Data ASB Beginner's Guide (READ THIS FIRST)

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Texas Cloverleaf

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Data Audit Tables (All Pokemon CC costs can be located here)
ASB Player's Handbook
All rules regarding ASB and/or data information can be located between these two threads.

Introduction

Welcome to the world of Anime Style Battling! In this forum game, users raise and train Pokemon to fight battles, to trade, and to go on quests. It’s arguably the most competitive ASB community on the Internet; we feature an incredibly detailed index for every move, ability, type, and nature available in the game. Damage is dealt with hard numbers and energy costs, making each move of every battle a challenging risk. That's not to say that there isn't room for flavor though. We focus on giving each Pokemon unique attributes, and creating a story with each battle. Smogon also offers a compelling Combination system, which allows battlers to use two moves concurrently, which creates an entirely new level to the battling system. Whether you're adventuring with your Pokemon to find a legendary hidden within a volcano, or battling in a heated match against one of our Gym Leaders, you're in for a great time.

Also unique to Anime Style Battling here on Smogon is our use of the Create-A-Pokemon Project's creations directly in our battles. That project aims to create a Pokemon that is used within the competitive Overused metagame. They are implemented on our simulator, Pokemon Showdown, and used in real matches! The community there is entirely open; literally anyone can walk in and submit a movepool, stat spread, ability, or typing for our new Pokemon. Each step is carefully discussed and voted upon as a community. The project's six year length has yielded 17 Pokemon (not including pre-evolutions) at the time of this article’s writing, and all of them are available for use within Anime Style Battling. You can read about the Create-A-Pokemon Project here to get more information.

About the Pokemon

The first step in getting started is to choose what Pokemon you want. But... which Pokemon do you choose? One of ASB's greater characteristics is that it does a decent job in equalizing Pokemon, so the natural choice should be to pick your favorites! While some Pokemon are still naturally better than others, in ASB almost every Pokemon has a unique quirk, combination, or trait that you can viably use.

Of course, if you want a team of "the best," you're free to do that as well. The most powerful Pokemon in ASB tend to have wide movepools, rank 4 or 5 in an offensive stat (or both), good bulk, and lack 4x weaknesses. Pokemon that lack 1 or 2 of these traits can also be used effectively. Examples of top Pokemon include Krilowatt, Gallade, Togekiss, Cyclohm, Snorlax, Dragonite, Sableye, and Pyroak, who each possess all or most of these traits.

Not all Pokemon with 4x weaknesses are bad or can't be top Pokemon. However, because Pokemon can eventually use all of their moves in ASB, Pokemon with 4x weaknesses can easily be hit where it hurts. This can be worked around; for example, Carracosta can shrug off most Grass attacks due to the combination of Sturdy, Solid Rock, and potential Sandstorm, while Dragonite can utilize its gigantic movepool and Multiscale to work around Ice moves. Even without abilities to lessen the damage from 4x weaknesses, many Pokemon have access to moves such as Counter/Mirror Coat/Bide to turn their weakness into a strength.

Similarly, even without a wide movepool, some Pokemon can function well with just the right moves. Sunflora can use Sun Stone to auto-activate both Chlorophyll and Solar Power and use SolarBeam and its healing moves at full power, allowing it to make the most of its relatively small movepool. And even if a Pokemon doesn't have the best stats, this can be made up for using their unique traits or with items. The items Rare Candy and Everstone intentionally provide better boosts to Pokemon with lower stats. Mawile can use Everstone to boost both its Attack and Defense 2 ranks, has access to 3 great abilities that it can use all at once, and with the uncommon ViceGrip it can use several powerful combination attacks. Nobody would call either Sunflora or Mawile top Pokemon (they definitely aren't), but the point is they are still viable in ASB regardless. If you pick your favorite Pokemon to use, know that they likely won't be the best, but be assured that they also won't be useless.

