Brand New "Videos" Tab

I've just updated and added a brand new Page to the tabs on the top of the site. This one is the "Video" Page, which leads you to my Youtube account. There, I post Pokemon Battle videos, as well as videos about the Pokemon Competitive metagame in general. You should definitely check it out!

It's broken down by the type of battle, be it a Nintendo DS Wifi match or a Pokemon Showdown battle.

Please do enjoy!

Smogon Tier Updates and Black and White 2 Release June 2012: Ubers and OU

As per every 3 month period, Smogon's tiers have been updated accordingly with the cumulative usage stats of the past three months. This means that a few things have moved either up or down depending on how many people are using them in their respective tier.

In addition, with the release of Black and White 2 in Japan (and therefore the release of these Pokemon into the competitive metagame overall), several new Forms, Moves and Abilities have been implemented, providing for a completely new battling experience!

Below are minor analyses for each tier, complete with what's new and what's expected to come in the next three months! I hope you will enjoy...

*Because a lot has changed with these releases, and there is a lot to speculate about, I will be releasing these posts in a series throughout the evening.*


*All tier listings will be updated according to this new data*

Ubers 

 

Nothing was banned to Ubers this month, meaning that the only two additions to the list were the newly released Kyurem Black and Kyurem White forms. This was to be expected, as with their Base Stat Totals amounting to a smashing 700, as well as devastating offensive and defensive stats backed by a good offensive typing, absolutely nothing in OU would be safe from their destruction. These two will likely play out in Ubers as slightly improved versions of Zekrom and Reshiram respectively, and their 170 attacking stats will surely be enough to power through some of the most dedicated walls in the legendary tier.

OU

A lot has been added to OU this time around, meaning that a huge tier shift can be expected in the coming months. First, Keldeo was added to the tier in addition to the new Therian forms of Thundurus, Landorus and Tornadus. All four of these threats will make huge impacts on the metagame for each their own reasons, providing for a significant boost to offensive teams (especially Rain).

These Two to OU, as Predicted 

Four more Pokemon were also added to Overused, these being bumped up from either the UU or BL listings. The first of these include Mew and Deoxys-D, two extremely versatile Pokemon in OU and UU before who are now officially part of the tier. As Psychic types, they score a notable resistance to Fighting type attacks, meaning that most hard-hitters like Infernape, the new Keldeo, and especially Terrakion might have a hard time plowing through these two. Mew also has the potential to learn every single TM, HM and Tutor move in the entire game, which with its greatly balanced base stats across the board means that it will be vastly capable of fitting onto virtually any team imaginable, perfect for filling a variety of roles.

Hail, the New Weather Watchers in OU!

The last two new OUs are Pokemon that are no strangers to this standard scene. In 4th generation, Hippowdon and Abomasnow made a huge impact for their defensive and offensive capabilities, respectively, but it was their automatic weather-casting abilities that ground them in place as two effective supporters. Now, after having both spent some time in UU with offensive beasts like Stoutland and Kyurem, they will try their hand at the new OU metagame, just in time for the release of some new abusers.

How will their stay go? It's safe to say that Deoxys-D and Mew have found new homes in OU, and they won't be leaving anytime in the near (or even distant) future. But Hippowdon and Abomasnow, on the other hand, are different. Again, as these two bring about auto-weather, they are sure to shine as great team supporters, yet with Tyranitar already dominating the tier and Hail never amounting to any game-changing impact, their usability seems to be much more limited than other weather-veterans such as Ninetails and Politoed.

What's more, Sand Stream and Snow Warning have been OFFICIALLY BANNED from UnderUsed and below, meaning that if these two mons were to drop to UU in the next 3 month update, they would not be able to abuse automatic Sand or Hail. These problems are only further relegated by the fact that neither of these two got anything particularly good from either the Dream World or the Move Tutors, so without their main abilities, they're nothing spectacular in Standard.

But I guess we should look at what they can do for teams as a whole, rather than what they themselves are capable of. With Kyurem getting buffs like Roost from the Move Tutors in BW2, we should expect to see a rise in that usage. Also, Mamoswine is as prominent as ever for its ability to revenge kill almost all Dragons and hit just about everything hard in general. Sand also got a big buff with Landorus's new form, as well as Gliscor gaining access to Stealth Rock and Roost with Poison Heal (the horror!). Even though Tyranitar is and always will be the most effective sand summoner in the game, having dual sanders on one team is never a bad idea.

