[AMA] Plus

Do you have any tips on rating teams? I tried it out myself, but I'm having trouble with the more advanced teams that weren't built by new people. I guess my biggest weakness is spotting cores or customizing movesets for the specific teams. I want to get into RMT's, but I'm afraid my brain doesn't work that way quite yet and I could use a little help.
 

Merritt

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Hello Plus! Brought you some questions because... Erm...

Iunno.

-Do you feel that almost pure OU players (and you personally) are at a disadvantage when facing a team that includes Pokemon from RU and below?
-Why are some NFE Pokemon put into a tier if they're largely inferior to everything else there and don't fill a specific niche?
-In XY, how would you suggest using Kyurem-B?
-Do you feel that the people on Smogon, as a whole, are nice/good/acceptable/politically-correct/not-completely-evil?
-What do you think of Shiny Hidden Ability Torterras? (Pokebank)

Have a happy new year! :)
 

Plus

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Do you have any tips on rating teams? I tried it out myself, but I'm having trouble with the more advanced teams that weren't built by new people. I guess my biggest weakness is spotting cores or customizing movesets for the specific teams. I want to get into RMT's, but I'm afraid my brain doesn't work that way quite yet and I could use a little help.
Best advice would simply be to familiarize yourself with the metagame so certain threats that you come across just pop up in the head like second nature. Certain threats are really common in the metagame and usually you check for those types of weaknesses first -- so stuff like Aegislash, Mega Lucario, Rotom-W, Mega Venusaur, etc. If you can pinpoint at least one of those weaknesses, maybe you can generalize their weaknesses to a larger scale. Maybe he's not just Mega Lucario weak, he's also weak to other set up sweepers. But of course, weaknesses aren't limited to specific Pokemon, but playstyles as well. You might be weak to Spikestacking because you lack a spinner and defogger, then let things like Ferrothorn set up all over you. If you're starting out RMT I'd suggest to look for the biggest most prominent threats in the metagame, and see what else you can deduce about a team's weaknesses from that.

Hello Plus! Brought you some questions because... Erm...

Iunno.

-Do you feel that almost pure OU players (and you personally) are at a disadvantage when facing a team that includes Pokemon from RU and below?
-Why are some NFE Pokemon put into a tier if they're largely inferior to everything else there and don't fill a specific niche?
-In XY, how would you suggest using Kyurem-B?
-Do you feel that the people on Smogon, as a whole, are nice/good/acceptable/politically-correct/not-completely-evil?
-What do you think of Shiny Hidden Ability Torterras? (Pokebank)

Have a happy new year! :)
  • I suppose you're talking about the element of surprise, to which I'd say that no, pure OU players are not at a disadvantage when facing a team with lower tier Pokemon. You use Pokemon for the specific niches they bring, not because they're placed in a certain tier based solely on usage. Surely the element of surprise helps a ton when you are playing other people, but that doesn't necessarily mean you have to use lower tier Pokemon. Some lower tier Pokemon are one trick ponies, while other OU Pokemon are wild cards, and that's what makes them so good. People use OU Pokemon because for the most part that's what works. Thinking a step ahead of those types of people doesn't always mean you're going to be using lower tier Pokemon all the time, though sometimes it does.
  • They're not. NFE Pokemon are put into a tier if you know they have a specific niche. For example, Gligar gives you a Ground immunity and Fighting resist in UU, while providing you Stealth Rock. That's something unique about it that no other Pokemon in UU can do. Other examples from lower tiers include Tangela, Piloswine, Porygon2, Golbat, Metang, and I could continue listing a bunch of examples from NU. Sure, there are NFE Pokemon that kind of blow such as Dusclops in UU, but again, tiers are based off of usage as opposed to viability (with the exception of NU, but all NFE pokemon listed there have some kind of niche). If a NFE Pokemon gets enough uses to be placed into a tier, then it is in that tier.
  • Probably just Sub Mixed like the previous gen. Sub with a combination of Earth Power / Dragon Claw / Fusion Bolt / Ice Beam / HP Fire is probably best, I'd probably just use Ice Beam / Fusion Bolt / Earth Power because the ability to hit Mega Venusaur through Thick Fat with Teravolt Ice Beam is pretty neat. Then you have Earth Power for things like Rotom-W, and then Fusion Bolt to hit things like Azumarill/Gyarados etc.
  • Nah, they're not evil. They're good people, but it's definitely a little culture based. Don't try to thrust yourself too hard into any one thing without having a feel for how the forum is run. There are always mentors in specific forums that you can contact if you want to get involved as well. I know when I joined back in 2008 I was a bit intimidated at first, and to be fair, the culture there was much stricter than it was now. Smogon is a lot more welcoming to newcomers than ever before.
  • Idk about the last one, I don't keep up too much with that kind of stuff
 
