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Tarrembeau and Syrinix
Welcome to a special edition of the Random Battles Community Interview! The goal of this is to gain insight into the responsibilities that come with managing a champion RBTT team.
Without further ado, let’s get right into the interview!
Tarrembeau
This season was a long battle and hell of a blast. How do you two feel after finals are over?
pokeblade101
I feel so relieved. It was such a long season and the semis vs Zarude was looking very grim being down 4-6. To not only tie that up but then clutch the tiebreaker was not something I was expecting to happen but really hoped it would. In finals, we just carried that momentum onwards and held nothing back.
Roginald
Yeah, if I was to sum it up in two words, I'd say relieved and proud. We had a rough time getting going in the very early weeks but managed to pick it up and come out on top in some really tight situations, couldn't be prouder!
Syrinix
How do you prepare for the RBTT draft?
pokeblade101
I mostly gave this job to Rogi because he is good at it and I'm not that great at it. The most I would do is point out people that were of interest or give advice.
Roginald
I have always tended to do the majority of my teams’ RBTT draft planning. In order to prepare, my personal strategy is to have a list of 8-10 players for each format, listed by how likely each player is to be flexed to other formats, and then prioritize the formats in how much you value them. Finally I have a list of people I consider are flexible and strong in formats I know I'm likely to be missing or needing backup in for subs, and then just see how it goes.
Tarrembeau
What factors do you take into account when it comes to choosing your pick in the first round?
Roginald
I honestly believe that the first 2 rounds are the hardest to plan for and are the rounds that most teams make the biggest mistakes in. The first thing you consider is whether you have a player manager and what format they play since they are guaranteed. With that information you can make informed decisions on the highest priorities. My general rule is to either pick the current gen’s strongest players or the strongest players in niche formats; either way, those are players I know I can trust in to bring the team wins.
pokeblade101
lol go with Rogi’s answer.
Syrinix
Both of you were successful players in past RBTTs; why choose to draft pokeblade over Roginald as the playing manager?
pokeblade101
I mostly just wanted to play because Gen 9 Rands was in it and Rogi was very ok with me playing instead of him. It turned out to be not too much of a loss because we got ahold of 2 other great Gen 3 players which were xGang and Glop.
Roginald
Almost feels like a silly question with the goat pokeblade! But in all seriousness pokeblade wasn't actually planning on managing until I offered to manage with him and offer up my drafting skills while I allowed him to play freely. I was happy to take a step back this year for a more relaxed approach as long as I knew I had a suitable replacement.
Tarrembeau
Were you satisfied with your final lineup by the end of the draft? If you could go back in time, would you have made any changes?
pokeblade101
I was very satisfied with what we got. The only thing that did not go our way was not getting POAT onto the team again, as he got swept up in the same round we were going to draft him. I would say that's a pretty successful draft in general. And hey, it was evidently a great draft for us.
Roginald
It feels wrong to think about changing anyone! Everyone was integral even if they were only motivating and practicing at certain times. The only change I would make is, as blade said, to manage to fit in the veteran Yveltal Princeofalltacos, since our first 6 rounds went exactly as planned until we missed out on POAT by a couple of picks in the 7th.
Syrinix
What was your team spirit like during the season, and how important do you think it is?
Roginald
Team spirit and the environment was something I thought hard about this year. In previous years I've leaned a bit harder on people outside of the randbats community, and it comes with its ups and downs. This year our environment was exceptional and I know the team was feeling motivated and enjoying the whole season. Aside from skill, there is only motivation and team spirit creates motivation. So I'd weigh it to 2/3 skill and 1/3 team spirit.
pokeblade101
The team spirit in the early weeks wasn't that high to be honest, especially when our first few weeks went kind of rough for us. We were always confident though, because we knew our team had multiple great players to push ahead, and it only took one good week to get the show on the road. Additionally, we really got into the team spirit when I added a LETSGOOO reaction in our Discord server and we started spamming it. That's personally one of my favorite moments of the tour. With that said, I think team spirit is actually quite important for a team because players will not fight with each other or they will not feel as bad when they lose. The teams that end up winning RBTTs almost always seem to be cheerful ones.
Tarrembeau
Your team had to go through a tiebreaker to make it into the finals. What decisions and factors did you consider to ensure your team could make it through?
pokeblade101
We considered the weak points of team Zarude and realized that BSSF looked pretty comfortable for us no matter who they placed there. Glop and I were on standby for what they chose so we could have a solid lineup no matter what.
Roginald
We had some discussion about what to pick but I knew I wanted to find a way for pokeblade, Glop and luisin to all play. We were worried that Zarude might have picked BSS alongside us so we would need to fill the gap, but I pushed hard for my boy luisin, as I was willing to take the risk in order to ensure he played—and he delivered! Luckily for us it all went to plan, but on another day it could have been very different.
Syrinix
How did it feel to finally secure an RBTT win as managers after prior attempts?
Roginald
It's a special feeling. After finishing first twice in the past couple years and not making it the whole way, then missing playoffs last year, I told pokeblade before the draft that I'd bring him his first RBTT trophy. Between his and the team's playing, they managed to bring it home for me!
pokeblade101
RBTT2 hurt so much to me. Our team was so fun and we had that team spirit but we just could not secure the win. It was the first RBTT to give custom avatars as a prize, which meant that we missed out on something big. Funnily enough, Rogi and I both got to finals and lost in previous RBTTs, so to band together and win the biggest tournament in the PS subforum yet was a great conclusion for our endeavors.
Tarrembeau
Will you be returning as managers in RBTT VII?
pokeblade101
I usually am not sure if I will manage until the RBTT season starts. I always say to myself, “wouldn't being a player feel relaxing compared to being a manager?”. But then I realized it would be predictable and boring to get drafted in the first round, like what happened in the two RBTTs I was not a manager in. This might not be true now but it is usually what gets me back into being a manager. Plus, letting Yveltal die does not feel right.
Roginald
I'm sure everyone is hoping for a resounding YES! But truthfully we will have to see, as I might get the itch to play a bit more, but it'll definitely be a strong consideration after this year.
Thanks to pokeblade101 and Roginald for agreeing to take part in this interview! Congratulations again to Team Yveltal for winning in RBTT VI as well! We look forward to seeing you all in action again for RBTT VII. As always, if you have any questions for the Team Yveltal managers, feel free to ask them in this thread!
