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Ask a Question Thread - READ FIRST POST

R

Ryuken

Steel User
I have been pondering a question for quite a while and I wanted a couple of honest opinions if possible:
Generally speaking, I am a very unlucky person, to the point where a small chance of failure becomes a set result. So I have been wondering, is it possible for someone like me to be at least decent in the competitive scene?
Sure I can always run gimick moves like lucky chant and 100% AC moves but they come at a huge disadvantage and you can't really run them in the current metagame (HP Fight Lando/Gengar Lol, or for a less dramatic comparison, Flamethrower Char-Y or Psycho Cut M-Gallade ).

I need an honest opinion that puts aside things like skill and team building, It would be greatly appreciated as It will stop me from loosing more of my time. (It doesn't really matter how many predictions I can make if I'm getting Statused/Critted or just plain miss every time).
 
KillerDraco

KillerDraco

Well-Known Member
Ryuken said:
I have been pondering a question for quite a while and I wanted a couple of honest opinions if possible:
Generally speaking, I am a very unlucky person, to the point where a small chance of failure becomes a set result. So I have been wondering, is it possible for someone like me to be at least decent in the competitive scene?
Sure I can always run gimick moves like lucky chant and 100% AC moves but they come at a huge disadvantage and you can't really run them in the current metagame (HP Fight Lando/Gengar Lol, or for a less dramatic comparison, Flamethrower Char-Y or Psycho Cut M-Gallade ).

I need an honest opinion that puts aside things like skill and team building, It would be greatly appreciated as It will stop me from loosing more of my time. (It doesn't really matter how many predictions I can make if I'm getting Statused/Critted or just plain miss every time).
Click to expand...

Short answer, yes.

Slightly longer answer, yes, because your luck (as a general statement, not meaning you specifically) is never quite as bad as it may seem. It's very easy to believe your own bad luck exceeds everyone else's; after all, whose instances of bad luck do you see most often? Your own. But believe me when I say that "hax" afflicts EVERYONE. The issue is that you tend not to see it as often because you're not viewing every battle that every Tom, Dick, and Harry plays. Not to mention it's very easy to remember all the bad luck you get, but it's just as easy to forget the good luck you get as well. The one missed Focus Blast tends to stand out in your memory more than the two Focus Blasts that do hit.
 
Rocxidi

Rocxidi

The Jim Reaper
Assuming no Hidden Power Grass, what is the strongest special move Greninja can hit Rotom Wash with?
 
M

Mye

Someone has to win..
xDIRCIOx said:
Assuming no Hidden Power Grass, what is the strongest special move Greninja can hit Rotom Wash with?
Click to expand...

Pretty sure it is dark pulse.
 
P

pokefan123456

Member
How do I even check IVs and get the IVs to what I want?

I will make the other changes.

also, i will make the move changes as suggested.
 
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Onyx Tanuki

Onyx Tanuki

Ma! There's a weird 'nuki in the yahd!
pokefan123456 said:
How do I even check IVs and get the IVs to what I want?

I will make the other changes.

also, i will make the move changes as suggested.
Click to expand...

Getting perfect IVs can be kinda difficult until you start getting into breeding, and that's a whole other can of worms there. Beyond that, there's calculators online that can give you potential IV spreads. I will say though that Vanillite isn't entirely right, as it's not necessary to get 31 in EVERY stat. It's helpful, yes, but for most pokemon it's good enough just to have the important stats there. It's easiest for speedy offensive pokemon, since you'll only really care about them having Speed and whatever attacking stat they use. For defensive pokemon, it's more important to ensure they have perfect HP, Def, and SpDef IVs, though again having 31 across the board is useful.

There's two situations I can think of where you actually don't want your pokemon with 31 in a stat though, each dealing with specific moves. First would be anything that exclusively uses Special attacks, which would prefer to have 0 IVs for Att to minimize the damage you'd take from Foul Play. The other is if you have a slow pokemon with Gyro Ball, in which case you'll be going for 0 Speed IVs. In both cases though you're purposefully aiming to get the respective stat as low as it can possibly go, so 0 is still sort of a "perfect" stat.
 
