Verified!
That's what the 'Fun challenges' will be for, eventually
I think it might be time to release them, I'm pretty happy with the effect this thread has had on ladder overall and I think the world would be ready for it
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OU RBY OU Ladder Achievements (Season 2 now starting!!!)
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I think it might be time to release them, I'm pretty happy with the effect this thread has had on ladder overall and I think the world would be ready for it
Honestly this seems pretty cool but I got two questions.
Maybe there could be a short explanation for what this rating is for the uninformed.
However nobody has messed up with posting a high Gliko so maybe I'm overthinking.
One more thing if someone had an account with 20 wins and 1 loss would they still be qualified for the nugget bridge boulder badge?
It's guaranteed they got a 10 win streak but you said you'll only take posts with 0 losses so I'm just curios.
There should be more emphasis on this I barely noticed it and it could lead to a lot of unverifiable posts.
Maybe there could be a short explanation for what this rating is for the uninformed.
However nobody has messed up with posting a high Gliko so maybe I'm overthinking.
One more thing if someone had an account with 20 wins and 1 loss would they still be qualified for the nugget bridge boulder badge?
It's guaranteed they got a 10 win streak but you said you'll only take posts with 0 losses so I'm just curios.
"to make sure your GXE is representative enough of your skill", is a short explanation of what this rating is
it could be a longer explanation I suppose, but at that point I'd rather just link a thread explaining GXE and whatnot
someone clever enough to figure this out is also clever enough to reset their W/L after every loss. you're right but I'm saying no out of principle because come on that's silly
claiming boulder badge for Elo and GXE
Attachments
claiming cascade badge for gxe
edit: 17/08 claiming thunder badge for gxe
edit: 17/08 claiming thunder badge for gxe
Last edited:
claiming earth badge for pokemon mansion
verified + cerulean cave marsh has been given as well
I unfortunately cannot verify this as you played a few more games and are currently below 1400. Please wait for me to verify your achievements before playing more games as it is needed to ensure there is no trickery / image editing going on.
claiming cascade badge for elo
claiming cascade badge for winstreak
Claiming the boulder badge for nugget bridge
and waiting patiently for those fun challenges
and waiting patiently for those fun challenges
Last edited:
claiming thunder for cerulean and pokemon mansion
claiming thunder badge for elo (last game was against doydos who very nearly got me with parafusion i am actively praying for his downfall)
Attachments
Hi all,
I have written the following article related to Ladder. Posted with permission from Amaranth and Emma.
PUMP UP YOUR LADDER RATING
The Pokemon Showdown Ladder (“Ladder’) can be a frustrating – but it does not have to be.
The Ladder is usually the first place a would-be competitive player will start honing their craft. However, few ladder players, even those who play regularly, make it to the top of the Ladder or break out with success in Smogon tournaments. This article will explain why this occurs and recommend some actions you can take to avoid being stuck in Ladder purgatory.
Focus and Purpose
Many players lack focus when playing. For example, they may be watching something in another tab, chatting on Discord or thinking about their next meal. These distractions prevent you from giving your full attention to the battle. Even small distractions may cause you to miss details which would better inform your play, or to overlook a line which may give better chances than the obvious play.
If possible, play without any distractions. The show you want to watch or the Discord conversation will still be there when the battle is over.
Something few players ever think about is why they are on the Ladder. What is the purpose of me playing? Its an useful question to ask yourself. If you are playing for fun, load up the most fun team you can and don’t sweat any RNG – the outcome of the battles does not matter! On the other hand, if your purpose is to improve, you should be wholly focussed on making the best plays possible.
I would caution against focussing on winning. Variance is high in RBY and sometimes, despite our best play, our opponent was better or the matchup was really bad. These factors may mean you could not win but you can still strive to play as well as possible on every single turn. Over the long term, players who play well consistently will inevitably have more success than those who do not.
Personally, I like to set goals for each of my Ladder sessions. It may be to test a new team, try new move(s) on an existing team or try out new strategies. This shifts my focus away from whether I win or lose and towards gathering useful information which will lead to more success over time.
If you have not done to already, I recommend this video by BKC, which outlines three quick ways to immediately improve your Ladder results.
Review Your Games
It is very common in other competitive games to review and critiquing your own play, rather than trying to improve by solely playing more games. There are a few reasons for this:
To give a recent example, my Cloyster knocked out the opposing Snorlax, but was left on 12% and paralysed. My opponent sent in their Tauros for revenge and I decided to save the Cloyster, hoping to either Rest or Explode later. I switched to my Snorlax who then suffered a critical hit, had to Rest, letting in my opponent’s Alakazam, handing them a large and free advantage.
While easy in hindsight to identify the decision which led to my opponent having an advantage, it does not automatically follow the incorrect play was made. Pokemon is a complex game with lots of information and so on some occasions the play would be correct (possibly even on this occasion!). By taking more time to review the game later, possibly discuss the different options in the RBY Discord, I now have a better understanding of when to preserve my Cloyster in the future.
If you have not already, I recommend the RBY Prediction Guide by Hipmonlee, who does an excellent job of explaining how to identify the best play, which you can then look for in your replays.
Learn From the Best
While most opportunities for improvement will be found in your own replays (improving the quality of your decision making over time), we can learn lots from the replays of the top players too.
When I am trying out a new team, I watch replays from SPL or RBY Invitational players to see how they handle teams with similar structures. Do not just watch for entertainment! Focus on how they handle Lead matchups, how they check common threats and how they gain an advantage.