Hey Plus, I've just recently joined the site but I've been familiar with competitive battling for a while. Before Christmas, which is when I got my Pokemon X, I spent my free time making memos on my phone about competitive teams. I would love to hear your opinion on this particular team. It's based around offensive trick room with the main sweeper being a mega scizor.
Screenshot_2013-12-29-23-11-55-1.png Screenshot_2013-12-29-23-12-19-1.png
I know this should probably be on the RMT thread but I feel like this still may be a rough draft and im unsure what to talk about in the individual descriptions for each poke.
Thanks c:
 
Can you help me pick a sixth pokemon? As a prempt I pretty much only play singles for now, I want to branch into doubles later on but I have a lot of matchup learning to do. This is my first time having a serious attempt at online battling despite playing since RBY.

I picked Vensaur/Heracross because they are my two favourites and worked from there. But generally I'm using Mamoswine to scout/stealth rocks, Heracross/Greninja as my sweepers, Tyranitar/Venasaur as walls and am stuck on a sixth pokemon.

Are there any glaring holes I need to be covering? I'm lacking a good way to take out Fighting types and Tyranitar/Mamoswine will get wrecked by a Fighting pokemon. I'm not afraid of Stealth Rocks, nothing on my team is weak to Rock so I feel ok not having a Rapid Spin unless I take a Flying type to cover my Fighting weakness. Perhaps a Psychic as that would also give me another coverage against Poison and neutral vs Fairy? Not sure what Psychic types are worth using that aren't megas though (because I'm very firm on my Mega Vensaur + Heracross core). Alternatively I could just ensure that my Mega-Venasaur has the HP to tank a Fighting move and make my sixth just a strong pokemon.

Is it okay to have more Physical than Special attackers or should I aim for a 3/3 split?

Very lost on my final choice!

Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll (Thick Fat)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpAtk / 4 SpDef
Nature: Modest
- Synthesis
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder

Tyranitar @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sand Stream
EV's: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Atk
Nature: Jolly
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Outrage

Heracross @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Guts
IVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
- Close Combat
- Mega Horn
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake

Mamoswine @ Leftovers/Choice Band/Focus Sash (Unsure)
Ability: Thick Fat
IVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Jolly
- Stealth Rock
- Icicle Crash
- Ice Shard
- Earthquake

Greninja @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
IVs: 252 SpAtk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Timid
- Ice Beam
- Hydro Pump
- Grass Knot
- Dark Pulse
 