Template for Pokemon Profiles

Code:
[HIDE=Name That Pokemon]
[IMG] An image of the Pokemon [/IMG]
Pokemon [Gender] [Nickname]
[B]Types:[/B] Type/Type

[U][B]Abilities:[/B][/U]:
Ability 1 / Ability 2 / Ability (H)

[U][B]Nature:[/U][/B] Nature and effects

[U][B]Stats:[/B][/U]
[B]HP:[/b] Value
[B]Atk:[/B] Rank a
[B]Def:[/B] Rank b
[B]SpA:[/B] Rank c
[B]SpD:[/B] Rank d
[B]Spe:[/B] Value
[B]Size Class:[/B] #
[B]Weight Class:[/B] #
[B]Base Rank Total:[/B] HP Rank + Speed Rank + ATK Rank + DEF Rank + SPA Rank + SPD Rank

[B]EC:[/B] 0/x
[B]MC:[/B] 0
[B]AC:[/B] 0/5

[U][B]Attacks:[/B][/U]
[B]Level Up[/B]
All moves it learns before 26

[B]Egg[/B]
Egg Move
Egg Move
Egg Move
Egg Move
Egg Move

[B]TM/HM[/B]
Current Gen TM/HM Move
Current Gen TM/HM Move
Current Gen TM/HM Move
Current Gen TM/HM Move
Current Gen TM/HM Move
[/HIDE]
How to Create Your Pokemon

In this section, you will fill out your Pokemon's profile in a step-by-step process. At the conclusion of this process you will be ready to go into battle with your new partners and jump into the world of ASB!

1. Hide Tags. The Hide tag is what you will use to identify your Pokemon at a glance, keeping the majority of the data hidden until it it needed. In the Hide tag: [ Hide=, anything after the equals sign will be the title of your hide tag. The name of your Pokemon will be what you put after the = sign.

2. Here you have your second indication of what Pokemon you will use, a sprite image of your Pokemon. Sprites can be obtained from sites including Google Images, Veekun or Bulbapedia, as well as custom sprites of your own design, and can be inputted into your post by copying the link adress of the image and pasting it into the Image function of any new post / edit post window.

3. Pokemon / Gender / Nickname. In ASB we encourage personalization of your Pokemon. The first entry here is the species of your Pokemon, identifying which Pokemon you are using. Following that is the gender of the Pokemon, if applicable, crucial for interactions with moves such as Attract. Finally you have the nickname of your Pokemon, the moniker you can use to refer to your partners in crime.

4. Types. A simple section, you simply indicate the typing of your Pokemon, with dual typings separated by a slash. Each typing also corresponds to certain effects a Pokemon gains for STAB (Same Type Attack Bonus), the effects of which can be found in the Data Audit Tables.

5. Ability. Here the abilities or your Pokemon are listed by name, also separated by a slash. The individual ability descriptions are not listed, and are instead referenced in the Data Audit Tables. Each Pokemon's Hidden Ability will be listed last and denoted by a (H).

6. Nature. The nature of your Pokemon and its effects are listed in this section. For example if your nature were Adamant you would write it as (+Attack, -Special Attack). If it were a Naive nature you would write (+Speed, -Special Defense, +x% Accuracy). The specific nature effects can be found in the Data Audit Tables.

7. Stats. The values that determine a Pokemon's inherent strength in ASB. Once again, each Pokemon's stats can be found in the Data Audit Tables.

8. Counters. Pokemon counters fall into three categories: Evolution Counters (EC), Move Counters (MC), and Ability Counters (AC). You will receive certain quantities of these counters each time you complete a battle and they determine your Pokemon's growth.

EC is denoted as 0/6 for a two stage Pokemon, 0/9 for a three stage Pokemon and is omitted for a single stage Pokemon. For two stage Pokemon, your Pokemon evolves when it reaches 6/6, typically completing 6 battles. For three stage Pokemon, your Pokemon will evolve into its middle stage at 4/9 completion, and into its final stage at 9/9 EC.

MC is what you use to purchase new moves for your Pokemon. Any move can be purchased from any generation (use Veekun as the best move resource) as well as any Event, Anime only or Manga only moves (found in the Data Audit Tables). The costs for each move can be found in the Prize Claiming Thread(link).

AC is used to unlock your Pokemon's Hidden Ability. Prior to reaching AC 5/5 each Pokemon is incapable of using its Hidden Ability.

9. Moves. Moves are what truly makes your Pokemon. They determine what you are able to do in battle and how you can battle against an opponent. Each new Pokemon starts with a given set of moves as outlined below:

9a. Level Up Moves (Pre-lv 26). Every single new Pokemon is entitled to every move it can learn between level 1-25 inclusive, across every generation.

