Spelling and Grammar Standards

[autumn]

Introduction
This thread is a reflection of C&C's spelling and grammar standards. The purpose of this thread is so users can both discuss the standards and refer to them easily within our forums. Feel free to suggest any additions or changes to these standards, and if you have any questions feel free to post.

Index
0) Introduction
1) Pokemon
1.1) Spelling
1.1.1) Abbreviations
1.1.2) Capitalization
1.2) Coined terms
1.3) Grammar
2) Non-Pokemon
2.1) Writing instructions
2.2) English grammar conventions
2.3) Watch out for
2.3.1) Words
2.3.2) Grammar
3) In-game

Section 1: Pokemon
Section 1.1: Spelling

• The following applies to the spelling of forme names:
  • Rotom and Deoxys formes, not forms.
  • The standards for forme names are as follows: Calyrex-I, Calyrex-S, (Galarian) Darmanitan-Z, Deoxys-A, Deoxys-D, Deoxys-S, Ash-Greninja, Giratina-O, Gourgeist-A (where A is S for small, L for large, and XL for super; Gourgeist's Average forme is simply "Gourgeist"), Hoopa-U, Indeedee-M, Indeedee-F, Kyurem-B, Kyurem-W, Landorus-T, Lycanroc-D, Lycanroc-N (where D refers to the Dusk forme and N to the Midnight forme), Meloetta-P, Meowstic-M, Meowstic-F, Necrozma-DM, Necrozma-DW, Rotom-A (where A is C for the lawn mower, H for the toaster, W for the washer, F for the refrigerator, S for the fan, and A for their DPP counterparts which are treated as a singular Pokemon tiering- and analysiswise), Oricorio-E, Oricorio-F, Oricorio-G, Oricorio-P (where E refers to the Electric-type forme, F to the Fire-type, G to the Ghost-type, and P to the Psychic-type), Shaymin-S, Thundurus-T, Tornadus-T, Urshifu-S, Urshifu-R, Venomicon-E, Wormadam-G, Wormadam-S, Zacian-C, Zamazenta-C, Zygarde-10%, Zygarde-C.
  • "Arceus-[TYPE]" and "Silvally-[TYPE]", not "[TYPE] Arceus" and "[TYPE] Silvally".
  • The base forme of a Pokemon should not have a hyphenated name. For examples: Landorus and Landorus-T, not Landorus-I and Landorus-T; Giratina and Giratina-O, not Giratina-A; Rotom and Rotom-C, not Rotom-N; Zygarde and Zygarde-C, not Zygarde-50%; Lycanroc and Lycanroc-N, not Lycanroc-M. Similarly, just plain Arceus and Silvally, not Arceus-Normal and Silvally-Normal.
  • Refer to the Alolan forme of a Pokemon as "Alolan [Pokemon]".
  • Refer to the Galarian forme of a Pokemon as "Galarian [Pokemon]".
  • Refer to the Mega Evolution of a Pokemon as "Mega [Pokemon]".
    • It is Mega Charizard X/Y and Mega Mewtwo X/Y, without a hyphen, not Mega Charizard-X.
    • In any section where both the Mega Evolution and normal state are talked about, use the name of the Pokemon with no prefix (Tyranitar has exceptional Attack). If only the Mega Evolution or normal state is being discussed, ensure that this is clarified (Mega Tyranitar has good Speed, while non-Mega Tyranitar's Speed is a bit lacking); the name of the Pokemon with no prefix can be used to refer to both the Mega Evolution and normal state, as long as this is made clear by the context.
    • Avoid using either "form" or "forme" when talking about Mega Evolutions, though if one is absolutely necessary "forme" should be used.
  • Similarly, refer to the powered-up formes of cover legendaries as Primal Groudon, Primal Kyogre, and Ultra Necrozma.
  • Refer to Totem Pokemon as "Totem [Pokemon]".
• Pokemon should be spelled without the accent.
• The nature Naive should be spelled without the diaeresis (which looks like this: ï ).
• The phrase "super effective" is neither hyphenated nor capitalized.
• The phrase "revenge kill" is never hyphenated.
• The following applies to the spelling of typings:
  • When a type name is directly followed by the word "type", a hyphen is used (Normal-type).
  • When saying that a Pokemon has "some typing", it is never hyphenated (Gengar's Ghost typing helps it be viable in OU.).
  • Dealing with dual typings is a bit trickier. When a dual type name is directly followed by the word "type," a hyphen should not be used (Rock / Ground type). When saying that a Pokemon has "some dual typing," it is never hyphenated as well (Golem's Rock / Ground typing was a godsend in RBY OU.).