Plus

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Hey Plus, I've just recently joined the site but I've been familiar with competitive battling for a while. Before Christmas, which is when I got my Pokemon X, I spent my free time making memos on my phone about competitive teams. I would love to hear your opinion on this particular team. It's based around offensive trick room with the main sweeper being a mega scizor.
View attachment 6494 View attachment 6495
I know this should probably be on the RMT thread but I feel like this still may be a rough draft and im unsure what to talk about in the individual descriptions for each poke.
Thanks c:
Not too familiar with dedicated Trick Room teams in singles OU as you see most viable OU teams that pack Trick Room using it more of a secondary utility as opposed to a primary strategy. But just skimming through that, Dusknoir completely blows and you'd probably want something along the lines of Aegislash instead, maybe something like Gyro Ball / Kings Shield / Shadow Ball / Shadow Sneak, or maybe even Sacred Sword over Sneak. It hits harder, has better defensive typing, and fits in nicely with the whole Trick Room team, and has priority to function without Trick Room as well. Next off you'd probably want a bulky water-type in here so you can lighten the load off of Dragonite, as having Dragonite as your only water/fire resist in a slow team that won't always have Trick Room up 24/7 isn't a very good idea -- there are things like Talonflame, Charizard X/Y, Keldeo, etc, that you might not have the best matchup against. Try running CB or Assault Vest Azumarill so you have some more priority to function without Trick Room, as well as getting some needed resistances to those types. I'd take that over Marowak who is kind of useless outside of Trick Room, and even then you're not getting past Gliscor or Hippowdon, Landorus, or even Skarmory.

Can you help me pick a sixth pokemon? As a prempt I pretty much only play singles for now, I want to branch into doubles later on but I have a lot of matchup learning to do. This is my first time having a serious attempt at online battling despite playing since RBY.

I picked Vensaur/Heracross because they are my two favourites and worked from there. But generally I'm using Mamoswine to scout/stealth rocks, Heracross/Greninja as my sweepers, Tyranitar/Venasaur as walls and am stuck on a sixth pokemon.

Are there any glaring holes I need to be covering? I'm lacking a good way to take out Fighting types and Tyranitar/Mamoswine will get wrecked by a Fighting pokemon. I'm not afraid of Stealth Rocks, nothing on my team is weak to Rock so I feel ok not having a Rapid Spin unless I take a Flying type to cover my Fighting weakness. Perhaps a Psychic as that would also give me another coverage against Poison and neutral vs Fairy? Not sure what Psychic types are worth using that aren't megas though (because I'm very firm on my Mega Vensaur + Heracross core). Alternatively I could just ensure that my Mega-Venasaur has the HP to tank a Fighting move and make my sixth just a strong pokemon.

Is it okay to have more Physical than Special attackers or should I aim for a 3/3 split?

Very lost on my final choice!

Venusaur @ Venusaurite
Ability: Chlorophyll (Thick Fat)
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpAtk / 4 SpDef
Nature: Modest
- Synthesis
- Giga Drain
- Sludge Bomb
- Sleep Powder

Tyranitar @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sand Stream
EV's: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Atk
Nature: Jolly
- Crunch
- Pursuit
- Stone Edge
- Outrage

Heracross @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Guts
IVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Adamant
- Close Combat
- Mega Horn
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake

Mamoswine @ Leftovers/Choice Band/Focus Sash (Unsure)
Ability: Thick Fat
IVs: 252 Atk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Jolly
- Stealth Rock
- Icicle Crash
- Ice Shard
- Earthquake

Greninja @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
IVs: 252 SpAtk / 252 SpD / 4 Def
Nature: Timid
- Ice Beam
- Hydro Pump
- Grass Knot
- Dark Pulse
Well I wouldn't worry too much about this 3 sweeper 3 wall or whatever set number have you mentality, you build based off strategy and that's that. You could be choosing three physical sweepers and three special sweepers willy nilly and still be walled hard by something like a Mega Venusaur, that's just how the game is. Instead of thinking that you need a set number of Pokemon that perform an arbitrary duty such as physical sweeper or special sweeper, think about what Pokemon in specific need to be beat in the current metagame. That being said, I'm not particularly sure if Heracross is viable in OU in its non mega form, as it's bait for way too many walls and set up sweepers alike to get free turns up on you, and that's really something you can't afford to do. If we're building off Mega Venusaur make sure you can switch-in to things like Mega Pinsir, Mega Charizard, maybe a status absorber for Rotom-W Will-o-Wisps or Heatran Lava Plumes, Reuniclus, Alakazam, Gardevoir. You can message me on IRC at #mentor if you need any more help or if you want some ideas, I don't want to write an essay here lol.
 
