Welcome to the Random Battles Community Interview! The goal of this project is to interview well-known members of the Randbats community every month and learn more about them. These members may include players who’ve been successful in tournaments, high-ladderers, format/forum contributors, and more!
Without further ado, let’s move on to the interview itself:
Tarrembeau
well first of all thank you for giving us a bit of your time, I know it's not always that easy with college and all
Let's break the ice with an unrelated, easy question: what's your favorite food?
MichaelderBeste2
Thank you for the invite. That's actually a tough question already. I like pizza and pancakes the most, not together obviously
Tarrembeau
pancakes on pizza would definitely be the quickest way to get hatred from an entire country lmao
Are you into video games, outside of Pokemon?
MichaelderBeste2
I only play Pokémon right now. In the past, I also played Mario Games, FIFA and Formula 1 Games but as of now, I only play Pokémon Games including Unite
Tarrembeau
Is Unite your favorite Pokémon game now?
MichaelderBeste2
If you asked me half a year ago, I would have definitely said yes. I'm not that active anymore today tho. I'm currently looking out for some ROM hacks cause I really like pokémon challenges like nuzlockes or "Can I beat the pokémon game XXX with only ...?"
Tarrembeau
That's definitely some hardcore gaming mentality! I personally don't have the patience to plan out for the most difficult challenges like the ones where you can't visit Pokémon centers. Will you play the upcoming Pokémon games normally, if you intend to get them in the first place?
MichaelderBeste2
I will get them for sure. I really like the look of the games. I know that the graphics aren't the best but the features and the new pokémon sound promising. I will definitely play them in a challenging way. Probably a casual nuzlocke with no healing during battles. I'm really looking forward to the games cause my plan is also to get into VGC this generation
Tarrembeau
OU, DOU, Smogon tiers in general, and now VGC... we've seen you trying and playing many formats with a lot of success, how do you keep finding time to top Random Battle ladder so consistently aha?
MichaelderBeste2
To be fair, I do not watch series or anime. All of my free time goes into watching soccer, playing and watching pokémon, hosting tournaments and running around my house lmao. My dream is to be at the Worlds cause I couldn't be there as a player nor as a spectator. Everyone should try to achieve their dream.
Tarrembeau
I wish you well fulfilling this dream and I trust you to give yourself the means to do it. It must definitely be an accomplishment and that's the kind of feeling I understand one spends time and energy for
Despite playing many formats at the competitive level, you never stopped playing Random Battles though. Why do you enjoy it?
MichaelderBeste2
There are a lot of reasons. One of them is nostalgia. I also started playing Competitive Pokémon by playing Random Battles. I learned movesets, stats, interactions and a lot more. Random Battles are beginner friendly and accessible for everyone. After a hard day, you can just sit down and play a casual Random Battle. I also wanted something I am very good at, so I decided to put my focus on Random Battles. While some people say Random Battles are pure random and no skill, I wanna show them that this is not necessarily true. The best thing obviously is that you don't have to build your own teams. The community is very wholesome as well, you can just talk about a lot of stuff. That's why the Random Battles room also has meaning to me
Tarrembeau
Random Battles room is also what got me staying on Showdown for so long and enjoying my time there. You mentioned the old "random battles are all luck vs random battle is a skilled format" debate; if one thing can be noted about you, whether it's during Random battles events or on the ladder, is your consistency. How do you achieve such steady results?
MichaelderBeste2
I don't deny that luck is not a factor in Random Battles. But to get better, you have to do something different than the others. I try to predict more than I have to sometimes. If I have a Volcarona against a Scizor in the lead, I would not click Fire Blast. I would probably switch into my grass type to predict water or rock types that might switch into the obvious Fire Blast. Most of the time it works, sometimes I look pretty bad in these situations. I also try to get the most information about every single play. If we take the example from the beginning with Volcarona vs Scizor. If my opponent switches into Torn-T, I know he doesn't have blissey or chansey and it's also unlikely that he got a physical dragon type. Stuff like this helps piloting better through the game and it works, so yea that's probably the main reason
Tarrembeau
Knowledge war is definitely a major component, especially with the lack of team preview. Do you find yourself trying to play around the information your opponent can get from your moves, like bluffing or hiding some Pokémon?