The Rest of the Tier, and the Anticipation of the Forthcoming Storm 

 

Keldeo

Nothing else really noteworthy happened in the last three months of usage for OU. Scizor, Dragonite and Rotom-W remain the Three Kings of the tier, which is by no means a surprise. However, this is not a relevant month for what was added and lost from the tier. Instead, the real deal-maker for all eager battlers remains the release of Black and White 2, which means essentially the release of an entirely rewritten metagame. I've talked extensively about what the new Therian forms might be capable of, and I think it's safe to say that those three and Keldeo will alone reshape the metagame, forcing the rise and fall of many different Pokemon in order to keep them in check. Jellicent is expected to be the prime Keldeo-stopper, while Mamoswine is great for taking out the other three.

On a different note, some veteran OUs just got more fearsome. Ferrothorn now has the capability to run Stealth Rock, Spikes and Leech Seed all on the same set, meaning his utility just skyrocketed. Kyurem and Volcarona also both got Roost from the Move Tutors, meaning that their Stealth Rock weakness now takes a back seat to their offensive dominance.

Some other neat, noteworthy additions include Terrakion acquiring Stealth Rock, increasing its usability as an extremely threatening wall-breaker that can now support its team.

Breloom now has access to Technician as an ability, meaning that with Swords Dance, Spore, and Mach Punch's better coverage than Bullet Punch, it is now optimized as a better (at least offensively) version of Scizor. That is terrifying considering how amazing Scizor already is.

Reuniclus also now has Regenerator, while Conkeldurr gains the three elemental Punches (Ice, Fire, Thunder...). Neither of these are huge additions, as Reuniclus could probably make better use of Magic Guard, and Conkeldurr already has all the coverage it needs with Payback and Stone Edge, but their novelty and ability to outdo most of these two Pokemon's most common counters make them worthy of a mention.

And lastly, but not conclusively, Haxorus now gets Superpower and Aqua Tail, while Tornadus picks up Heat Wave. This is great news, as both of these boasted supreme power with just their STAB moves alone. Now with these particular moves for coverage, you can expect to see their usage go up a bit (though possibly not TOO much). 

Pokemon Black and White 2: Move Tutors Part 1

It's also been confirmed, with the extreme amount of information about the games being revealed at the moment, that the Move Tutors make a return in BW2. This was expected, as the past two third-series games have implemented the teachers of attacks.

The list hasn't changed much from the 4th gen set, including a few minor additions such as Dual Chop and Electro Web (for a complete list, click here).

Because not many of the Move Tutor moves are different from Platinum or HGSS, a lot of the older Pokemon have stayed the same. However, a few, like Gliscor, now have access to these moves with their new Dream World ability, meaning that the poison scorpio can now utilize Stealth Rock and Roost with Poison Heal. For this reason, Gliscor will without a doubt remain one of the best physical walls in the entire game.

Below are a few other Pokemon that receive noteworthy additions. This is by no means a complete list. If you'd like a complete list, you may go here.

Overused  

Haxorus Now More Deadly

Haxorus is without a doubt one of the most powerful physical threats to ever tread OU. Its Dragon typing gives it access to the most powerful Outrage in the tier, and its Mold Breaker ability allows it to hit Levitating Steel types for excellent coverage. But despite this, it's always lacked the supreme movepool that things like Dragonite and Salamence get. It was walled entirely by Skarmory and Gliscor, and Brick Break was never enough to threaten Ferrothorn completely.

Thanks to Black and White 2's tutors, however, Haxorus now gets Superpower and Aqua Tail, two amazing coverage options that will allow it to hit everything in the game for heaps of damage. Additionally, its solid typing and powerful Aqua Tail make it an unexpected, yet terrifying, Rain Sweeper to come in the new metagame. Be on the lookout for this beast of beasts, for he's only gotten better this time around.