I am looking for help in building a solid team that doesn't necessarily involve using legendaries but can compete with and or defeat teams that do use legendaries. i am very green when it comes to building teams and I would really like some input when it comes to building a strong competitive team and then i guess to understand more about the game. I have a link to my first competitive battle that I got VERY lucky with the team I had I don't really want to be in that position again. (Here is the replay from showdown: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/ou-74623856)

Anything you could help me with would be GREATLY APPRECIATED! (I am located in Washington so GMT -8)
 

Redew

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Hello! I'll refrain from asking any competitive questions, seeing as you're swamped with the. X.x

You joined on my birthday. :O

What brought you to Smogon initially?

Why did you decide to rate teams?

Was rating the first thing you did on Smogon?

Why is Krokorok your favorite Pokemon?

Cheers!
 
Hello! I'll refrain from asking any competitive questions, seeing as you're swamped with the. X.x

You joined on my birthday. :O
Why does redew punctuate :O and X.X?
Advice for team rating?
How do you manage to think of raps? Like is there some thought process or does it just come randomly?
 
I'm going to report my thread here because you might be able to help me!

This is my current team and I'm trying to fill my last spot. What does my team need and where am I lacking?

Mawile-Mega @ Mawilite
Ability: Huge Power
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP / 4 SDef
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough
- Sucker Punch
- Fire Fang
- Swords Dance

Greninja @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 SAtk / 4 Atk
Timid Nature
- Surf
- Ice Beam
- Dark Pulse
- U-turn

Excadrill @ Assault Vest
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 252 Spd / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Slash

Trevenant @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 Def / 252 HP / 4 Atk
Impish Nature
- Horn Leech
- Rock Slide
- Will-O-Wisp
- Rest

Sylveon (F) @ Light Clay
Ability: Cute Charm
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SDef / 4 SAtk
Calm Nature
- Reflect
- Wish
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Ground]
 

Plus

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I am looking for help in building a solid team that doesn't necessarily involve using legendaries but can compete with and or defeat teams that do use legendaries. i am very green when it comes to building teams and I would really like some input when it comes to building a strong competitive team and then i guess to understand more about the game. I have a link to my first competitive battle that I got VERY lucky with the team I had I don't really want to be in that position again. (Here is the replay from showdown: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/ou-74623856)

Anything you could help me with would be GREATLY APPRECIATED! (I am located in Washington so GMT -8)
First suggestion would be to not limit yourself in terms of teambuilding, I see a lot of newcomers who impose the no legendaries restriction for personal reasons and there's really no room for that if we're talking strictly competitive Pokemon, a game which you play to win, and a game which you build teams to maximize those chances of winning. That's not to say you can't succeed without using legendaries, but frankly legendary status is an awful measure of viability, just look at Articuno and Regigigas. As for other suggestions for teambuilding, try to keep it simple when you're first starting out, don't do any crazy shit until you have a good feel for the metagame and have a reasonable amount of experience. It's best to establish the basics first before trying some ridiculous set out, this means familiarizing yourself with using common threats like Aegislash or Mega Lucario before you delve into the more obscure parts of the metagame.

As for other things, keep it simple when you battle, don't try to overpredict when it's not necessary, know the risks and rewards of each move you make when you predict. Another thing I see with new battlers is the concept of a dedicated lead, which is a pretty overrated concept nowadays, and this started in the beginning of BW with team preview. Some teams might need one depending on how they play (hyper offense is a common example of this), but others really don't need one. They're predictable and can be easily exploited by your opponent if he has half a brain and knows what he's doing. Team preview is there for a reason; it's for seeing what your opponent is most likely to lead with, what type of team he's bringing, and what he's most weak to. Those are factors you have to consider when picking a lead. A lot of the strategy devising comes before the game.

What brought you to Smogon initially?

Why did you decide to rate teams?

Was rating the first thing you did on Smogon?

Why is Krokorok your favorite Pokemon?