9b. Egg moves. Each Pokemon will start with 5 Egg moves of your choosing from any generation. If the Pokemon has less than 5 confirmed Egg Moves, then you may select an extra Move Tutor move from any generation equal to (5 - # Egg Moves) (e.g. A Pokemon with four Egg moves gets one extra Move Tutor move)

9c. TM Moves. Each Pokemon will start with 5 TM or HM moves available in the current generation. This is important, as it means that moves such as Protect are able to be started with, whereas a move such as Bide, only available in RBY, is not able to be started with. If the Pokemon has less than 5 confirmed Egg and Move Tutor Moves, then you may select an extra current generation TM or HM move equal to (5 - # Egg Moves - # Tutor Moves) (e.g. A Pokemon with three Egg moves and one Tutor move gets one extra TM or HM move)

NOTE ON CERTAIN POKÉMON WITH REGARDS TO STARTING MC
I am doing a hotfix on Tynamo and the weakmons (Limited TMs/No Eggs).

New Policy on Pokemon that do not get TMs or Egg Moves:

The Pokemon receives 3 MC for each Egg Move and 2MC for each TM it cannot access upon startup, nor replace with a Tutor Move. They may fill out their movepool with tutor moves, and will then have an MC amount leftover to be used.

Specifically this effects:

Caterpie: Learns Two Unique Tutors: 9MC + 10MC = 19 MC
Weedle: Learns One Unique Tutor: 12MC + 10MC = 22 MC
Wurmple: Learns Two Unique Tutors: 9MC + 10MC = 19 MC
Kricketot: Learns Five Unique Tutors: 0MC + 10MC = 12 MC
Burmy: Learns Three Unique Tutors: 6MC + 10MC = 16 MC
Combee: Learns Eight Unique Tutors: 0MC + 6MC = 6 MC
Scatterbug: Learns Two Unique Egg Moves: 9MC + 10 MC = 19 MC
Magikarp: Learns Five Unique Tutor/Event Moves: 0MC + 10 MC = 10 MC
Tynamo: Learns One Unique Tutor: 12MC + 10MC = 22 MC.
Beldum: Learns Five Unique Tutor/Event Moves: 0MC + 10 MC = 10 MC

Now, in order to prevent a mass claim, how this hotfix works is that you start back from the base movepool, and add up your MC selections up until you hit the number indicated. If you've spent 8 MC on moves for Caterpie, you still get 11 MC to work with. If you've already built one of these Pokemon up beyond this... I commend you! The object here is to bring these Pokemon to parity once the trainer puts in the effort to battle with one and evolve it.

Ditto, Unown, Wynaut, and Pokemon that never get access to TMs or Egg Moves at any point of their stage are not covered by this hotfix.
Registering
At this point, head on over to the registration forum and register your team using the guidelines outlined there! Remember that you get a collection of training items (1x each of Lucky Egg, Exp. Share and Amulet Coin) when you start!

Battle Overview

OK, so you've picked out your Pokemon and been approved. One of the next questions is "how to battle with them?" In almost every type of ASB battle, battles will take place over several rounds where players will alternate sending in orders. Here is a brief explanation of how to do that.

Rounds

Each round of an ASB battle is just what happens from the players' orders. In singles and doubles battles, rounds will be comprised of 3 "actions," where an action is a move (like Flamethrower), command (like Dodge), or combination attack (like Flamethrower+Ember). Triple battles and formats above that will usually only have 2 actions per round, though depending on the arena this can change. After players issue their orders, the match referee will ref and summarize the contents of the round.

Orders

As explained above, rounds consist of a set of orders from each player in the match. A player's orders is just a listing of which move or command they want their Pokemon to use on each action of the round. Here is an example of an order:

Example said:
Bulbasaur: Leech Seed ~ Razor Leaf ~ Sleep Powder
In the above example, Bulbasaur will use Leech Seed on action 1, Razor Leaf on action 2, and Sleep Powder on action 3. Note that for this order to be legal, Bulbasaur has to have each of the 3 moves listed (if Bulbasaur didn't, the illegal moves would be replaced with Struggle). Also, if it was a doubles battle or above, a target would need to be specified for both Leech Seed and Sleep Powder (Razor Leaf hits all opponents so it wouldn't need to have its target specified). If you fail to specify a target for doubles+ battles, the target will be randomly selected out of all Pokemon the move could hit. Often this will include your partner, so it's important not to forget!

On some rounds, you will order before your opponent, and on others you'll order after them. Usually the way this works is that it will alternate every round (so if there are two players A and B, on one round A will order first, and on the next B will order first. Then on the third round, A will order first, and on the fourth, B, and so on). When this is not the case, it will be noted in the the arena description or the referee will let you know.

