Is Arceus viable in Gen 9 Pure Hackmons?

Arceus is ranked #8 in Gen 9 Pure Hackmons with 25.99% usage according to Smogon Aug 2026 - Sep 2026 data.

What beats Arceus in Gen 9 Pure Hackmons?

Mewtwo-Mega-X has the strongest conservative score in this observed Aug 2026 - Sep 2026 sample. The target was knocked out or switched out in 70.0% of 84.4327096056562 relevant encounters. Standard error is 5.0 points. Sets and switch conditions can change the result.

How are Arceus matchup checks ranked in Gen 9 Pure Hackmons?

They are ranked by p minus four standard errors. Here, p is the observed fraction of relevant encounters where Arceus was knocked out or switched out. This is not a set-specific battle guarantee.

Arceus counters

Gen 9 Pure Hackmons · Smogon source period Aug 2026 - Sep 2026

#0493 Arceus

Normal

USAGE 26.0% #8

ABILITYNeutralizing Gas

BASE STATS

HP 120

ATK 120

DEF 120

SPA 120

SPD 120

SPE 120

BST720

TYPE MATCHUPS

2×

Fighting

0×

Ghost

Moves

Judgment 48.1% Boomburst 42.4% Shell Smash 37.5% Corrosive Gas 34.4% Taunt 30.6% Recover 19.9% Baton Pass 18.2% Ceaseless Edge 17.6%

Items

Dread Plate 29.5% Ability Shield 19.1% Fist Plate 15.3% Leftovers 14.3% Choice Scarf 9.0% Mental Herb 5.4% Spooky Plate 3.2% Air Balloon 0.9%

Abilities

Neutralizing Gas39.4%Wonder Guard27.6%Good as Gold20.0%Magic Bounce8.6%Shadow Tag1.9%Prankster1.2%Teravolt0.3%Mold Breaker0.2%

Tera Types

Ghost 74.1% Normal 8.4% Fairy 4.9% Dragon 3.8% Dark 3.2% Grass 1.8% Ice 1.6% Electric 1.4%

Common Teammates

Leading observed checks

Open a matchup for a separate set-based damage estimate, or browse uploaded teams with both Pokémon.

Checks & Counters

Observed target KO or switch rate is upstream p: the fraction of relevant encounters where the target was knocked out or switched out. Standard error is upstream d. The conservative score is p − 4d. These ladder observations do not prove a set-specific counter.

How to read this table

Use encounter count and standard error to judge the sample. Damage estimates below use inferred sets and remain separate from the observed ladder metric.

# Checker Encounters Conservative score Target KO or switch rate

Mewtwo-Mega-X

PsychicFighting OFFENSIVE CHECK View matchup

84.433

50.0

70.0% Standard error 4.99 points

DAMAGE CALC

0- Atk Ability Shield Huge Power Mewtwo-Mega-X Mach Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 236-278 (53.1 - 62.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

View Mewtwo-Mega-X counters →

Kartana

GrassSteel OFFENSIVE CHECK View matchup

34.45

25.0

58.6% Standard error 8.39 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Ability Shield Kartana Collision Course (133.3251953125 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 350-414 (78.8 - 93.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

View Kartana counters →

Groudon-Primal

GroundFire SOFT CHECK View matchup

47.221

17.5

46.5% Standard error 7.26 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Groudon-Primal V-create vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Arceus: 354-417 (79.7 - 93.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

View Groudon-Primal counters →

Arceus

Normal SOFT CHECK View matchup

45.285

14.5

44.0% Standard error 7.38 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ SpA Arceus Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus: 151-178 (34 - 40%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

View Arceus counters →

Regieleki

Electric SOFT CHECK View matchup

109.372

11.7

29.1% Standard error 4.34 points

Arceus-Water

Water SOFT CHECK View matchup

36.152

11.2

44.3% Standard error 8.26 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Ability Shield Arceus-Water Surging Strikes (3 hits) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus on a critical hit: 171-201 (38.5 - 45.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

View Arceus-Water counters →

Arceus-Dark

Dark SOFT CHECK View matchup

22.923

8.9

50.7% Standard error 10.44 points

DAMAGE CALC

0- SpA Arceus-Dark Judgment vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus: 49-58 (11 - 13%) -- possible 8HKO

View Arceus-Dark counters →

Arceus-Fairy

Fairy SOFT CHECK View matchup

20.521

7.7

51.9% Standard error 11.03 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ SpA Ability Shield Arceus-Fairy Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 102-121 (22.9 - 27.2%) -- 57.2% chance to 4HKO

View Arceus-Fairy counters →

Calyrex-Shadow

PsychicGhost SOFT CHECK View matchup

47.899

4.1

30.8% Standard error 6.67 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ SpA Ability Shield Calyrex-Shadow Photon Geyser vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 136-162 (30.6 - 36.4%) -- 58.2% chance to 3HKO

View Calyrex-Shadow counters →

Blissey

Normal SOFT CHECK View matchup

60.961

3.0

25.3% Standard error 5.57 points

Sableye-Mega

DarkGhost SOFT CHECK View matchup

33.808

0.4

32.6% Standard error 8.06 points

DAMAGE CALC

0- Atk Ability Shield Sableye-Mega Foul Play vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 93-109 (20.9 - 24.5%) -- guaranteed 5HKO

View Sableye-Mega counters →

Zamazenta

Fighting SOFT CHECK View matchup

23.042

-5.1

34.6% Standard error 9.91 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Ability Shield Zamazenta Triple Arrows vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 260-308 (58.5 - 69.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

View Zamazenta counters →

Eternatus

PoisonDragon SOFT CHECK View matchup

39.719

-8.1

13.6% Standard error 5.45 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Ability Shield Eternatus Stone Axe vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Neutralizing Gas Arceus: 51-60 (11.4 - 13.5%) -- possible 8HKO

View Eternatus counters →

Ranked #8 with 25.99% usage. Sorted by conservative score.