Every VGC season and every new game brings a fresh shakeup of strategies, cores, and surprise techs. While titans like Landorus, Amoonguss, Incineroar, and others have dominated the competitive landscape, there’s a special kind of thrill in imagining what it would be like if some of Pokemon’s most overlooked creatures finally had their time in the spotlight. Whether it’s due to “gimmicky” abilities, bizarre stat spreads, or niche utility, these five Pokemon have the potential to break into VGC at some point. I believe if given just the right support in a future game, we could see these picks thrive. From a meme to the meta, these picks deserve their moment! So let’s dive into the top 5 underdog Pokemon I’d love to see shake up the meta at some point.
5. Munkidori – The Psychic Trap Card
One of the newer Pokemon from The Teal Mask, Munkidori, is still largely unexplored in competitive play, but it shouldn’t be. With a unique typing (Poison/Psychic), a signature ability (Toxic Chain) that enables it to poison opponents with damaging moves, and access to powerful tools like Nasty Plot, Sludge Bomb, Psychic, and Snarl, Munkidori has all the ingredients of a meta-disrupting wild card. Toxic Chain in doubles is especially valuable, as it bypasses the usual immunity checks like Substitute and passive healing.
Status is often underrated in VGC, and Munkidori’s ability to poison through offensive pressure makes it difficult to ignore. Combine it with partners that spread status or apply pressure from the other side (like Grimmsnarl or Gholdengo), and you’ve got a core that’s constantly putting your opponent on a timer. Its Speed tier isn’t ideal, and it doesn’t have the raw power of some top-tier special attackers, but Munkidori thrives on attrition, positioning, and momentum control. In the right hands, it could become a toxic tech choice that quietly wrecks team structures built around longevity and bulk.
4. Dragalge – The Toxic Corebreaker
Dragalge is a textbook case of “almost meta,” in some people’s opinion. Its Poison/Dragon typing is defensively solid, giving it a slew of resistances, including Grass, Water, Electric, and Fighting. Add to that its Adaptability ability, which boosts “STAB” moves to a terrifying degree, and Dragalge becomes a damage-dealing machine when left unchecked. What really makes Dragalge stand out is its natural Special Defense bulk and near-immunity to chip damage. It’s a great answer to special attackers and can operate well in Trick Room thanks to its low Speed.
Its movepool includes Sludge Bomb, Draco Meteor, Hydro Pump, and even Toxic Spikes, giving it a mix of offense and utility that’s hard to ignore. Dragalge’s main drawback is that it needs support. It doesn’t like Ground- or Psychic-types, and it can struggle without Speed control or pivoting options like U-turn. But if built around properly, it could become a toxic (pun intended) presence on the battlefield, especially in a meta that sleeps on status and bulky offense.
3. Sunflora – The Solar Power Sleeper
Sunflora has always been on the cusp of greatness, just waiting for the right environment to bloom. With Solar Power boosting its already respectable base 105 Special Attack in sunny weather, Sunflora becomes a surprisingly lethal special attacker. Combine that with Leaf Storm, Weather Ball, Earth Power, and Sludge Bomb, and you’ve got coverage that threatens a surprising number of meta staples. Of course, it’s not all sunshine. Sunflora’s base Speed (30) and poor defenses make it a liability without serious support. But that’s where Trick Room teams come in.
Under Trick Room, Sunflora becomes a dangerous sun-fueled sweeper that can overpower common defensive Pokemon with sheer force. Add in a Torkoal lead, and you’re off to the races. It’ll never replace Venusaur or Lilligant in most standard sun cores. Still, as a niche pick or flex slot in hybrid teams, Sunflora brings something unique: overwhelming damage in a format where the line between surprise and success is razor-thin. If a meta ever shifts toward Trick Room + Sun comps again, expect to see this Gen 2 underdog get a chance to shine.
2. Shuckle – The Unbreakable Wall No One Prepared For
One of the ones I want to see the most at the number two slot is none other than Shuckle. Shuckle has been the butt of Pokemon jokes for decades, and yet it has something no other Pokemon does. It has stupidly high base defenses, sitting at 230 in both Defense and Special Defense. It’s basically a walking fortress with zero offensive power, but what if that’s exactly what your team needs? In VGC, Shuckle could shine as a tempo disruptor. With access to Encore, it can punish Protect spammers and misplays. Sticky Web can ruin speed control strategies, while Power Split and Guard Split can equalize the playing field against heavy hitters.
Want to go chaotic? There’s Power Trick, which swaps its Defense stat with Attack, turning Shuckle into an unlikely glass cannon when paired with Trick Room. The issue? Shuckle’s HP is laughably low, and it’s easy to ignore if your team can focus down its partner. But in slower formats or control-focused compositions, it could serve as a backbone for drawn-out battles, forcing opponents to waste resources while you outlast them. If a team is built around frustrating your opponent into submission, Shuckle might just be your MVP.
1. Shedinja – The Ultimate Glass Cannon Fantasy
I will admit that I don’t have much experience with the Pokemon sitting at slots three, four, and five. However, one Pokemon I have really enjoyed in competitive battles, especially in Pokémon Sword and Shield, is none other than Shedinja. I have even written a double battles team article that uses Shedinja. Shedinja isn’t just unconventional, it’s the most extreme example of “all or nothing” in Pokemon. With exactly 1 HP, it lives and dies by its gimmick: Wonder Guard. Wonder Guard makes it immune to all damage unless the hit is super-effective.
That single quirk turns Shedinja into a strange form of win condition, especially in closed team sheet formats where opponents might not even realize they don’t have a way to deal with it. But making Shedinja work in VGC requires creativity. You’re not just slotting it into a team, you’re building around it. Think Follow Me support from Togekiss or Clefairy, Ally Switch to throw off targeting, and Protect to scout. You’ll need hazard control to keep Stealth Rocks and Toxic Spikes away, Safety Goggles to dodge sand and hail, and maybe even Shadow Sneak for priority chip damage. Shedinja isn’t viable in the traditional sense.
But in the right hands, and under just the right meta conditions, it’s capable of turning the tide, especially if it’s the last Pokemon standing against an unprepared team. In the team article where I used Shedinja, the opposing team had no super effective moves, so after a while, I withstood them and won. It’s not a pick for the faint of heart, but it’s undeniably one of the most fascinating Pokemon in the VGC conversation.
Final Thoughts: From Meme Tier to Master Ball?
Pokémon Legends: Z-A isn’t meant to be a competitive Pokemon battling game. Then we know some about Pokémon Champions after that, but we don’t know what it fully entails exactly. So it could be some time before we see these in a game again. However, the competitive Pokemon scene is filled with surprises. Every so often, a sleeper pick rises up and changes the landscape.
While Shedinja and Shuckle might sit on the fringe of viability at some point, and Sunflora, Dragalge, and Munkidori remain overlooked by most team builders, they each have unique characteristics. In the right meta and with the right support, they could elevate them from underdogs to legends. VGC rewards creativity. And sometimes, the most memorable victories come from bringing a so-called joke Pokemon to the Master Ball tier. I mean, a lot of people joke about Wolfe Glick’s (WolfeyVCG) “Perish Trap” strategy, and he has won tournaments. Here’s to the dreamers and the teams that make the impossible possible!