Substitution commands

As ASB Pokemon have access to more than just 4 moves, ordering first can be tricky. If the opposing Pokemon has a lot of moves, it can seem impossible to come up with orders that will be useful. Luckily, substitution commands can be used to give your Pokemon alternate orders if the opponent uses a certain move. Here's a detailed explanation of how substitution commands work:

Before a match begins, battlers must agree on the maximum number of substitutions battlers allowed per set of actions. It is the referee's job to determine the legality of substitutions and to ignore them when they don't adhere to ASB's specific rules regarding substitution legality.

A substitution is most basically comprised of an IF (conditional) THEN (action) – if the conditional is true when the Pokemon moves, then whatever action follows will activate. Usage of the boolean operator AND is permitted and will not contribute to the substitution count, while usage of the boolean operator OR is permitted and will add one to the substitution count unless in a Frequency Clause. The conditional section of each substitution is made of Attack Clauses, Chance Clauses, KO Clauses, and Frequency Clauses, while the action section should have some argument related to the Pokemon's action set.

Most battles have two substitutions per action set, though sometimes you may see more or less.

CONDITIONAL SECTION

Frequency Clause

A Frequency Clause has two functions: (1) to restrict the substitution or a clause of the substitution from activating more than a set number of times, and (2) to restrict the substitution or a clause of the substitution from activating outside of certain action numbers. The first function is achieved by adding the restriction in front of the entire substitution, or adding it in the action clause. The second function is achieved by placing the Frequency Clause immediately after an Attack, Chance, or KO Clause. It is impossible for boolean operators to be used in the first case, but, in the second case, using NOT is not permitted while using OR is allowed with no penalties, as the result it gives is identical to NOT but much easier to comprehend. Here are some examples in how to use a Frequency Clause:
  • [TWICE] IF (conditional) THEN (action)
  • IF (conditional) THEN (action, but only once)
  • IF (conditional on A3) THEN (action)
  • [ONCE] IF (conditional on A1 or A2) THEN (action)
Attack Clause

An Attack Clause is a clause that activates on one specific attack or command the opponent may issue. This conditional can only be triggered by the opponent's actions, but can trigger multiple times in the same round. Instead of substituting for specific attacks or commands, a battler may also use one of the following substitution classes to make substitutions easier:
  • Protective Moves: Protect, Detect
  • Evasive Moves: Agility [Evasive], Teleport [Evasive]
  • Protective / Evasive Move: Protect, Detect, Agility [Evasive], Teleport [Evasive]
  • Damaging Evasive Moves: Dig, Fly, Dive, Bounce, Shadow Force
  • Damaging Priority Moves: Aqua Jet, Bullet Punch, Extremespeed, Fake Out, Feint, Ice Shard, Mach Punch, Quick Attack, Shadow Sneak, Sucker Punch, Vacuum Wave
  • Multi-Hit Moves: Arm Thrust, Barrage, Bone Rush, Bullet Seed, Comet Punch, DoubleSlap, Fury Attack, Fury Swipes, Icicle Spear, Pin Missile, Rock Blast, Spike Cannon, Tail Slap, Bonemerang, Double Hit, Double Kick, Dual Chop, Gear Grind, Twineedle, Triple Kick
  • Damaging [Type] Moves: Covers all of Flamethrower, Lava Plume, Fire Blast, Ember, etc. under the umbrella of "Damaging Fire-type Move." Covers all of Psychic, Psyshock, Confusion, Dream Eater, etc. under the umbrella of "Damaging Psychic-type Move." NOTE: This Substitution applies to all attacks of a certain type that have a BAP, so moves like Rapid Spin and Knock off will trigger "Damaging Normal-type Move" and "Damaging Dark-type Move," respectively.
  • Damaging [Type] Combinations: All combinations that are of [Type] will activate the substitution. NOTE: A damaging [Type] combination activates a substitution for damaging [Type] moves.
  • Paralysis-Inflicting Moves: Thunder Wave, Glare, Stun Spore
  • Poison-Inflicting Moves: Poison Gas, Poisonpowder, Toxic
  • Sleep-Inflicting Moves: Spore, Hypnosis, Sleep Powder, Sing, Grasswhistle, Lovely Kiss, Dark Void, Yawn
  • Confusion-Inflicting Moves: Confuse Ray, Supersonic, Sweet Kiss, Teeter Dance, Swagger
  • Switch-Preventing Moves: Block, Mean Look, Spider Web
  • Trapping Moves: Fire Spin, Sand Tomb, Whirlpool, Magma Storm, Bind, Wrap, Clamp
  • Switch-Forcing Moves: Whirlwind, Roar, Circle Throw, Dragon Tail
  • Self-Switching Moves: U-Turn, Volt Switch, Teleport (Switch)
  • Healing Moves: Roost, Slack Off, Recover, Moonlight, Synthesis, Morning Sun, Softboiled, Heal Order, Milk Drink, Swallow
  • Status-Healing Moves: Aromatherapy, Heal Bell, Refresh
  • Lock-On Moves: Lock-On, Mind Reader
  • Attack-Reducing Moves: Growl, Charm, Featherdance, Memento
  • Defense-Reducing Moves: Leer, Tail Whip, Screech
  • Special Attack-Reducing Moves: Captivate, Memento
  • Special Defense-Reducing Moves: Fake Tears, Metal Sound
  • Speed-Reducing Moves: String Shot, Cotton Spore, Scary Face, Bulldoze, Icy Wind, Mud Shot, Rock Tomb, Electroweb, Glaciate, Low Sweep
  • Accuracy-Reducing Moves: Flash, Kinesis, Sand-Attack, Smokescreen
Only the battler issuing actions first may use an Attack Clause in substitutions. Usage of the boolean operator NOT directly preceding an Attack Clause is not allowed.

