purpose pursue push put qualify quality quarter quarterback question quick quickly quiet quietly quit quite quote race racial radical radio rail rain raise range rank rapid rapidly rare rarely rate rather rating ratio raw reach react reaction read reader reading ready real reality realize really reason reasonable recall receive recent recently recipe recognition recognize recommend recommendation record recording recover recovery recruit red reduce reduction refer reference reflect reflection reform refugee refuse regard regarding regardless regime region regional register regular regularly regulate regulation reinforce reject relate relation relationship relative relatively relax release relevant relief religion religious rely remain remaining remarkable remember remind remote remove repeat repeatedly replace reply report reporter represent representation representative Republican reputation request require requirement research researcher resemble reservation resident resist resistance resolution resolve resort resource respect respond respondent response responsibility responsible rest restaurant restore restriction result retain retire retirement return reveal revenue review revolution rhythm rice rich rid ride rifle right ring rise risk river road rock role roll romantic roof room root rope rose rough roughly round route routine row rub rule run running rural rush Russian sacred sad safe safety sake salad salary sale sales salt same sample sanction sand satellite satisfaction satisfy sauce save saving say scale scandal scared scenario scene schedule scheme scholar scholarship school science scientific scientist scope score scream screen script sea search season seat second secret secretary section sector secure security see seed seek seem segment seize select selection self sell Senate senator send senior sense sensitive sentence separate sequence series serious seriously serve service session set setting settle settlement seven several severe sex sexual shade shadow shake shall shape share sharp she sheet shelf shell shelter shift shine ship shirt shit shock shoe shoot shooting shop shopping shore short shortly shot should shoulder shout show shower shrug shut sick side sigh sight sign signal significance significant significantly silence silent silver similar similarly simple simply sin since sing singer single sink sir sister sit site situation six size ski skill skin sky slave sleep slice slide slight slightly slip slow slowly small smart smell smile smoke smooth snap snow so so-called soccer social society soft software soil solar soldier solid solution solve some somebody somehow someone something sometimes somewhat somewhere son song soon sophisticated sorry sort soul sound soup source south southern Soviet space Spanish speak speaker special specialist species specific specifically speech speed spend spending spin spirit spiritual split spokesman sport spot spread spring square squeeze stability stable staff stage stair stake stand standard standing star stare start state statement station statistics status stay steady steal steel step stick still stir stock stomach stone stop storage store storm story straight strange stranger strategic strategy stream street strength strengthen stress stretch strike string strip stroke strong strongly structure struggle student studio study stuff stupid style subject submit subsequent substance substantial succeed success successful successfully such sudden suddenly sue suffer sufficient sugar suggest suggestion suicide suit summer summit sun super supply support supporter suppose supposed Supreme sure surely surface surgery surprise surprised surprising surprisingly surround survey survival survive survivor suspect sustain swear sweep sweet swim swing switch symbol symptom system table tablespoon tactic tail take tale talent talk tall tank tap tape target task taste tax taxpayer tea teach teacher teaching team tear teaspoon technical technique technology teen teenager telephone telescope television tell temperature temporary ten tend tendency tennis tension tent term terms terrible territory terror terrorism terrorist test testify testimony testing text than thank thanks that the theater their them theme themselves then theory therapy there therefore these they thick thin thing think thinking third thirty this those though thought thousand threat threaten three throat through throughout throw thus ticket tie tight time tiny tip tire tired tissue title to tobacco today toe together tomato tomorrow tone tongue tonight too tool tooth top topic toss total totally touch tough tour tourist tournament toward towards tower town toy trace track trade tradition traditional traffic tragedy trail train training transfer transform transformation transition translate transportation travel treat treatment treaty tree tremendous trend trial tribe trick trip troop trouble truck true truly trust truth try tube tunnel turn TV twelve twenty twice twin two type typical typically ugly ultimate ultimately unable uncle under undergo understand understanding unfortunately uniform union unique unit United universal universe university unknown unless unlike unlikely until unusual up upon upper urban urge us use used useful user usual usually utility vacation valley valuable value variable variation variety various vary vast vegetable vehicle venture version versus very vessel veteran via victim victory video view viewer village violate violation violence violent virtually virtue virus visible vision visit visitor visual vital voice volume volunteer vote voter vs vulnerable wage wait wake walk wall wander want war warm warn warning wash waste watch water wave way we weak wealth wealthy weapon wear weather wedding week weekend weekly weigh weight welcome welfare well west western wet what whatever wheel when whenever where whereas whether which while whisper white who whole whom whose why wide widely widespread wife wild will willing win wind window wine wing winner winter wipe wire wisdom wise wish with withdraw within without witness woman wonder wonderful wood wooden word work worker working works workshop world worried worry worth would wound wrap write writer writing wrong yard yeah year yell yellow yes yesterday yet yield you young your yours yourself youth zone
Benter continued to operate his in-person betting scheme through the turn of the millennium, with his model expanding to track more than 120 factors per horse, but the logistics were proving a grind. Thoroughbred Think Tank Thinks Fixed-Odds Betting Can Give Racing Fresh Blood and Makes Its Case. Posted on: May 17, 2019, 04:31h. Last updated on: May 17, 2019, 04:31h. Technavio has been monitoring the horse and sports betting market and it is poised to grow by USD 139.52 bn during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 9% during the forecast period. But there is a system capable of providing predictions, results, and tips for horse racing betting fans. The First Favourite is the most profitable horse racing system providing best horse handicapping service since the year 2013 & is a true and reliable provider of horse racing tips. Stocks rallied Wednesday, and the Nasdaq bounced back after its fastest 10% decline ever, as investors looked for bargains among beaten-down tech and momentum names. But strategists say it seems more likely the market has not yet hit bottom, and stocks could be in a choppy mode for a while, as investors focus on the election and the economy.
S&P 500 Cycle & Technical Analysis Chart Review Timing and Price Projections US Stock Market
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