Better people learn from players here rather than that OTHER place…
I really don’t want to see another group of players learning how to churn out the same old cookie cutter teams.
sigh Alright fine. Where do you guys want to start?
not really a good
Hydro Pump
Fire Blast
Solar Beam
Physic
Fissure
Blizzard
Explosion
Thunder
Hyper Beam
Fly
are these still op? I remember people also mashing out Guillotine…lol
for saitsu: any attack that kills in three turns or less
Define OP.
The closest thing on that list was Explosion but that got nerfed by Gen 5.
Psychic is the most reliable move on that list there that hits for good dmg and is accurate. Everything else is situational or not used
Isn’t thunder used on teams that use the rain though? Thunder in rain = 100% accuracy, right?
Okay. Ace, how long have you been out of the loop?
First off, while the majority of those moves are the most powerful of their typetypically without severe drawbacks, their middling accuracy may leave you hurting.
Its a risk vs. reward situation… Most people opt to use the weaker Flamethrower/Ice Beam/Thunderbolt due to being 100% accurate in most cases.
What that means is that on average, you will do more damage with two Thunderbolts over two turns than you would two Thunders over two turns because your chance of missing with Thunder goes up the more you use it. That’s not saying the high power attacks are useless(I use them quite often) but you have to be aware that you could be in a situation in which you need to hit Thunder to win, but miss because of the 70% Accuracy of the move.
There are other situations where the high powered moves are more useful(such as when playing with the Weather effects), but we’ll go over those in a later lesson.
Professor Po out…
Smogon has usage statistics, which are like a secondary tier list.
When I played a few months ago, common teams were centered around Rain or Sand, so TTar or Politoed were on almost every team. Then you have a weather abusers or things that generally benefit from the weather; generally good pokemon, like Scizor, Terrakion, or Mamoswine; checks to the big weather abusers and notable attackers; and optionally, a hazard setter and a spinner to get rid of hazards.
Basically, you have to account for the most common and powerful pokemon and have a thing or two that can check them or you will get steamrolled. For example, Specs Keldeo and Latios are liable to KO something every time they switch in if you don’t have very specific pokemon on your team to check/counter them.
I am confused as to why Hydro Pump and Hydro Cannon exist together when they are more or less the same thing, with Hydro Cannon being better with just 10% less accuracy to it.
Did they not want to change hydro pump’s properties because it’s a classic?
Yes but that is why i said situational. You need rain out to make the most of thunder and its crap accuracy. Sun comes out and you’re screwed.
Pokemon is like a turn based marvel match. Your team needs to be well formed and you need to have great knowledge of what your team can do as well as what you are going up against. Reading moves helps a lot but if nothing else, basic fundamentals all day son. I will provide my years of knowledge later once im offthe clock. @white shadow and ephidel err whatever his name is… Travis can help too. Those guys know more than me.
Ok so that was hyper beam now I remember it. Feel stupid now.
Just think fuck smogon and you’ll be ok.
.
Hydro Cannon is a Hyper Beam variant (recharge turn), so there’s almost no reason to ever use it. Also, only starters can learn Hydro Cannon.
Yeah Hydro Cannon is just a Fanservice move along with Frenzy Plant, Volt Tackle and…whatever the Fire variant is, I can’t remember.
Blast Burn is the Fire variant… and no one will ever use it in a serious match unless they are trolling or playing the single player adventure.
Also, as much as I give them shit, Smogon is good for seeing what the typical sets are that are being run for each Pokemon. Their site articles are helpful and chock full of info.
That said, stay far, far, FAR away from the forums… Only GameFAQS is a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.
I think you guys that are new to competitive should maybe tell the guys here what you know about battling and ask questions, because there’s so much to cover that we’d be here forever trying to discuss every nuance of a competitive battle.
Volt tackle is actually a Double Edge variant (recoil). It’d pretty decent if more pokemon (Electivire and Eelektross come to mind) could learn it.
I’d like to see Hyper Beam and its variants go back to gen 1 mechanics. Maybe the moves would finally see some use then.
Alright. How about the basics behind switching (switching into the best matchup) and counter switching/prediction (predicting that your opponent is going to predict your switch and thus you switch into the best matchup by predicting your opponent’s switch)?
Agreed on the Hyper Beam mechanics. Either that, or up their power to Self-Destruct levels. If these attacks are so powerful that I have to miss a turn resting, then I should be dropping fools.
No reason for Draco Meteor/Leaf Storm/Overheat’s stat drops to just be easily removed by switching, whilst 10 more power leaves me completely helpless… If they’re finishing moves, then let me finish fools.
Make the reward worth the risk.
Something interesting I learned is that Thunder/Hurricane/Blizzard’s accuracy in their respective weathers make them Aura Sphere accurate-- i.e. they hit regardless of accuracy/evasion modifiers…
That’s just a simple read of your opponent and the context of the situation. Most important part of Competitive Battling is knowing when to switch and knowing who to switch to.
Now I hate smogon probably more than anyone, but it’s still a good place to go for concise info on competitive pokemon (i.e. stats, movepools, specific item effects, etc.). Just pretend that the atrocious forums don’t exist and try not to x-copy standard sets and you’ll be good.
Remember fledgling Pokemon battlers need to understand the basics first to fully comprehend why most smogoners are anal-retentive tools.