In the event that an arena effect would negate an effect of a move that caused it to be placed in a substitution class, the move will no longer fall under the umbrella of that substitution class for the duration of the match. Similarly, if an arena effect would add a property of a substitution class to a move that does not already possess that quality, then that move would be covered under that substitution class for the duration of the match.

Chance Clause

A Chance Clause is a boolean clause that activates depending on the success of a certain action(s) that occur during the round. If replacing the current action's attack with a new attack, the new attack's priority must not exceed the current one's, or else the substitution will be ignored. The following are examples of what may be used as a Chance Clause:
  • HP Value: "IF you have less than 27 HP," "IF you have at least 83 HP," and "IF you have exactly 51 HP" are all legal.
  • EN Value: "IF you have less than 27 EN," "IF you have at least 83 EN," and "IF you have exactly 51 EN" are all legal.
  • Missing an Attack: "IF Hydro Pump misses A2" and "IF Rock Slide misses Volcarona on A1 OR A2" are all legal.
  • Critical Hits: "IF Night Slash crits you on any action" is legal.
  • Secondary Effects: "IF Air Slash flinches" and "IF Fire Blast burns A1" are all legal.
  • Status: "IF you are asleep A2" and "IF you are burned" are all legal. "IF you are statused" is illegal.
  • Stat Boosts / Drops: "IF you are at -1 Spe or lower" is legal. "IF you win the speed tie" is illegal.
  • Substitutions: "IF none of your substitutions activate" and "IF the above substitution does not activate" are legal.
  • Other Effects: "IF you are Taunted A3" is legal. NOTE: "IF Bidoof uses Taunt A3" is an Attack Clause, but "IF you are Taunted A3" is a Chance Clause.
Both battlers may use a Chance Clause in their substitutions. Usage of the boolean operator NOT is allowed and will not give any penalties.

KO Clause

A KO Clause is another boolean clause that activates if an ally or opponent is KOed. These always follow the form "IF Cradily is KOed" or "IF Heracross is KOed on A2." If a substitution's conditional is comprised solely of KO and Frequency clauses, it will not count towards the substitution count. KO clauses are unlimited and so may be used as much as the battler would like.