  • When talking about a Pokemon's typing, always follow with a "-type" (Ghost-types, not Ghosts).
• Playstyles (e.g., offense, stall, balance, hyper offense) and their corresponding adjectives are not capitalized and, with the exception of "semi-stall" and others with the prefix "semi-", never hyphenated.
• Always spell out the full name of an item, never use abbreviations (Life Orb is a powerful item on Gengar).
• Always spell out the full name of a stat (Salamence should always run 252 Speed EVs). The only exception is when used in a full EV spread or in damage calculations (An alternative spread of 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD is viable with a Bold nature).
• Always use spaces in between the slash and numerical investment for EV spreads (Physical attackers should run a 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe EV spread).
• The term is Speed tie, not Speed-tie or Speed Tie.
• Use "switch-in", plural "switch-ins" when referring to a Pokemon that often switches in on another (Scizor is a common switch-in to Latias).
  • Do not use a hyphen when using "switch in" as a verb (Gyarados can switch in on Mamoswine) or as a noun, plural "switches in", referring to the act of switching in (Tornadus-T loses to Keldeo if it takes an Icy Wind on the switch in).
  • Use "free switch" to refer to the act of a Pokemon coming into battle with no downsides (A slow U-turn or Volt Switch can provide a teammate with a free switch in).
• Always use a hyphen when using "early-game, mid-game, and late-game" to refer to the point in a battle when a Pokemon typically fights in a battle. However, avoid saying "early-to-mid-game", say "early- or mid-game" instead.
• "Uber" should only be used as an adjective ("the Uber tier") or to refer to Pokemon ("Kyogre is an Uber"); "Ubers" is acceptable when referring to the Ubers metagame.
• When referring to the combination of Rest and Sleep Talk, use RestTalk. This also goes for other accepted move combinations, including BoltBeam, VoltTurn, SubSeed, SubCM, QuakeSlide (RBY only), and EdgeQuake. These combinations should not be reversed; QuakeEdge is not OK.
• When referring to attacking Z-Moves, use their official names, e.g., "Supersonic Skystrike". Only specify the base move if there are multiple viable options and there is genuine ambiguity (e.g., "Heatran's Bloom Doom" and "Xurkitree's Gigavolt Havoc" are fine, since most everyone will understand Solar Beam and Thunderbolt are used as the base moves) and the power difference is relevant (e.g., "Manaphy's Hydro Vortex OHKOes Charmander" is fine, since this is true regardless of which base move is used).
• The same applies to Max Moves (and G-Max Moves); use "Max Airstream", not "Max Bounce" or whatever.
• Do not refer to Latias and Latios together as Lati@s; phrases like Lati twins and Eon twins are acceptable, but only for variety purposes; try to stick with "Latios and Latias" initially.
• Do not refer to any of Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Fini together as Tapus; instead, write out their respective names or use a phrase like "Tapu group", "Island Guardians", "Guardian Deities", or whatever else fits best.
• Hidden Power Type, not Hidden Power [Type].
• The company is called Game Freak, not Gamefreak or GameFreak.
• With the length of allowable names increased, the spellings of several names have been changed come XY. These include Never-Melt Ice, Soft-Boiled, High Jump Kick, Thunder Punch, Feint Attack, Bubble Beam, Sand Attack (but NOT Double-Edge and Mud-Slap), Compound Eyes, Bright Powder, Extreme Speed, Poison Powder, Smokescreen, Double Slap, Twisted Spoon, Black Glasses, Solar Beam, Thunder Shock, Paralyze Heal, Thunder Stone, and Dragon Breath. As a general rule, anything that was capitalized mid-word in BW and before is now two separate words.
• When using one of the below-endorsed abbreviations, never use the non-abbreviated phrase.