Cheers!
I decided to troll Doug's CAP Server on Shoddy, a lad named Elevator Music (formerly known as Alphabet_Soup) challenged me to a battle, I had no idea what CAP was at the time. I was up like 4-1 on EM until he whipped out Syclant and I was like wtf is this shit? I managed to barely survive on the skin of my teeth 1-0 and then I decided to check out the project for myself by joining Smogon.

I decided to rate teams after I lost interest in CAP, by then I had established a small group of friends here which also happened to include tab and Bloo. I wanted to involve myself elsewhere in the site so they kinda jumpstarted my teamrating escapades.

Nope, the first thing I did on Smogon was CAP, then I involved myself in Battling 101. Tutor was the first badge I got, then I dabbled in the Smog writing CAP articles, then I went to RMT.

Krokorok dgaf, he has his arms crossed and he basically has sunglasses without sunglasses. He's Ground / Dark like my boy Colossoil and has an ability called Moxie cause he got character. Also Krookodile has a dick snout so yeah Krokorok's the best -.-

Why does redew punctuate :O and X.X?
Advice for team rating?
How do you manage to think of raps? Like is there some thought process or does it just come randomly?
Just try to identify the most common threats first, then look for more obscure threats. This means looking for Aegislash and Mega Luke weaks before trying to find a weakness like Restalk Curse Snorlax in OU as a last Pokemon or some shit. Threats aren't limited to Pokemon sets, but also playstyles such as stall or offense. Explain how threats are actually threats, try to theorymon some actual scenarios in which said threat would destroy a team. For example, many people would try to pass CB Scizor off as a response to Terrakion in BW OU, but in reality they're still Terrakion weak because they have no means of switching into Terrakion, period. And Scizor can't do jackshit to Terrakion because it resists Pursuit so it can switch out and just hit and run. Then apply these hypothetical situations when suggesting threats. Does your suggestion actually help what you've pointed out as a weakness, and would you realistically use this on your own team?

When I rap I need to get into a zone, usually this zone is in the middle of the night when I got stuff on my mind, I can't really say that there's a thought process. I just think of a subject and go with it. It's nice that the English language has a lot of room for improv and simplified language, that makes it easier to think of rhymes.

I'm going to report my thread here because you might be able to help me!

This is my current team and I'm trying to fill my last spot. What does my team need and where am I lacking?
Uhhh there's a lot to talk about here, just skimming over the sets and everything I'd probably advise taking out Slash on Excadrill because that has no competitive merit anywhere on anything, run Shadow Claw over that instead. Tell you what, just hit me up on #mentor on IRC and we can talk about the team there because I don't want to write essays!
 

perplexingpool

Banned deucer.
Can you give me some advice on how to deal with Voltturn with a balanced team? I find that I often just cannot handle the offensive momentum that voltturn generates.
 

Plus

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Is running Sigilyph in OU a good idea ? The Stored Power set ?
Well tbh I think it would be able to catch some people off guard and win you a couple of games against people who aren't expecting Sigilyph, but from what I've seen it's pretty inconsistent otherwise. It looks to be a bit worse than last gen because of Knock Off and things like Bisharp and Aegislash, probably not a good idea to use that kind of set if you're just starting out. A lot of teams are fast paced enough that you wont be able to keep up with the Cosmic Power boosts and recovery before you get slammed by a really hard hitting move.

Can you give me some advice on how to deal with Voltturn with a balanced team? I find that I often just cannot handle the offensive momentum that voltturn generates.
Make sure you have a defogger or spinner, entry hazards just magnify volt turn problems a lot more. Having rocks up on your field is pretty important too, if you see that they have a defogger then try to predict the switch and go to something that threatens the defogger, such as Rotom for Skarmory or Mandibuzz or Tyranitar for Latis. Other than that, dealing with voltturn often requires thinking one step ahead of the opponent through prediction or simply applying more pressure to your opponent. For example, if your Mega Venusaur is about to get u-turned on, maybe you just want to tank the u-turn and hit the switch-in harder than it hit you -- it really depends on the situation. And as dumb as it may sound, keep in mind that you win battles by depleting your opponent's health to 0. Focusing on killing your opponent is more important than focusing on survival. Sometimes you're going to have to give to get, and that's when you have to execute a gameplan to see what you can sack and what you need alive to win.
 