Volcarona to Perch at the Top of the Metagame 

 Everyone's favorite Special Bug has also gotten significantly better (yeah, I know, I'm scared too). By  now having access to Roost, Volc now has the reliable recovery it's always lacked to go with its great bulk and game-commanding offenses. 

Roost now allows you to forgo Resto Chesto in terms of recovery, giving the flaming moth the opportunity to heal off Stealth Rock and other prior damage without being put to sleep. This gives Volc more turns to setup and more turns to wipe the floor with your opponent's team. 

 The New Superpowers 

Haxorus wasn't the only thing to acquire Superpower. Other new noteworthy wielders include Durant and Stoutland, two great sweepers of last game that just weren't top class. Now that they have Superpower though, you can surely expect that to change.

A lot of other prominent threats have acquired powerful moves as well. I will attempt to do analyses on as much as I can, but for now this is it!

I hope you've enjoyed this pseudo-speculative thread! Expect more to come.

Pokemon Black and White 2 Spotlight: New Pokemon Forms, Part 1

Pokemon Black and White 2 have been released in Japan! This means that we will now be receiving a massive influx of information about the new games. As such, I've decided to compile a few new sections complete with freshly revealed details about the upcoming games to anticipate their release in the U.S. and the European countries. In this first post I will cover some new Pokemon forms introduced in these games, with speculation as to how I think they will contribute to both the casual playthrough of the games and its competitive counterpart. So, without further yammering, let's get into the forms!

Black and White Reshiram

Introduced as the first new forms of the Black and White generation, these two depictions reveal the fusion of Black and White's star players, Reshiram and Zekrom, with their triadic counterpart Kyurem.

How They Look: 

These two forms definitely see an improvement from the previously basic dark and light complexions of the Dragon superstars; there is now color, armor and a whole lot of intricate detail laced into the bodies of the beasts, ranging from the larger, ice-crushing claws of Zekrom's fusion to the burning, blade-like wings of Reshiram's. What's even cooler is the whole idea of fusion, something rarely ever explored in Pokemon except in the meager forms of Mantine or Accelgor and Escavalier. This allows for the balance between dark and light to be disrupted, giving each iteration a sort of power they didn't have before. They have been imbibed with pieces of Kyurem's armor, all the while retaining their color scheme from before. Their faces even match Kyurem's now! Overall, I think the aesthetic design of these new forms look amazing. If I thought Zekrom was cool before, I can't wait to see what Black Kyurem can do for me.

What They Lose and Keep: 

It has been revealed that both of these forms will retain Kyurem's Dragon/Ice typing, meaning that they lose out on the boosted power from moves like Fusion Bolt and Fusion Flare.

What they gain, however, are the new moves of Ice Burn and Freeze Shock, two Ice attacks that have the potential to Burn and Paralyze the opponent respectively. Both of these moves have 140 Base Power and take two whole turns to function (similar to the moves Sky Attack, Solarbeam, etc). While this isn't a major addition to their arsenal, at least they still look much cooler than before. That's definitely a plus.

Competitive Speculation: 

Another thing that these two godly forces obtain is an INSANE boost in the Base Stat Totals. At 700, they now sit at the second highest BSTs in the entire game. This is nothing compared to the increase in their respective offensive stats. Zekrom, who specialized in Attack in Black and White has fused with Kyurem to agglomerate a massive base 170 Attack stat! This is the second highest in the game, just behind Deoxys's Attack Forme. What this means is that Black Kyurem's Fusion Bolt and Outrage will be dealing an unrivaled amount of damage to anything that comes in its path. Similarly, White Kyurem has a base 170 Special Attack, giving it the same effect from whopping powerhouse moves like Draco Meteor and Fire Blast.

The rest of the stats are almost identical to Kyurem's old listing, with slightly more Defense and slightly less Special Attack than before for Black Kyurem, and an inversion of these for White Kyurem. This means that, while Kyurem was restricted to the BL list in Black and White for the sole purpose of its bad typing, things will very likely be changing when Black and White 2's changes are implemented into the tier structures. 170 Base Attack or Special Attack on a Pokemon with 95 Base Speed and good Defenses is alone to single-handedly take control of the metagame.

Dragon and Ice is still a bad typing overall, but with stats like those and coverage like that, there is no reason for these two not to be Ubers AT ALL.