Section 1.1.1: Abbreviations

• Use 3v3 as an abbreviation for the triple battle metagame.
• Use VGC as an abbreviation for the Video Game Championships.
• Use NatDex as an abbreviation for the National Dex metagame and its submetagames.
• Use RBY as an abbreviation for the Red / Blue / Yellow generation.
• Use GSC as an abbreviation for the Gold / Silver / Crystal generation.
• Use ADV as an abbreviation for the Advance Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald generation.
• Use DPP as an abbreviation for the Diamond / Pearl / Platinum generation.
• Use BW as an abbreviation for the Black / White / Black 2 / White 2 generation; use BW2 only when referring specifically to the subgeneration after the new games' release.
• Use XY as an abbreviation for the X / Y / Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire generation; use ORAS only when referring specifically to the subgeneration after the new games' release.
• Use SM as an abbreviation for the Sun / Moon / Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon generation; use USM only when referring specifically to the subgeneration after the new games' release.
• Use SS as an abbreviation for the Sword / Shield generation.
• Use OHKO as an abbreviation for one-hit knock-out.
• Use NHKO as an abbreviation for an N-hit knock-out, where N is any number greater than 1 (Choice Band Gyarados can cleanly 2HKO even bulky Rotom-W).

Section 1.1.2: Capitalization

• Stats (Attack, Special Defense, etc.) are capitalized.
  • Speed is capitalized only when referring to the actual Speed stat; when it refers to general quickness or momentum-changing ability (Pichu has great speed and power) it stays lowercased.
• Pseudo-stats (accuracy, evasion) are not capitalized.
• Types (Fire-type, Water-type, etc.) are capitalized.
• Status effects (paralysis, sleep, etc.) are not capitalized.
• Pseudo-status effects (confusion, etc.) are not capitalized.
• "Berry" is always capitalized when talking about a pinch Berry, even when used without a specific name (The suggested item is a Berry). If not talking about some kind of pinch Berry, then it should not be capitalized (Pichu enjoys berries in its salad).
• "Ball" is always capitalized when talking about a Poké Ball of some sort, even when used without a specific name (The Ball used for capture doesn't matter). If not talking about some kind of Poke Ball, then it should not be capitalized (Pichu likes playing with a beach ball).
• "Choice" in "Choice item" is always capitalized when talking about any non-specific Choice item, such as Choice Specs, Choice Scarf, and Choice Band (Tyranitar is an excellent user of Choice items). When not used in context of the generalized items, then choice is not capitalized (The choice of which to do is up to you).
• "Orb" in "status Orb" is always capitalized when talking about any non-specific status Orb, such as Flame Orb and Toxic Orb (Swellow can activate its ability Guts through the use of a status Orb), but "status" is not capitalized. When not used in the context of the generalized items, then orb is not capitalized (Spoink has a beautiful orb on its head).
• "Terrain" is always capitalized when talking about a field condition, even when used without a specific name (The Tapu group automatically set up their respective Terrains upon entering the battlefield). If not talking about a field condition, it should not be capitalized (It is not possible to walk this rough terrain without the help of a Mudsdale).
• Weather (sun, rain, etc.) is not capitalized.
• "Move" in the phrase "Z-Move" is capitalized.
• Conditions (Skarmory was Taunted) are capitalized only when the entire move name is used (Scizor passed Iron Defense to Skarmory. Scizor Baton Passed Iron Defense to Skarmory).
• Clauses (Sleep Clause, OHKO Clause, Item Clause, etc.) are capitalized in full, even when part of the word is normally not capitalized (ie. sleep, item, etc.).
• Tiers (Uber, OverUsed, UnderUsed, etc.) are capitalized.
• Doubles is capitalized when talking about the Smogon Doubles metagame; however, if talking about the doubles battle format only then it is not capitalized.
• Community-created terms such as "Speed tier" are not capitalized beyond the normal conventions, but Nintendo-created terms such as "Base Power" are capitalized as they would be in-game.
• Coined phrases derived from Pokémon terms (e.g., BoltBeam, Double Dance) are capitalized.
• Set names are only capitalized in set titles, never in set comments (If Arcanine is a specially defensive variant, it isn't OHKOed by Milotic's Surf). Very well-used set names such as "Extreme Killer" and "Extreme Killer Arceus", "CroCune", "Wallceus", and "Stalltwo" are the only exceptions.
• Checks & Counters headers (Special Walls, Super Effective Moves, Fire-types) should be capitalized similarly to set names.
• Pokemon roles (sweeper, tank, special wall, etc.) are not capitalized.
• Ho-Oh, not Ho-oh.
• Wi-Fi, not Wifi or Wi-fi.
• The phrase "Team Preview" is capitalized.
• The following applies for the capitalization of specific moves:
  • Abilities or attacks that consist of two words but that fit the 12-letter restriction (Sunny Day, Zen Headbutt, Mold Breaker, etc.) are written with a space in between and with both words having an initial capital letter.
  • All attacks having a dash (Wake-Up Slap, X-Scissor, etc.) are written with the word after the dash also capitalized. U-turn and V-create are the only exceptions to this rule.
• The word "physical" is not capitalized. The word "special" is not capitalized when not referring to a stat (Azelf has base 125 Special Attack, but Flamethrower is a special attack). When saying something is "physically defensive" or "specially defensive," physical and special are not capitalized.
• The word "defenses" is not capitalized when referring to a Pokemon's overall defensive ability rather than to a stat (Cresselia has exceptional balanced defenses).
• The word "Pokemon" is always capitalized.
• The word "nature" is not capitalized (Adamant nature, not Adamant Nature).
• The word "bulky" is not capitalized when it prefixes a type (bulky Water-type, not Bulky Water-type).
• The phrase "critical hit" is not capitalized.
• The phrase "dual screens" is not capitalized.
• The word "item" is never capitalized.
• Mega Evolutions are always capitalized (Mega Lucario).
• The term "Mega Evolution" refers to the extra evolution some Pokemon possess (Lucario's Mega Evolution grants it additional power compared to its normal state).
• The term "Mega-Evolved" refers to a Pokemon that has undergone Mega Evolution (Mega Lucario, when Mega-Evolved, gains additional power).
• The term "Mega Evolve" refers to the act of a Pokemon undergoing Mega Evolution (Lucario can Mega Evolve into Mega Lucario).
• The (verbed) term "Dynamax" refers to the act of a Pokemon undergoing Dynamax (After Dynamaxing, Gyarados can sweep your team).
• "Egg" is always capitalized when talking about a Pokemon Egg of some sort (The Pokemon's Egg hatched!). This also applies to Egg Groups. If not talking about a Pokemon's Egg, then it should not be capitalized (Delibird is actually quite a fan of scrambled eggs).