Idyll

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Hi there! A few questions from me.

When making a team, what are some things to consider?

What would you consider the biggest threats in XY OU other than M-Lucario and Genesect?

Since I'm a bit new, can you rate my team? http://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/killjoys-the-team.3497349/ It's a team that uses some underrated threats that's doing fine for the most part, but I want to see what you think.

Second favorite pokemon?

How would involve himself in the RMT forum more?

That's all. Thank you in advance. (^O^)
 
How do you decide if an attacking pokemon is better as a sweeper or a wallbreaker?

What's the best way to deal with fast pokemon if your team is slower (but not TrickRoom slow)? Pokemon such as Gengar and Starmie tend to give me trouble.

Merci.
 

Plus

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Hi there! A few questions from me.

When making a team, what are some things to consider?
Make sure you beat all the relevant threats, I personally like teambuilding with the statistics thread up so I just go down the list and make sure that I have methods of beating each Pokemon. Make sure you have some sort of win condition especially if you're playing something like gen 6 stall, and don't be afraid to mix it up a little with your team; this doesn't mean that you should flat out use gimmicks, but having some sort of surprise factor that is both competitively viable and hard to predict makes playing tougher opponents much easier. But don't use sets just for the sake of being different, have some actual reasoning behind using something out of the ordinary.

What would you consider the biggest threats in XY OU other than M-Lucario and Genesect?
Charizard Y is ridiculously annoying to face -- you just come in, mega evolve, then spam Fire Blast off a sun boost and base 154 special attack. Teams often pack things like Heatran for it, which isn't reliable to beat zard Y because of Focus Blast, same goes for Tyranitar. It's got a ton of offensive pressure and the ability to splash sun on a regular team for some boosted fire attacks is always nice, such as when running Genesect or Heatran. Other than that, I find Mega Pinsir to be quite a handful as well since it rips a ton of teams apart with rocks up, especially those who use Zapdos as a response to it.

Since I'm a bit new, can you rate my team? http://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/killjoys-the-team.3497349/ It's a team that uses some underrated threats that's doing fine for the most part, but I want to see what you think.

Second favorite pokemon?

How would involve himself in the RMT forum more?

That's all. Thank you in advance. (^O^)
Sure I'll give it a look sometime this week

Breloom =)

Do the practice rates in the rating activities forum when they pop up, and when it comes to rating teams in the forums don't burn yourself out. Set a goal for yourself like rating 3-5 teams a week, and make sure your rates are quality (you can look at past rates from people with the teamrater badge for reference). Idling on #ratemyteam on IRC helps you get acquainted with the RMT people better as well, it's a pretty close knit community but they're pretty nice people.

How do you decide if an attacking pokemon is better as a sweeper or a wallbreaker?

What's the best way to deal with fast pokemon if your team is slower (but not TrickRoom slow)? Pokemon such as Gengar and Starmie tend to give me trouble.

Merci.
You can call it whatever you want really, sweepers, cleaners, wallbreakers, whatever. A Pokemon is probably better classified as a wallbreaker if you tend to bring it in earlier, whereas a sweeper would be best sweeping lategame after all the checks and counters are dealt with appropriately. But again, these terms are rather broad generalizations of battling as a whole, you play Pokemon differently depending on the team you're up against, a wallbreaker might be your sweeper and a sweeper might be your wallbreaker, and I might very well be your mother :o

You either run better walls, or you just have to run faster checks. I guess an example of this would be Tyranitar, you can either assault vest it and tank the hits from Starmie or Gengar then Pursuit / Crunch, or you can run Scarf Tyranitar as a check, making sure you switch in on something that isn't Sub / Focus Blast / Hydro Pump, then outspeed and pursuit / crunch. Teams that are slow and incapable of walling everything usually need something that can compensate for the lack of speed whether it's paralysis, priority, scarf, or simply running a faster Pokemon.
 