I

imran3

Nothing much...
Just a question. Does Serebii have any tier groups like Smogon. Eg. Ou, Uber, Uu, Ru, Nu and BL.
 
Mr. Reloaded

Mr. Reloaded

Cause a pirate is free
imran3 said:
Just a question. Does Serebii have any tier groups like Smogon. Eg. Ou, Uber, Uu, Ru, Nu and BL.
Click to expand...

We don't have our own tier list.

We just follow Smogon tiers.
 
I

imran3

Nothing much...
OK. Can you please give me a link to the list. I've gotta use UU pokes.
 
D

DaltonRaccoon

New Member
Hi! I'm basically a newbie. I've played a few Pokemon games before (Red/Blue/Yellow, Diamond/Pearl) but I'm basically totally new to the competitive scene. I enjoy a lot of the changes to the game though and I'm interested in seriously pursuing some PVP this time around.

What is some general advice you can offer me, as a new competitor? I'm not looking for builds, so much as just some insight into the overall meta, and what kinds of newbie mistakes to avoid, stuff like that. Just stuff to get me started on the right path so that my first few attempts at competitive play aren't COMPLETELY embarrassing.
 
P

pwnswitchclik

Alakazaminator
I'm curious about something: what is the importance of a Contrary Snivy?
 
KillerDraco

KillerDraco

Well-Known Member
pwnswitchclik said:
I'm curious about something: what is the importance of a Contrary Snivy?
Click to expand...

Serperior has always had decent bulk and speed, but sadly its offenses have been underwhelming. However, with the addition of Contrary, it suddenly gets a potent offensive weapon in Contrary Leaf Storm. Now, it has a base 130 power attack which, thanks to contrary, gives it +2 SpA every time it's used. This means it becomes progressively harder to wall, since each Leaf Storm ramps its SpA up even higher. Mind you, it still had some noteworthy flaws that'll prevent it from being standard, but it definitely will make it more viable in lower tiers.
 
M

Mye

Someone has to win..
Kinda. Even with contrary leaf storm I expect serperior to remain firmly in RU. While it does gain a nasty plot boost every time it uses that move, its base sp.Atk and defenses are still pitiful even in the lower tiers (its sp.atk is 15 base points higher than spinda's attack, and 75/95/95 defenses are pretty "meh"). The one thing it has is speed, as base 113 is ridiculously fast which'll allow it to use specs for more power. With all this in mind, I'm thinking we'll only ever see this one set being used:

Serperior @ Choice Specs (Contrary)
Modest/Timid, 252SpAtk/252Speed/4SpDef
-Leaf Storm
-Energy Ball
-Hidden Power Ground
-Dragon Pulse
 
Mr. Reloaded

Mr. Reloaded

Cause a pirate is free
Contrary's only gonna be a niche set (not enough to cause tier jumps imo)

Serperior
Nature: Timid
Ability: Contrary
EV's 252 Speed 252 Sp.atk 4 HP
Leaf Storm
Hidden Power Fire/Ground/Rock
Giga Drain/Dragon Pulse
Leech Seed/Dragon Tail

It'll be a fun new toy but I dunno about being "good".
 
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A

Aeon™

Rock Ultimate
Vern said:
Any UU-viable Grass Type Sweepers?
Click to expand...

You could try Swords Dance or Calm Mind Verizion. I can't vouch for how good it actually is because I've never played UU, but a quick glance at the tier list tells me that it's one of the only grass type sweepers I saw. There's also Shaymin and Celebi, but those tend to be bulkier mons in my experience. Also I used Virizion back in BW2 OU and like it a lot.

I actually have a question of my own, though. What are some solid counters for Azumarill?
 
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