Section 1.2: Coined Terms

• The term forme is accepted as meaning "an alternate form of a Pokemon with a competitive difference through e.g. different stats or typing"; if the difference is purely cosmetic, use "form" instead.
• The term outspeed (outspeeding, outsped, also outpace) is accepted as meaning "to move first in battle."
• The term underspeed (underspeeding, undersped, NOT outslow) is accepted as meaning "to move second in battle."
• The term outdamage (outdamaged, outdamaging) is accepted as meaning "to deal more damage than another attack or Pokemon."
• The term outprioritize (outprioritized, outprioritizing) is accepted as meaning "to use a priority move before the foe can use their priority move."
• The term countersweep (counterswept, countersweeping) is accepted as meaning "to sweep an opposing team right after being pressed on the back foot."
• The term spinblock (spinblocker, spinblocking) is accepted as meaning "to block Rapid Spin."
• The term phaze (phazer, phazing, phazed), NOT "phaze out", is accepted as meaning "to pseudo-haze," which in turn describes forcing a switch with a move such as Whirlwind.
• The term status (statusing) is accepted as meaning "to afflict with status."
• The term wallbreaker (wallbreaking) is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that breaks down walls."
• The term stallbreaker (stallbreaking) is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that breaks down stall."
• The term cleric is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that heals its team of status conditions."
• The term spinner (spinning) is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that can use Rapid Spin."
• The term Spiker is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that can use Spikes / Toxic Spikes."
• The term Defogger is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that can use Defog."
• The term parashuffler (parashuffling) is accepted as meaning "Pokemon that paralyzes and phazes."
• The term paraflinch is accepted as meaning "to attempt to paralyze and flinch an opposing Pokemon," usually until they are KOed.
• The term parafusion is accepted as meaning "to prevent a foe from moving via a combination of paralysis and confusion."
• The term moveslot is accepted as meaning "slot in a Pokemon's set."
• The term movepool is accepted as meaning "pool of all of a Pokemon's moves."
• The term teamslot is accepted as meaning "slot in a Trainer's team."
• The term playstyle is accepted as meaning "a style of play in the metagame," e.g. stall, offensive, balanced, etc.
• The term matchup is accepted as meaning "the current situation of the field concerning the capabilities of the active Pokemon of both players."
• The term Spikes stacking is accepted as meaning "a playstyle that attempts to stack multiple layers of Spikes."
• The term four-moveslot syndrome is accepted as meaning "a problem arising due to the Pokemon only being allowed to have four moves at one time."
• The term Pursuit trap is accepted as meaning "KOing or threatening to KO a Pokemon that is likely to switch with Pursuit."
• The term Perish trap is accepted as meaning "KOing a Pokemon through forcing it to stay in while the move Perish Song is active through means such as Mean Look or Shadow Tag."
• The term Fire / Water / Grass core is accepted as meaning "a core used containing a Fire-type, Water-type, and Grass-type, which is notable for its synergy."
• The term ChestoRest is accepted as meaning "a strategy using Rest and a Chesto Berry to instantly heal a Pokemon."
• The term FuturePort is accepted as meaning the combination of Future Sight and Teleport on a set.
• The term SubRoost is accepted as meaning the combination of Substitute and Roost on a set.
• The term SubPunch is accepted as meaning the combination of Substitute and Focus Punch on a set.
• The term IronPress is accepted as meaning the combination of Iron Defense (or another Defense-boosting move) and Body Press on a set.
• When referring to a set that uses two specific moves, ensure the "+" sign is used, not "and" (Substitute + Bulk Up Braviary). The moves should also not be abbreviated.
• Similarly, when referring to two Pokemon paired up in a core, use a "+" sign too.
• "PokeBank" is an acceptable substitution for "Pokemon Bank".
• The term "wincon" is accepted as meaning "a Pokemon whose objective is to win the match," from an in-battle perspective, not a teambuilding perspective.
• In doubles metagames, the term double target is used to mean "to attack an opposing Pokemon with both Pokemon you control." It has no hyphen.
• In RBY analyses, it is permissible to use the term sleeper, which is accepted as meaning "a Pokemon that induces sleep onto the foe."
• In RBY analyses, it is permissible to use the term wrap (wrapper, wrapping, wrapped), which is accepted as a verb meaning "incapacitate the opposing Pokemon with a move such as Wrap or Fire Spin."
• In RBY analyses, it is permissible to use the term <status> blocker, where <status> is replaced with the status being prevented, which is accepted as meaning "an already-statused Pokemon used to prevent further progress with status".
• In RBY analyses, the term Rest looping is accepted as "to delay progress within a game by negating damage with Rest until eventually one player receives an advantageous position against the other".
• In ADV analyses, the term Toxic + Spikes + Sandstorm is accepted as meaning "a team archetype whose gameplan involves wearing down the opposition mid-game through residual damage such as Toxic poison, Spikes, and sand". After referring to it in full once in an analysis, later references can be abbreviated to TSS.
• The terms AgiliWrap and AgiliSpin are accepted as shorthands for Agility + Wrap and Agility + Fire Spin.
• The term speed control is used to refer to "control of how quickly Pokemon will act," through moves such as Thunder Wave, Icy Wind, and Trick Room. It is not capitalized.
• In Doubles analyses, the terms redirection and disruption are used to refer to "control of where attacks will land," such as by use of Rage Powder or Follow Me.
• In Other Metagames analyses, the term -ate abilities is accepted as the broad generalization of Pixilate, Aerilate, Refrigerate, and Galvanize.
• In Other Metagames analyses, the terms -ate user and -ate Pokemon are accepted as meaning "a Pokemon that makes use of an -ate ability".
• In Other Metagames analyses, the term -ate Speed is accepted as referring to the combination of an -ate ability and Extreme Speed.
• In Other Metagames analyses, the term RegenVest is accepted as referring to the combination of Regenerator and Assault Vest.
• In Other Metagames analyses, the term BellyBurden is accepted as referring to the combination of Belly Drum and Unburden.
• In VGC analyses, the term Restricted Pokemon is accepted as referring to the group of specific Pokemon one can only use one of on a team in specific formats. For Pokemon that are not included in this group, the term non-Restricted Pokemon is accepted.
• In VGC and Doubles analyses, the term self-trigger (self-triggered, self-triggering) is accepted as referring to "the act of activating its one's own ally’s item or ability".

Section 1.3: Grammar

• The plural of a Pokemon is identical to the singular of that Pokemon. One Blissey, two Blissey. Never two Blisseys.
• When written as a single object, even naturally plural items are treated as singular (Leftovers is a good item choice on bulky Pokemon. Choice Specs is put to excellent use on Jolteon).
• OHKOes as the verb form (Salamence OHKOes Alakazam) and OHKOs as a plural noun (Salamence scores many OHKOs). OHKOed is the past tense (Salamence OHKOed Alakazam).
• Do not say "STABs" to refer to moves that receive a same-type attack bonus. Use "STAB moves" instead. "STAB" refers to the boost; "STAB type" can be used to refer to a type that gets STAB.
• While using move names as verbs is permissible in some cases, it should be avoided if reasonably possible.
• The following rules apply to EVs and IVs.
  • The past tense of "to EV" is "EVed," and the plural of EV is EVs.
  • EVs and IVs should always be capitalized.
  • EVs and IVs should always be referred to in the plural case (158 Special Attack EVs are enough to OHKO / 0 Speed IVs are used to maximize Gyro Ball's power).
• When listing effectiveness of attacks, the number goes before the x (Earthquake is 2x super effective on Lucario. Ice Beam is 4x super effective on Salamence).
• The word "base" should come before the numbers of a stat. For example, Mew has a base 100 Special Attack rather than Mew has a 100 base Special Attack.
• Swift Swim sweeper, not Swift Swimmer.
• It is "an OHKO," not "a OHKO".
• In Monotype analyses, it is acceptable to use the name of a type to refer to teams centered around said type, similarly to archetypes from standard tiers; e.g., "Psychic" is accepted to refer to Psychic-type teams in a general sense, and "Water teams" is accepted as meaning "Water-type teams".