ACTION SECTION

The action section is much less variegated than the conditional section, mainly because everything in this section must be related to your Pokemon's action set in some way. The following operations and modifiers may be used in the action section and can be combined in several creative ways.
  • Replace: An operation that replaces your entire action set with a new one, e.g. "Replace your action set with Hypnosis – Dream Eater – Nightmare"
  • Replace / Instead on A[#]: An operation that replaces A[#] with the input, e.g. "Use Fire Blast on A2 instead" and "Replace Struggle Bug with Bug Buzz"
  • All Instances: A modifier used with replace, e.g. "Replace all instances of XXX with YYY"
  • Specific Instance: Specifically "First Instance," "Second Instance," "Last Instance," and whatever else instance you want. Similar to All Instances, but obviously only referring to one specific instance.
  • Push actions (back): An operation that permutes the set {A1, A2, A3} to {—, A1, A2} and the set {A1, A2} to {—, A1}
  • Push actions forward: An operation that permutes the set {A1, A2, A3} to {A2, A3, —} and the set {A1, A2} to {A2, —}
  • Keep (MOVE as) A[#]: A modifier used with pushing actions that removes A[#] which should be MOVE from the set, applying the operation, then inserting A[#] back into its original location, e.g. "Push actions but keep A3" activated on A1 will permute the set {A1, A2, A3} to {—, A1, A3}.
  • Switch AX and AY: An operation that switches two elements of the set {A1, A2, A3}, e.g. "Switch Leaf Storm and Power Whip" or "Switch A1 and A2"
ILLEGAL SUBSTITUTIONS

Substitutions that are illegal by syntax will be ignored. Substitutions that are made illegal because the Action Section would change your action to a move that cannot be performed will still activate and cause your Pokemon to Struggle. Substitutions that exceed the maximum number of substitutions will be ignored; only the first however many listed will be taken into account.


Here's an example to help illustrate:

Example said:
Bulbasaur: Leech Seed ~ Razor Leaf ~ Sleep Powder
IF (a protective/evasive move is used) THEN (use Growth and push actions back)
[ONCE] IF (Taunt is used) THEN (use Protect and push actions back)​
The first substitution command tells Bulbasaur to use Growth if the opponent uses a protective/evasive move. This is helpful as it stops the opponent from using something like Teleport (Evasive) or Protect to avoid Leech Seed or Sleep Powder. The second substitution tells Bulbasaur to use Protect is the opponent uses Taunt, but only to do so once. Protect will block Taunt, which would otherwise stop Leech Seed and/or Sleep Powder from being executed. However, Protect can't be used two actions in a row. The substitution tells Bulbasaur to only do this once to prevent Bulbasaur from using a pointless Protect should the opponent use Taunt twice in a row.

As it states in the bottom of the hide tag, having illegal subs is different from having illegal orders. When your orders are illegal, the illegal moves will be replaced with Struggle. However, if just a substitution is illegal, that sub will just be ignored.

Substitution commands are one of the defining aspects of Smogon's ASB. A player's skill is almost directly tied to how well they can use substitutions, so learning how to make good subs is very important!

Go fight!

As with competitive Pokemon battling on Pokemon Showdown, the best way to learn about battling is to participate in one! And you're in luck: the Anime Style Battling community is one of the friendliest communities you could meet. Once you've registered your Pokemon in the Registration Tower, you’re going to want to head over to the Battle Tower, which is located in the Network Center subforum. Make sure to read the original post of that thread thoroughly to get an understanding for how to request a battle. The general idea is this: your goal in Battle Tower is to find an opponent and a referee. You can make it an open offer available to any ASB battler, or a specific challenger towards a particular player. You're going to want to note the following things in your battle request post:


Beginner Battle – This indicates that you are new to ASB, meaning that only new Pokemon are allowed into the battle.

Number of Pokemon Per Side – The traditional amount is 3 versus 3, but any amount can be indicated here.

Match Type – Singles is typically played here at ASB, but don't feel shy to branch out to double, triple, or even rotation battles!

Disqualification Time – Time is of the essence, so it's important that everyone who is participating in your match understands your expectations for when to post actions and referee the round. You can usually expect a 2 or 3 day DQ time.

Number of Substitutions – If you don't understand what this is, read up in this article; it explains it quite thoroughly. Most matches allow two substitutions.

Number of Recovers and Chills – You'll want to check out the original post of the Battle Tower on which moves count specifically as a recovery move. Chill is an action that, when performed, gives your Pokemon 12 extra energy. Set these values when posting your challenge; usually 2 recovers and 5 chills per match is a good place to start.

Arena Selection – Most matches in ASB are played out in the ASB Arena, which is an open battle field where anything is possible and the resources to use moves occur naturally. I'd highly recommend starting your first matches in the ASB Arena. If you're feeling confident after some time, you can use others arenas, or create one of your own!

Switch Rules – Again, you should check out the Battle Tower for the most accurate information, but there are two basic switching rules: Switch = OK and Switch = KO. The former allows trainers to switch Pokemon whenever they would order first, while the latter requires a Pokemon to stay in when sent out, or else it will faint.