Hey man, some questions coming right up!

Favorite food?
Favorite movie?
Favorite series :D?
Favorite music style?

Just a few questions to get to know you better (because food is important you know)

I've been struggeling with my online team. It initially had some pokemon in there with good natures, but not perfect IV's, and I feel like that's been kind of destroying me..

As for my new team, it exists of

Sylveon @ undecided item (either Life orb or leftovers)
Modest nature
252 SpA/252 HP/4 Spe
5 IV's (HP, Def, SpA, SpD, Spe)

Skarmory, being the entry hazard, 4 IV @ Impish, newly hatched.

Same goes for my Honedge, eventually to be Aegislash, 5IV (HP, Atk, SpA, Spe, SpD)


I'm trying to come up with a mega for this set, in order to get something out there. Was thinking of Mega Aggron as wall with good atk, but idunno... slow speed. Maybe Mega alakazam or Mega Stoise..

As for my existing mates, sylveon is a special sweeper, whereas Aegi's gonna do that for Physical.

I'm lacking a spinner too, any advice on that too?
 
Hey there im new to the site and I want to get into competitive battling could you maybe help me a bit from where to start and how to build my first team?
 

Plus

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Hey man, some questions coming right up!

Favorite food?
Favorite movie?
Favorite series :D?
Favorite music style?

Just a few questions to get to know you better (because food is important you know)
I like Chinese dim sum, especially on weekends or vacation days where you just wake up at like 12:00 and haven't had a bite to eat. As for my favorite dish it's probably stir fried rice noodles with beef, don't really know how to spell it out in English so I'll just leave a pic here


I'm not much of a movie guy, I guess my favorite movie would have to be Hotel Rwanda for a serious flick, Forrest Gump is a little overrated but it's still a classic I enjoy watching.

Favorite series has got to be Breaking Bad, I had everybody and their mother telling me to watch it over winter break this year so I gave it a spin, and I do not regret it one bit. It's beautifully written and played, and the character development is some of the best I've ever seen.

Favorite music style is underground hip hop

I've been struggeling with my online team. It initially had some pokemon in there with good natures, but not perfect IV's, and I feel like that's been kind of destroying me..
Well three pokemon doesn't really constitute a team unless we're talking Battle Spot in which I really have no expertise in, and just the formatting of everything is kind of confusing -- I don't know how to rate teams with no moves lol. I'd really suggest making this team on pokemon showdown (pokemonshowdown.com), playing a few matches with it, and having it in an exportable format so it's a bit easier on the eyes. Hit me up on #mentor or PM me privately if you want some extra help I guess. Just get a feel of the competition and go from there, don't be discouraged if you lose your share of matches -- every loss early on helps you improve.

Hey there im new to the site and I want to get into competitive battling could you maybe help me a bit from where to start and how to build my first team?
Watch a couple matches on pokemonshowdown.com, standard ou just to get an idea of how the game is played and what's common. Lurk around places like the rate my team forum to get a better idea of team structures and strategy, they might not be the best teams around but it's still something to get you started.

After you do that, just make something and go ladder. Don't worry too much about winning and losing early on if you're just starting out. I see tons of new people taking like 20398420 hours to make a team when their team is going to be pure crap whether they take 20 minutes or 20 hours, because the best way to improve at teambuilding is just getting out into the competitive scene and learning about what's in the metagame -- and that's something you can't really spoonfeed.
 
do you like nintendo world

what high school if in nyc

favorite fine dining restaurant or local restaurant in nyc

favorite dessert place in nyc

flushing is the worst yn

how is chick fil a i never went there before O_O bring me there yn

what is your opinion of user ium

we should chat more yn

what is your opinion on my pyroak drawing

why are you embarrassed of your drawings from years ago i think they're cute

we should collab on a drawing for fun yn

:D !
 