Section 2: Non-Pokemon
Section 2.1: Writing

• Try to avoid excessive casual writing that obstructs the meaning of sentences. You can add some personality to your writing, but it shouldn't lead to it being overly difficult to understand what you're saying.
• Avoid using pointless filler phrases such as "However, Weedle is not without its flaws. / Not all is well for Weedle. <insert issues with said Pokemon>." These artificially lengthen analyses without providing any actual information. Instead, say something like "Weedle is held back by its paltry stats, movepool, and mediocre typing, all of which keep it from accomplishing much of anything."
• Don't end paragraphs, especially overviews, with pointless filler sentences like "However, with its counters removed, Zygarde can easily sweep through teams" or "Play to its strengths and Infernape can be a great choice for your team." Any Pokemon that is played well or with its counters removed will be a great asset for your team. If you have nothing else to say in an overview, it's ok to just stop writing! Overviews aren't an essay to write about Pokemon; they're just a way to give a quick rundown of what a Pokemon does.
• Do not write an analysis in a form that puts emphasis on changes by generation. This includes avoiding phrases such as "With the advent of BW," "With the newly introduced Fairy-types," and "With the new ability to Mega Evolve."
• Use active voice (Gliscor can OHKO Magnezone) whenever possible rather than passive voice (Magnezone can be OHKOed by Gliscor).
• Especially when it comes to EV spreads, try to avoid Pokemon-technical terms unless you absolutely need them--often you'll end up confusing new players or, worse, autopiloting your way to fluff phrases. For example, "minimizes Stealth Rock damage" is just as effective at conveying your point and just as concise as "hits a Stealth Rock number" would have been, and much less vague. A special mention goes to "jump point", which often isn't really relevant information for in-battle scenarios (if your benchmark allows you to hit some significant KOs, just get to the point and state those KOs) and on its own tends to be a pretty arbitrary benchmark to begin with.
• Do not cross-reference between sets; i.e., avoid phrases like "Similarly to the Choice Specs set" or "Most Pokemon that pair well with the Dragon Dance set make great partners to this set as well." This is because readers only interested in set B should not have to read set A as well and because it makes updating uploaded analyses harder. However, referring to sets in Overview / Other Options / Checks and Counters is fine, as are phrases like "As with most Heatran sets" or "Similarly to all-out attacking sets", which only acknowledge different sets exist without referring to actual sets on the analysis.

Section 2.2: Grammar conventions

• Smogon uses the American English spelling of words (favor, minimized, maximized, etc.).
• Always append 's to a noun when signifying a singular possessive (Latias's Soul Dew) or plural possessive that doesn't end in s (Lucario's Swords Dance), and simply a ' when signifying a plural possessive for a word that ends in s (All Latios' Draco Meteor).
• Smogon uses the serial comma, the comma before "and" in a list (I went to the store with Bob, Jane, and Mike). This picture explains why
• You may not use the pronouns "who", "he", and "she" instead of "which", "that", and "it" to refer to Pokemon; stick with genderless pronouns.
• When referring to the battler, use the pronoun "you." Do not use "you" to refer to a Pokemon.
• "Foe" refers to the opposing Pokemon, not the opposing battler. Similarly, "opponent" refers to the opposing battler, not the opposing Pokemon. For example, "paralyze the foe" and "revenge kill the foe" are correct uses of "foe", as it is the Pokemon that is paralyzed or revenge killed, not the battler. Correct uses of opponent include "if the opponent has a Ghost-type" and "the opponent might switch in a counter". There are cases where both can be appropriate, such as "The opponent/foe can set up Trick Room" (the opponent sets it up in the sense that they are clicking the button).

Section 2.3: Watch out for
The following lists are intended to cover select traditional vocabulary and grammar items that have been known to cause trouble; they are deliberately not intended to be comprehensive.

Section 2.3.1: Words

• The word "spectrum" should never be used to describe the difference between physical and special offensive and defensive stats, since it cannot denote two discrete things; "Infernape hits hard from both sides of the spectrum" should be rephrased to say "Infernape hits hard both physically and specially," or something similar.
• Be careful when using "since"; ensure there is no ambiguity possible between its temporal and causal senses ("Since the wolves attacked the village, the people have been living in fear" does not make clear whether "since" means "ever since" or "because").
• Avoid using "while" as a substitute for "and"; either use it in a strictly temporal sense, or make sure there is a connotation of "on the one hand / on the other hand" present.
• Avoid using "crux" in your analysis unless you know what you are doing. 95% of the time, you will simply be adding useless filler like "X is the crux of this set," which does not provide the reader with any information of value.
• The word "splashable" should not be used to refer to Pokemon that fit on teams easily; it has a highly specific meaning ("can be used to power up an otherwise already completed deck / team even further without providing any substantial downsides in any situation") that does not work in a Pokemon context, and therefore it should be avoided in all Smogon writing (including articles).
• A "win condition" is a circumstance in which a game can be won; it is not interchangeable with "wincon" (see Coined Terms).
• "Infamous" means "nefarious", "known for a negative reason"; it should not be used as a substitute for "well-known", "dominant", and the like.
• "Abuse" means "use in a negative way / to a negative effect" or "assault"; it should not be used as a substitute for "make heavy use of" or "benefit from".
• "On the contrary" should only be used if the preceding statement is false; it should not be used as a substitute for "on the other hand". Additionally, even if do you see it used in its proper meaning, be wary of fluff, since "you may think <...> but you're wrong" is a pretty questionable rhetorical device to use in analyses.
• Be careful when using "respectively"; only use it if the text actually becomes ambiguous without it. In a phrase like "Ground- and Grass-types like Garchomp and Venusaur, respectively" it's not (shouldn't be) really clarifying anything.
• "Unique" means "the only one of its kind"; if the element is not the only one of its kind, either in the metagame or altogether, change it to something similar like "semi-exclusive" or "rare".
• "Optimal" means "most effective under the given circumstances"; it is not interchangeable with "maximum".