My Return.

My two month hiatus was a result of an overload of work from school, and now that I am finished for the year (graduating in four days!) I will continue to upload regularly onto this site. I apologize for the great inconvenience and hope to be posting like crazy in the coming months.

Smogon Tier Updates- April

        It's that time again! Smogon has updated their official tiers with the past three months' usage statistics. This means that a few things have moved up or down from their old tier listings, bringing forth an period of new, ever-changing metagames. Let's take a look at what's happening in the Smogon scene below...


        OU had no changes whatsoever, keeping the same 50 Pokemon as the last tier update. It should be noted, however, that...


        Deoxys-Dominator

        The first major, and most interesting change, of the tier listings is Deoxys-D's failure to fulfill many common beliefs and move up to the OU tier out of its own accord. It ended the three-month period with a meager 3.082% usage in OU; just .32% shy of cementing itself in the tier.

        As a result of this, the Smogonites have seen fit to extricate D-D from UU by initiating a hard ban of it to the BorderLine scene. This means that it can now no longer be used in UU, and is essentially only viable in Standard play.

        What does this mean? Well, now UU has to adapt to yet another loss of one of its most prominent wall/support Pokemon (remember Chansey?). This means that Stall in UU has taken quite the beating. Especially when you consider the next headline in this article.


        Powerhouses No Longer Rarely-Used

        With the loss of Deoxys-D, the Underused scene got a couple of other really efficient players worth noting. Namely, the offensive stars in Honchkrow, Sharpedo and Yanmega. Each of these, with their very dominant movepools and abilities, will likely hold a very high seat in UU in the coming months, blasting through what's left of the walls.

        Conversely, Gligar and Claydol were also added into the tier for Support and Defensive purposes, though each of the aforementioned Sweepers has a way around each.


        RU Offended?

        The Rarelyused has seen only one addition in this tier shift; the arrival of Mesprit, former king of NU. But where RU sees its biggest changes this time around lies in the fact that its own former king and hands-down best Spinner (Claydol) is now gone. With Gligar following suit, this opens up a whole new gate of Offense for the tier's top sweepers. Perhaps we'll be seeing a LOT more of Magneton and Galvantula now that two of the tier's most significant Ground types are no longer.

        So What's Next?
      
        For the next three months, you can expect to see a lot of new threats rise, while old ones fall longingly on their faces. With no real changes to OU this month, it becomes a bit more apparent (and satisfying) that a decently balanced metagame is being reached. It is also interesting to notice that Charizard, Ludicolo and Sawsbuck, three powerful Weather abusers, have all fallen from RU to NU, which gives them playability in just about every single tier. Let's see how these new additions/losses take effect. Feel free to post comments as to how you think these new tiers will stand out, and, as always,

Happy Battling!



**Tiers have now been effectively updated to match these results** 

Competitive Battling Spotlight #35: New Pokemon Thirteen

Hear no evil with Simisage! 

Grass

Tier: NU (as of February 2012)

Stats:

H.P.: 75

Attk: 98

Def.: 63

Sp.A:98

Sp.D: 63

Spe:  101

Abilities:

Gluttony:  A held berry is eaten 50% earlier than normal when holder’s HP is low. This is really only a good ability for some Pokemon. As Simisage’s stats seem to suggest it as more of an offensive Pokemon, things like Sitrus Berry won’t be having too much effect on the set. Furthermore, Leftovers is generally more acceptable. It’s too bad the “pinch” berries (Petaya, Salac, etc) that raise stats in a pinch aren’t released yet in Black and White. Otherwise Gluttony really isn’t that good. But it’s all Simisage has for now.

Overgrow [DW]: Boosts the power of Grass type moves by 50% when HP reaches below 1/3. This is probably the better ability for Simisage, as it will allow for a harder hitting STAB when HP gets low, but unfortunately it is a Hidden Ability and as such is unreleased as of now.

Analysis:

            Simisage really isn’t too awful a Pokemon. Its stats serve it as a nice offensive Grass type, and its movepool compliments it decently well, with enough moves to run somewhat efficient sets.