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do you like nintendo world
I liked it more when it was the Pokemon Center and was strictly Pokemon, I remember when i was 6 years old my mom took me to get a Celebi for my Silver version, I was the happiest little kid alive =')

what high school if in nyc
I went to high school in NJ with user Steven Snype! =)

favorite fine dining restaurant or local restaurant in nyc
I wouldn't know, I'm a very stingy person and I live on a tight budget. Would you like to buy me some food?? =)

favorite dessert place in nyc
I don't eat much sweets/dessert (let alone in NYC), I went to a Red Mango somewhere near 14th street and that's about it. Would you like to buy me some froyo?? =)

flushing is the worst yn
I wouldn't know, I've never been there. You should take me there and buy me some Korean BBQ though! =)

how is chick fil a i never went there before O_O bring me there yn
It's aight I guess, their chicken's pretty good but I don't go there too often lol.

what is your opinion of user ium
I think he's a little awkward, kind of like that person you sat next to in third grade who started smelling your nuts, then telling you exactly what you had for breakfast 4 days ago. Sometimes he forgets to shower, but that's okay because he has a habit of shitting rainbows and flowers. But of course, not even the strongest aroma can mask the loads of horse shit that he spews constantly. Nobody really likes him, but everybody tends to just put up a facade of forced smiles and strained laughter just so they don't feel bad for being annoyed as fuck with the retarded kid in the classroom. But yeah, I just think he's a little awkward. lol! =)

we should chat more yn
Sure, buy me stuff and we'll talk =)

what is your opinion on my pyroak drawing
Never seen it, and I won't make an effort to see it unless you link it to me personally because I don't creep on people :o

why are you embarrassed of your drawings from years ago i think they're cute
I don't think the amount of effort in those drawings I made from 4-5 years ago can compare to the amount of work true artists put in their medium -- this applies not only to the forums itself but to the title of artist as a whole. I'd like to think I've improved somewhat over the past couple of years though I've had noticeably less time to practice, but I just don't like calling myself a traditional artist; if anything I'm just a mere doodler. My best friend / apartment roomie goes to Pratt Institute and he spends hours upon hours making art, and I have nothing but respect for the amount of effort you have to put in to make it as an artist. I realize that Smogon has the "neat and tidy , hard and sloppy" classification for artists but honestly I don't buy any of that shit. I just don't see why you shouldn't put anything BUT your best work on-site.

we should collab on a drawing for fun yn

:D !
I'd love to =)
 
I love Gardevoir, and I was thinking in building a team around her for dobules. What I though was using mega Gardevoir with Skill Swap in combination with Slaking. But I really don't know what other Pokemon to use.
If you can recommend me other ways to use mega Gardevoir for singles and doubles it would be great ^^
 

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is a Top Tutor Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis an Artist Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Researcher Alumnusis a Top CAP Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnus
I love Gardevoir, and I was thinking in building a team around her for dobules. What I though was using mega Gardevoir with Skill Swap in combination with Slaking. But I really don't know what other Pokemon to use.
If you can recommend me other ways to use mega Gardevoir for singles and doubles it would be great ^^
I don't play Doubles, but you could ask somebody like Pwnemon for advice about that. Though I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that Skill Swapping isn't the greatest strategy in Doubles, but then again what do I know :|

Mega Gardy is pretty neat in singles OU, I personally like the 4 attacks Gardevoir with Hyper Voice / Focus Blast / Psyshock / Shadow Ball, it's got some amazing coverage and hits common switchins like Chansey and Aegislash pretty hard. Hyper Voice hits like a truck too, and it's especially nice when you get to kill annoying stuff like Kyu-B straight up even with a Substitute up.

Personally I just run enough EVs in Speed to outspeed standard Kyurem-B (which is roughly around 290 i think?) then max the SpA and throw the rest into HP, Modest nature. Or you could just go max SpA and Speed with Modest, or Timid if you want to do stuff like Speed tie with Charizards or outspeed all versions of Landorus and Kyu-B. Make sure you run Trace on regular Gardevoir so you can switch into things like Heatran much easier.
 

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