Section 2.3.2: Grammar

• Pokemon are not "killed" in battle, they are KOed or faint.
• The word "resists" is only to be used as a form of the infinitive "to resist" and never as a noun ("Flying-type resists such as Pichu are good Pokemon" is incorrect). Similarly, "immunity" is only to be used to refer to a trait ("Pichu's Electric immunity makes it a good check to Thunder Wave users"), not to Pokemon ("Electric immunities such as Pichu are good Pokemon" is incorrect).
• Moves do not "lure" Pokemon. "Scizor lures in Heatran with Superpower" would imply Heatran is pretty confused! Instead, use "Scizor lures in Heatran and KOes it with Superpower" or a similar phrase. Note that "Superpower allows Scizor to lure in and KO Heatran" is correct; the move Superpower does allow Scizor to perform the combination of luring in and KOing Heatran.
• When setup is being used as a noun or as part of a compound noun, spell it as setup and not set-up (After setup, Pichu is practically unstoppable / Pichu has access to several great setup moves). When it is being used an adjective meaning "having set up", spell it as either set-up or set up as appropriate (A fully set-up Pichu mows through teams with little effort / His Pichu was not fully set up yet). The verb form, to set up, is spelled as such (Mewtwo can set up on Pichu).
• Commas should not be used to separate a compound verb unless the conjunction is combining two independent clauses or the comma is necessary for clarity (Pichu walked into the store and bought a pie).
• Do not put a hyphen between an adverb and an adjective (Pichu can use a defensively oriented set or a specially based set).
• Use the ASCII ( ' ) apostrophe in writing, not the curly ( ’ ) apostrophe.
• Use the ASCII ( " ) quotation marks in writing, not the curly ( “ ” ) quotation marks.
• Never use an ampersand (&) as a replacement for "and".
• When writing a fraction, add a hyphen between the numerator and the denominator if both are written out rather than numerical (Pichu ate two-thirds of the pie.)
• For unbracketed asides, use the em dash (—) and no spaces (Mareep—that is to say, the entire evolution family—is extremely cute).
• When listing multiple types, use a hyphen after each type (Water-, Flying-, and Normal-types).

Section 3: In-game

• It is indeed in-game with the hyphen, not ingame or in game.
• It's Pokédex, not PokéDex or Poké Dex
• You should write Pokémon Center with the accent.
• Other Poké words: Poké Ball, Poké Flute, Poké Mart, etc.
• The standard we go by is Poké Dollars to describe the currency of the Pokemon games.
• In GSC, it is called the Pokégear.
• "Berry" is always capitalized when talking about a pinch Berry, even when used without a specific name (The suggested item is a Berry). If not talking about some kind of pinch Berry, then it should not be capitalized (Pichu enjoys berries in its salad).
• "Ball" is always capitalized when talking about a Poké Ball of some sort, even when used without a specific name (The Ball used for capture doesn't matter). If not talking about some kind of Poké Ball, then it should not be capitalized (Pichu likes playing with a beach ball).
• "Egg" is always capitalized when talking about a Pokemon Egg of some sort (The Pokemon's Egg hatched!). This also applies to Egg Groups. If not talking about a Pokemon's Egg, then it should not be capitalized (Delibird is actually quite a fan of scrambled eggs).
• The item "Mega Stone" is always capitalized.
• Trainer is always capitalized when used in the context of a Pokemon Trainer.
• The correct capitalization and spelling is Exp. Points.
• The "w" in wild Pokemon is never capitalized.
• Gym Leader is always capitalized.
• Gym is also always capitalized when talking about the Gym of the town where the Gym Leader resides that holds the Badge.
• Badge is always capitalized as well.
• The title of a Trainer is always capitalized; ie. Fisherman, Lass, Rocket Grunt, etc. However, when a Trainer class and a normal citizen have the same name, such as scientist, only capitalize those who are actually Trainers (I got the item from the Scientist that I battled), (I talked to one of the scientists in Cinnabar Lab).
• When doing an action of some kind using the HM moves, it should be capitalized. (When you reach the water, Surf across to the other side. When you reach the small tree, Cut it and continue on your way, etc.).
• The "r" in route is only capitalized when used as a proper noun in conjunction with the route number, such as Route 1.
• There is no space between the "TM" and the number of the TM, such as TM01. This is the same for HMs and TRs.