For example, I recently picked up the CloyJolt plus three Normals team (usually played with Lead Starmie). While the team performed well for me on Ladder, there were problems with more classic Exeggutor structures – my Starmie did not have Blizzard and on turn one, we would both switch out our Leads for our Sleepers, after which their Exeggutor was faster than my Chansey. In turn this meant losing some initiative at the start, which is not where a team with Jolteon wants to be.
Reviewing high level games gave insight into new ways to handle this common situation. It is probable, but for watching high level replays and asking questions in the RBY Discord, I would not have arrived at better solutions myself. There is no need to reinvent the wheel on every occasion.
Moving Forward
If you are a would-be competitive player, griding it out day after day on the Ladder, I hope this article gave you some idea(s) about how to improve the quality of your play over time. Remember you are not going to win every single session and success is measured with improvement over time.
Best,
Zemanjaski
I have written the following article related to Ladder. Posted with permission from Amaranth and Emma.
PUMP UP YOUR LADDER RATING
The Pokemon Showdown Ladder (“Ladder’) can be a frustrating – but it does not have to be.
The Ladder is usually the first place a would-be competitive player will start honing their craft. However, few ladder players, even those who play regularly, make it to the top of the Ladder or break out with success in Smogon tournaments. This article will explain why this occurs and recommend some actions you can take to avoid being stuck in Ladder purgatory.
Focus and Purpose
Many players lack focus when playing. For example, they may be watching something in another tab, chatting on Discord or thinking about their next meal. These distractions prevent you from giving your full attention to the battle. Even small distractions may cause you to miss details which would better inform your play, or to overlook a line which may give better chances than the obvious play.
If possible, play without any distractions. The show you want to watch or the Discord conversation will still be there when the battle is over.
Something few players ever think about is why they are on the Ladder. What is the purpose of me playing? Its an useful question to ask yourself. If you are playing for fun, load up the most fun team you can and don’t sweat any RNG – the outcome of the battles does not matter! On the other hand, if your purpose is to improve, you should be wholly focussed on making the best plays possible.
I would caution against focussing on winning. Variance is high in RBY and sometimes, despite our best play, our opponent was better or the matchup was really bad. These factors may mean you could not win but you can still strive to play as well as possible on every single turn. Over the long term, players who play well consistently will inevitably have more success than those who do not.
Personally, I like to set goals for each of my Ladder sessions. It may be to test a new team, try new move(s) on an existing team or try out new strategies. This shifts my focus away from whether I win or lose and towards gathering useful information which will lead to more success over time.
If you have not done to already, I recommend this video by BKC, which outlines three quick ways to immediately improve your Ladder results.
Review Your Games
It is very common in other competitive games to review and critiquing your own play, rather than trying to improve by solely playing more games. There are a few reasons for this:
- Games are played in real time and so we simply may not have the time (or mental clarity while under pressure) to calculate the best plays. By returning to difficult decisions under easier conditions, the solution can be more objectively examined. This prepares us with more knowledge for similar future situations and improves our ability to calculate.
- Playing more games does not guarantee we will face the same situation again (in a useful timeframe) or find the right solution the next time around.
- Fatigue is a relevant factor when playing on the Ladder. By saving replays you can return to challenging games when mentally fresh and more separated from the emotions of the game.
To give a recent example, my Cloyster knocked out the opposing Snorlax, but was left on 12% and paralysed. My opponent sent in their Tauros for revenge and I decided to save the Cloyster, hoping to either Rest or Explode later. I switched to my Snorlax who then suffered a critical hit, had to Rest, letting in my opponent’s Alakazam, handing them a large and free advantage.
While easy in hindsight to identify the decision which led to my opponent having an advantage, it does not automatically follow the incorrect play was made. Pokemon is a complex game with lots of information and so on some occasions the play would be correct (possibly even on this occasion!). By taking more time to review the game later, possibly discuss the different options in the RBY Discord, I now have a better understanding of when to preserve my Cloyster in the future.
If you have not already, I recommend the RBY Prediction Guide by Hipmonlee, who does an excellent job of explaining how to identify the best play, which you can then look for in your replays.
Learn From the Best
While most opportunities for improvement will be found in your own replays (improving the quality of your decision making over time), we can learn lots from the replays of the top players too.
When I am trying out a new team, I watch replays from SPL or RBY Invitational players to see how they handle teams with similar structures. Do not just watch for entertainment! Focus on how they handle Lead matchups, how they check common threats and how they gain an advantage.
For example, I recently picked up the CloyJolt plus three Normals team (usually played with Lead Starmie). While the team performed well for me on Ladder, there were problems with more classic Exeggutor structures – my Starmie did not have Blizzard and on turn one, we would both switch out our Leads for our Sleepers, after which their Exeggutor was faster than my Chansey. In turn this meant losing some initiative at the start, which is not where a team with Jolteon wants to be.
Reviewing high level games gave insight into new ways to handle this common situation. It is probable, but for watching high level replays and asking questions in the RBY Discord, I would not have arrived at better solutions myself. There is no need to reinvent the wheel on every occasion.
Moving Forward
If you are a would-be competitive player, griding it out day after day on the Ladder, I hope this article gave you some idea(s) about how to improve the quality of your play over time. Remember you are not going to win every single session and success is measured with improvement over time.
Best,
Zemanjaski
claiming cascade badge for winstreak
edit 10/9 claiming thunder badge for winstreak
edit 10/9 claiming thunder badge for winstreak
Last edited:
claiming thunder for nugget bridge
you need to show your username so that i can verify your winstreak