Ability Number – ASB is unique in that it allows a Pokemon to use all of its abilities simultaneous (which leads to some powerful combinations). Most matches allow all abilities, but you can limit it to only one or none if you’re so inclined.

Items – The three options here are On, Off, and Training Items only. You’re going to want to select Items Off until you own Training Items, which will raise the amount of counters your Pokemon earns each battle. Items On is typically for more experienced battlers.​


Now, here's a piece of advice from me to you: try to catch another new player to battle against for your first matches. Seasoned battlers have many of the intricate details of ASB mechanics memorized (nerds), and most of them will use that to your advantage. There are advanced techniques that a battler can utilize here in ASB, and many veterans utilize them. Finding someone at your level not only gives you a better chance of winning, but will allow you to learn more.


That being said, there aren’t always new users available to battle. If you've listed that you're looking for a Beginner Battle, then the old timers should avoid you well enough. Below, I'm going to recommend three regulars that would be great users for you to fight your first matches against:


akela – This dude has tons of Pokemon, ranging from brand new purchases to Pokemon with over 100 moves available. He can easily select a handful of them to meet you at your current journey within ASB. He's also an avid referee, meaning that he knows how to explain the inner mechanics of ASB to you while battling.

Elevator Music – As one of the oldest members of ASB, Elevator Music has been around the block. He can explain the history of this forum game to you while battling, and is more than willing to give advice when needed. Finally, he's one of the best referees for introducing new users to Battle Hall, so feel free to ask him what that is!

Frosty – He is one of the forward-most thinking members of the ASB community, and is active in our Policy Center. He’s great at keeping deadlines, and will prioritize his match against you as a new battler. This user has a bountiful amount of knowledge on ASB, and won’t hesitate to share it with you.​

Of course, there are many friendly users in the ASB community, and you're bound to make friends with them as you begin your journey. The above three users are merely suggestions. What matters is that you find opponents who will use it as a learning opportunity for you to hone your battle skills.


That's about it! Again, I cannot emphasize enough that you should get out there and battle. It's the best way to learn how to play the game. Sitting on the sidelines won’t teach you anything, so find a match and get chuggin'.

The Final Frontier: The Community

So. You've gotten yourself registered for ASB, you've had a couple games and maybe even managed a win or two. In short, you're feeling pretty good about yourself! But what's next for the aspiring ASBer? One of the greatest aspects of this game is the community that has grown with the game. Omnipresent on IRC (mibbit link to #capasb), there is a constant presence of ASBers old and new waiting to welcome the newest users into the game. ASB is a terrific source of knowledge to learn about aspects of the game as well as being a generally fun place to hang out! The culture in the community is very laid back, show that you're willing to learn and we're more than willing to help you out!

If you're made it this far you've reached the end, and you're ready to get out into the wide world of ASB! Any questions you have can be answered either in the Players Handbook, the Data Tables or IRC, and don't be afraid to ask questions. With that said, get out there and have fun!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
just a note, I've posted my sections.

There is some inconsistency with illegal subs atm (what we have currently put vs what I put in my section (this is what people told me was correct despite the current wording in the sub rules section)). dunno where that should be sorted out but yea
 

Birkal

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Introduction

Welcome to the world of Anime Style Battling! In this forum game, users raise and train Pokemon to fight battles, to trade, and to go on quests. It’s arguably the most competitive ASB community on the Internet; we feature an incredibly detailed index for every move, ability, type, and nature available in the game. Damage is dealt with hard numbers and energy costs, making each move of every battle a challenging risk. That's not to say that there isn't room for flavor though. We focus on giving each Pokemon unique attributes, and creating a story with each battle. Smogon also offers a compelling Combination system, which allows battlers to use two moves concurrently, which creates an entirely new level to the battling system. Whether you're adventuring with your Pokemon to find a legendary hidden within a volcano, or battling in a heated match against one of our Gym Leaders, you're in for a great time.

Also unique to Anime Style Battling here on Smogon is our use of the Create-A-Pokemon Project's creations directly in our battles. That project aims to create a Pokemon that is used within the competitive Overused metagame. They are implemented on our simulator, Pokemon Showdown, and used in real matches! The community there is entirely open; literally anyone can walk in and submit a movepool, stat spread, ability, or typing for our new Pokemon. Each step is carefully discussed and voted upon as a community. The project's six year length has yielded 17 Pokemon (not including pre-evolutions) at the time of this article’s writing, and all of them are available for use within Anime Style Battling. You can read about the Create-A-Pokemon Project here to get more information.