 

[autumn]

• Crowned Sword Zacian and Crowned Shield Zamazenta will be Zacian-C and Zamazenta-C, precedent Therian Forces of Nature.
• Indeedee's male and female formes will be Indeedee-M and Indeedee-F, precedent Meowstic.
• Galarian formes should be Galarian [Pokemon], same situation as Alolan formes and Mega Evolutions.
• Since Eiscue's forme change is only an in-battle thing, it doesn't get a standardised forme name (like Aegislash).
• Max Moves (and G-Max Moves) get the same treatment as Z-Moves; i.e. use the official names, specifying base moves only if needed (which will be rarely at best).
• "Dynamax" can be used as a verb similarly to "Mega Evolve"; Dynamaxed Pokemon do not get pseudo-forme names. (After Dynamaxing, Gyarados can sweep teams effortlessly, NOT Dynamax Gyarados can sweep teams effortlessly or whatever).
• For consistency, refer to Generation 8 as SS.

If there's any other Gen 8 stuff that we failed to address or you feel should be updated compared to last gen, let us know!

 

[Lumari]

So (as Eien brought up yesterday) Copperajah's G-Max move, G-Max Steelsurge, sets a new entry hazard that's basically Steel-type Stealth Rock, so this thing needs a name. The in-game animation isn't very helpful.

Cryo suggested "Steelsurge Spikes", which I like because it's simultaneously objective (i.e. preserves the move name, like all other entry hazards) and intuitive ("Spikes" making it clear that it's an entry hazard), but I don't know if communities where it's been relevant (which I guess is only Monotype so far) have already tried to coin something else. Any other ideas / input?

If all else fails I'm also fine with just calling it Steelsurge Spikes for now so that we have something to put in analyses / articles and see if vernacular adopts something else in the future, surely there won't be many analyses to edit if it does turn out we have to go with something else later.

 

[Bughouse]

From the recently posted Toxapex analysis:
“Additionally, Toxapex is able to prevent setup sweepers like non-Earthquake Gyarados and Corviknight from snowballing games thanks to Haze.”

I don’t believe this is the correct use of the word snowball. While it can be used as a verb in the sense of growing in size or importance, it is an intransitive verb. You can’t snowball games. If we are using snowball as the way of indicating how Dynamax sweepers accumulate additional boosts while sweeping, it would be better put that they snowball through opposing teams or something like that.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snowball

 

[Rabia]

I asked The Dutch Plumberjack about this before, but I wanted to bring it up here too.

We allow the words "Spiker", "Defogger", and "spinner" to mean Pokemon that can set (Toxic) Spikes, use Defog, and use Rapid Spin. However, we forbid the usage of "Stealth Rocker" and instead force usage of something such as "Stealth Rock setter". Is there any particular reason for this?

 

[Mafeking]

There was most likely a specific reason for this decision listed at some point, but some of the old GP theory stuff is either buried under almost 10 years of other work since SR came into the competitive scene, or was potentially decided over IRC. If anyone's likely to know or remember the original reasoning, it'd probably be Oglemi (sorry for the tag, buddy).

Just for my two cents: my assumption for this would be... mostly because it's two words, both of which have completely unrelated meanings (both to each other and to Pokemon in general) and are at least somewhat common in English (though stealth probably more so than rocker). Defogger, spiker, and spinner are also all "real words" but I feel like only the last one has the same sort of frequency (thanks, fidget spinners!) of the words in "Stealth Rocker." In my mind, this creates a difference between the imagery those words bring forth. When I read Defogger, Spiker, or spinner/spinblocker/etc in an analysis, the first thing that comes to mind is most likely the Pokemon context. If I were to read "[Stealth] Rocker" in an analysis, the first thing that would come to my mind would likely be some sort of musician, especially now that Gen 8 gave us Piers and Toxitricity. Maybe that's me being obtuse! Would love to hear other peoples' opinions on that.

EDIT: felt like this wasn't clear, so elaborating: even in real life the words "defogger," "spinner," and "spiker" all conjure up an image that is somewhat related to the Pokemon context. Defogger makes me think of clearing the fog from my car windows, spinner is fairly straightforward, and spiker conjures up the image of... something spiky. These things all make a clear connection between real world status and Pokemon terminology. The word "rocker" does not mean "someone who does things with physical rocks" in any sense, and that's where the disconnect is.

Also, at this point I think we've gone so long trying to create uniformity and changing it away from "Stealth Rocker" that it would be... weird to decide to allow it now. This is somewhat similar to the reasoning for this old post on "super effective" vs "super-effective" also by Oglemi. No, we wouldn't have to change a bunch of articles on the site if we decided to allow Stealth Rocker now, but it's something that we've avoided for so long that letting it be kosher now may be strange. I wasn't around when the standards got relaxed on "like" vs "such as" though, so maybe I'm wrong and it'd be totally normal. I don't have anything against changing the rules on this if we decide that's for the best, but I do think there's a reasonable precedent not to begin allowing Stealth Rocker.

 

[Oglemi]

I don't think there's a particular reason for it. AFAIK we didn't allow Spiker (or spinner for that matter) for a while either, I assume for the same reason. If it's still taboo I only assume it's because it kind of hits the ear wrong. Other than that I don't see a reason to disallow it, esp if spiker is already being used

 

[Lumari]

The rationalisation that comes to my mind right now is that all these and similar agent words in -er are derived from an existent verb, so Defogger and friends just make more sense morphologically to be accepted as official nouns. We use "to Defog" as a verb, and "Defogger" is fine, same with "to spin" -> "spinner", "to Spike".... at least exists even though I don't want it in analyses, but I've never heard "to Stealth Rock" used as a verb (and would feel the urge to vomit if it was a thing). And if "to Stealth Rock" doesn't exist, then having "Stealth Rocker" doesn't make much sense either.

Don't take the above as an absolute rule because I don't want "Taunter" to be acceptable either, but this I think is why Stealth Rocker has always "sounded" wrong and why I don't want to have it. If there is an inconsistency worth addressing here (I personally don't think there is, but I would understand if other people do) then I'd really rather just ban Spiker again than accept Stealth Rocker. Defogger / spinner are definitely fine.