MichaelderBeste2
It really depends on the situation. Normally I make the best play, even if I have to show my last pokémon for example. If I'm behind and need one specific pokémon to be out, so I can go to my secret weapon, then I prefer this. But I cannot give a clear answer for that
Tarrembeau
Given the sheer nature of Random Battles, any pokémon can end up being the win condition and it's not always easy to assert which one of your six is going to be the secret weapon, so that makes a lot of sense. This variety in battles is also what makes Random Battles enjoyable to me. Are there Pokémon you like to roll more than others, or do you have any favorite set across the Random battles formats?
MichaelderBeste2
I love hazards, I'm so happy if I can get Toxic Spikes or Stealth Rock on my Pokémon. I also really like Recovery Moves and the Ability Regenerator. They help to scout the opposing team and this leads to making a perfect game plan. Otherwise I really like pure breaking power, Conkeldurr for example. My favourite set is probably Stealth Rock, Toxic, U-Turn Jirachi cause it has a good typing, makes so much progress and momentum is always nice to have.
Tarrembeau
Oh I sure love Conkeldurr as well, amazing power that doesn't come with the limitation of a banded set is always fun - and effective. Hazards have been tamed a bit due to Heavy-Duty-Boots and greater removal moves distribution in the current generation format. Do you enjoy the older gens more?
MichaelderBeste2
Not really. I feel like the random factor in older gens is much higher than this generation. In Generation 1 you can roll every single pokémon, in Gen 2 you lose if you have less Rest + Sleep Talk users than your opponent and so on. Gen 8 is the most balanced Generation to play random battles in, I hope Gen 9 can be like that as well
Tarrembeau
I hope so as well and to be honest, a few days before the arrival of Scarlet and Violet I'm starting to feel a real hype and curiosity regarding the next generation of Random Battles. It will feel a bit like the end of an era though. During these past years you were among the few players who dominated the competitive aspect of Random Battles and you even have more tour wins than anyone else. Is there a tour you're eager to win now, or one you're looking forward to partake in?
MichaelderBeste2
There are a lot of tours in my list I didn't win yet but I will try my best to win them. Starting with Rands Slam next week. Playoffs started and in 5 weeks I hope I can be the champion. A bit unfortunate that it takes place during Scarlet and Violet release but sometimes it do be like that. I also wanna win the next Random Battle Team Tournament. The last two RBTTs were a lot of fun but this time I will combine the fun with success.
Tarrembeau
I wish you the best unless we're on opposing teams in RBTT! Slam Playoffs will be a stiff fight. I'm a bit bitter to have missed qualification by a few spots, but I guess that's the sign I need to improve. What kind of advice would you give to me and, in general, to all the players seeking to get better at Pokemon and Random Battles?
MichaelderBeste2
First of all, don't give up. I saw many people giving up at the beginning cause they lost over and over again. If you wanna be good at the game, try to improve. If it is hard for you to get into the game, ask someone if they can help you for the first steps. Sometimes it may be hard if you don't find success but I also had to go through the phase. As I already said, try to not be too expectable. With some tricks here and there you can surprise your opponent. You also get into a good position then. If you are playing a tournament, take your time. There is no need to click every move in less than 10 seconds. Try to go through scenarios that can happen later in the game. That leads me to another point, the Pokémon Damage Calculator. It's a very helpful tool since it gives you information about the possible items, abilities and moves a Pokémon might have. Other than that, have fun exploring the open field of Random Battles
ty for the interview
Tarrembeau
Thank you for your time and your wonderful answers!
Thanks MichaelderBeste2 for the wonderful interview! Feel free to ask any further questions to them in this thread, and make sure to keep an eye out for future interviews!
don't let your dreams be dreams