Go fight!

As with competitive Pokemon battling on Pokemon Showdown, the best way to learn about battling is to participate in one! And you're in luck: the Anime Style Battling community is one of the friendliest communities you could meet. Once you've registered your Pokemon in the Registration Tower, you’re going to want to head over to the Battle Tower, which is located in the Network Center subforum. Make sure to read the original post of that thread thoroughly to get an understanding for how to request a battle. The general idea is this: your goal in Battle Tower is to find an opponent and a referee. You can make it an open offer available to any ASB battler, or a specific challenger towards a particular player. You're going to want to note the following things in your battle request post:


Beginner Battle – This indicates that you are new to ASB, meaning that only new Pokemon are allowed into the battle.

Number of Pokemon Per Side – The traditional amount is 3 versus 3, but any amount can be indicated here.

Match Type – Singles is typically played here at ASB, but don't feel shy to branch out to double, triple, or even rotation battles!

Disqualification Time – Time is of the essence, so it's important that everyone who is participating in your match understands your expectations for when to post actions and referee the round. You can usually expect a 2 or 3 day DQ time.

Number of Substitutions – If you don't understand what this is, read up in this article; it explains it quite thoroughly. Most matches allow two substitutions.

Number of Recovers and Chills – You'll want to check out the original post of the Battle Tower on which moves count specifically as a recovery move. Chill is an action that, when performed, gives your Pokemon 12 extra energy. Set these values when posting your challenge; usually 2 recovers and 5 chills per match is a good place to start.

Arena Selection – Most matches in ASB are played out in the ASB Arena, which is an open battle field where anything is possible and the resources to use moves occur naturally. I'd highly recommend starting your first matches in the ASB Arena. If you're feeling confident after some time, you can use others arenas, or create one of your own!

Switch Rules – Again, you should check out the Battle Tower for the most accurate information, but there are two basic switching rules: Switch = OK and Switch = KO. The former allows trainers to switch Pokemon whenever they would order first, while the latter requires a Pokemon to stay in when sent out, or else it will faint.

Ability Number – ASB is unique in that it allows a Pokemon to use all of its abilities simultaneous (which leads to some powerful combinations). Most matches allow all abilities, but you can limit it to only one or none if you’re so inclined.

Items – The three options here are On, Off, and Training Items only. You’re going to want to select Items Off until you own Training Items, which will raise the amount of counters your Pokemon earns each battle. Items On is typically for more experienced battlers.​


Now, here's a piece of advice from me to you: try to catch another new player to battle against for your first matches. Seasoned battlers have many of the intricate details of ASB mechanics memorized (nerds), and most of them will use that to your advantage. There are advanced techniques that a battler can utilize here in ASB, and many veterans utilize them. Finding someone at your level not only gives you a better chance of winning, but will allow you to learn more.


That being said, there aren’t always new users available to battle. If you've listed that you're looking for a Beginner Battle, then the old timers should avoid you well enough. Below, I'm going to recommend three regulars that would be great users for you to fight your first matches against:


akela This dude has tons of Pokemon, ranging from brand new purchases to Pokemon with over 100 moves available. He can easily select a handful of them to meet you at your current journey within ASB. He's also an avid referee, meaning that he knows how to explain the inner mechanics of ASB to you while battling.

Elevator Music – As one of the oldest members of ASB, Elevator Music has been around the block. He can explain the history of this forum game to you while battling, and is more than willing to give advice when needed. Finally, he's one of the best referees for introducing new users to Battle Hall, so feel free to ask him what that is!

Frosty – He is one of the forward-most thinking members of the ASB community, and is active in our Policy Center. He’s great at keeping deadlines, and will prioritize his match against you as a new battler. This user has a bountiful amount of knowledge on ASB, and won’t hesitate to share it with you.​

Of course, there are many friendly users in the ASB community, and you're bound to make friends with them as you begin your journey. The above three users are merely suggestions. What matters is that you find opponents who will use it as a learning opportunity for you to hone your battle skills.


That's about it! Again, I cannot emphasize enough that you should get out there and battle. It's the best way to learn how to play the game. Sitting on the sidelines won’t teach you anything, so find a match and get chuggin'.
 
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