 

[Lumari]

So Darmanitan's Zen Mode forme has been missing from the standards up to now, because it's always sucked i.e. we've never needed it and it's flown under the radar until now; however, the Galarian Zen Mode forme has come up in BH analyses now, so we should standardise something.

There is an argument for giving it the Aegislash treatment, but since they're actually felt as two distinct formes / people bringing it to a battle will intend to use it as that forme specifically (not that that'll realistically happen in a standard tier but that's beside the point), unlike Aegislash which is really felt as one distinct package, I'm fine with giving it a separate forme name like the Meloetta / Zygarde in-battle formes. Darmanitan-Z + Galarian Darmanitan-Z is the only option that really makes sense, consistent formatting with all other Pokemon-specific forme names.

 

[Lumari]

Urshifu forme names: Urshifu-S and Urshifu-R yn?

We have some other options, i.e. two-letter suffixes for both or no suffix for Single Strike which most commonly seems to be considered the "default" forme, but having one-letter suffixes where reasonably possible & having suffixes on both if there's no real good logical reason to consider either the base forme is most in line with existing precedents. Will make this official very soon if no alternate perspectives are offered.

 

[Lumari]

For Calyrex forme names, let's do Calyrex-I and Calyrex-S, for -Ice and -Shadow with omission of the redundant -Rider; exact same case as Urshifu p much.

 

[Lumari]

So as you may know the PS teambuilder and by extension also our set importables require the Calyrex formes' As One ability to be entered as two separate ones depending on the forme, i.e. "As One (Glastrier)" and "As One (Spectrier)". This is due to technical restrictions though, please do not write them out fully in your paragraphs and just keep it to "As One" there no matter the forme; context will always make it abundantly clear which one you're talking about (barring a few OMs maybe technically but we can cross that bridge when we get to it, and realistically it won't be an issue even there I was told), so there's no need to clunkily deviate from the game text.

 

[Rabia]

updated to reflect allowance for "NatDex" to be used as shorthand for the National Dex metagames (so NatDex OU, NatDex UU, etc)

 

[Lumari]

• In RBY analyses, it is permissible to use the term wrap (Wrapper, wrapping, wrapped), which is accepted as a verb meaning "incapacitate the opposing Pokemon with a move such as Wrap or Fire Spin."
• The terms AgiliWrap and AgiliSpin are accepted as shorthands for Agility + Wrap and Agility + Fire Spin.

gonna add the following tomorrow if no issue to make rby folks' lives a bit easier

 

[Muk]

gonna add the following tomorrow if no issue to make rby folks' lives a bit easier

“wrapper” is preferable to “Wrapper” imo (Bind and Fire Spin also exist).

 

[Astra]

The Coined Terms section was updated to include more coined terms to standard analyses writing. The added terms are outlined below.

• Move Combinations
  • The term FuturePort is accepted as meaning the combination of Future Sight and Teleport on a set.
  • The term SubRoost is accepted as meaning the combination of Substitute and Roost on a set.
  • The term SubPunch is accepted as meaning the combination of Substitute and Focus Punch on a set.
• RBY-specific Terms
  • In RBY analyses, it is permissible to use the term <status> blocker, where <status> is replaced with the status being prevented, which is accepted as meaning "an already-statused Pokemon used to prevent further progress with status".
  • In RBY analyses, the term Rest looping is accepted as "to delay progress within a game by negating damage with Rest until eventually one player receives an advantageous position against the other".
• ADV-specific Terms
  • In ADV analyses, the term Toxic + Spikes + Sandstorm is accepted as meaning "a team archetype whose gameplan involves wearing down the opposition mid-game through residual damage such as Toxic poison, Spikes, and sand". After referring to it in full once in an analysis, later references can be abbreviated to TSS.
• OMs-specific Terms
  • In Other Metagames analyses, the term -ate Speed is accepted as referring to the combination of an -ate ability and Extreme Speed.
  • In Other Metagames analyses, the term RegenVest is accepted as referring to the combination of Regenerator and Assault Vest.
  • In Other Metagames analyses, the term BellyBurden is accepted as referring to the combination of Belly Drum and Unburden.
• VGC-specific Terms
  • In VGC analyses, the term Restricted Pokemon is accepted as referring to the group of specific Pokemon one can only use one of on a team in specific formats. For Pokemon that are not included in this group, the term non-Restricted Pokemon is accepted.
  • In VGC analyses, the term IronPress is accepted as referring to the combination of Iron Defense and Body Press.
  • In VGC and Doubles analyses, the term self-trigger (self-triggered, self-triggering) is accepted as referring to "the act of activating its one's own ally’s item or ability".

 

[longhiep341]

I'd like to propose IronPress as a coined term for Iron Defense (Maybe also Acid Armor and Cotton Guard) + Body Press. The combination is fairly common and is already used unofficially.

rabia edit: yep

 

[Rabia]

re Tera terms:

Tera Flying Roaring Moon, Roaring Moon can use Tera Flying, Roaring Moon can Terastallize into the Flying typing, Roaring Moon's Flying Tera type

re: Palafin

Palafin-H realistically covers all instances because the base forme is wholly irrelevant, but "Palafin's ability turns it into Palafin-H" would work I suppose

re: Paldean Tauros

Paldean Tauros(-A/B), where no suffix = Fighting-type, -A = Aqua Breed = Water-type, and -B = Blaze Breed = Fire-type.

re: Tatsugiri

Tatsugiri(-D/C/S), where -D = droopy, -C = curly, and -S = stretchy. Since the formes are not relevant to singles, just Tatsugiri suffices for those formats.