            The problem with this grassy monkey lies, however, in the fact that it is heavily outclassed by many of today’s most potent Grass type Pokemon in the upper tiers, namely Sceptile, Celebi and Venusaur. The result is an avoidance of using Simisage by most of today’s top competitive battlers, in just about any and every tier available (it isn’t even in the top 150 Pokemon used in NU!). 

            Yet despite each of these downfalls, there still lies some level of usability in this Pokemon. Firstly, 101 base Speed allows for it to outpace a good number of common threats in each tier, while the premier Nasty Plot, and access to decent coverage moves to back its STAB Grass attacks, only furthers this potency. A physical variant can also be tested, as with options like Seed Bomb, Brick Break, Acrobatics and Crunch, a good number of opponents can be caught off guard for a sweep. Lastly, Sage’s support options are not entirely absent, as with moves like Substitute, Leech Seed and Taunt, the base 101 Speed stat can be made great use of to shut down most of NU’s common threats.

             

Potential Sets:

1. Nasty Plot
    6 HP/252 Sp.Atk/252 Spe
    Timid @ Life Orb
    -Nasty Plot
    -Energy Ball
    -Focus Blast   
    -Hidden Power Rock  

            As an offensive Grass type residing in the lower tiers, Simisage will forever be in the shadow of Sceptile, who boasts higher Special Attack, much higher Speed and only slightly lower Attack (but Swords Dance to make up for it). Furthermore, Sceptile has a slightly better movepool than Sage, making it all the more better.

            However, with Nasty Plot, Simisage gets an edge over even Sceptile, being able to boost its reasonable base 98 Special Attack stat to an astronomical 590 (with Timid nature; 648 with Modest). This allows the excellent coverage provided in Energy Ball, Focus Blast and HP Rock to demolish everything in RU and NU that doesn’t outspeed the grass monkey. In short, this set is the one saving grace for Sage, and the only reason to use it on your team in RU and above, where Sceptile would otherwise be supreme.

2. Mixed Hone Claws  
    212 Atk/44 SpAtk/252 Spe
    Hasty @ Life Orb
    -Hone Claws  
    -Seed Bomb
    -Rock Slide  
    -Focus Blast   

            Hone Claws is another great optimizer of the great Sage in NU (Sceptile gets Hone Claws and Swords Dance and the same movepool, so this set isn’t too vital in RU and above). The idea here is to come in against something that can’t damage you much, which isn’t a lot of things, to be honest, then set up a Hone Claws, garnering +1 Attack and +1 Accuracy. The moves again round off coverage extremely well in NU, where very few things can live a hit after a boost or two. Furthermore, Focus Blast will be hitting with near perfect Accuracy after a Hone Claws, and hits harder than Brick Break to boot.

            The EVs are perfect and unique in that they optimize Physical Power and Speed, while still retaining enough Special Attack to oust things that take Super Effective damage from FB like Lickilicky, Absol and Cinccino (though the latter outspeeds). Also, after +1 Attack, Rock Slide OHKOs 248HP/0 Def Articuno as well as 252 HP/252 Def Cryogonal. Of course, Stealth Rock is an excellent aid here as well.

            Lastly, Seed Bomb is there for obligatory STAB and can deal great damage to things that don’t resist it. In short, if used correctly, this set has the potential to pull off a surprisingly high number of sweeps in the NeverUsed tier.

3. Choice Specs  
    6 HP/252 SpAtk/252 Spe
    Timid/Modest @ Choice Specs
    -Leaf Storm
    -Energy Ball    
    -Focus Blast  

    -Hidden Power Rock
    

            While Simisage’s offensive stats are identical, there is one asset in particular that tends to scream for a solely Special spread. This is the powerful move Leaf Storm, which has the potential to decimate weakened and/or non-resistant foes. Its coverage is also not horrible in NU, so with Simisage’s great Speed and power, a lot of things will be terrified to switch in, giving you full command of the battle.

            As always, the last three moveslots are occupied by the obligatory coverage, and with a Choice Specs donned, even these moves will be smashing through things not designed to take Special hits.

4. Physical Hone Claws   
    6 HP/252 Atk/252 Spe
    Jolly @ Life Orb/Leftovers /Flight Gem
    -Hone Claws  
    -Seed Bomb    
    -Rock Slide  
    -Brick Break/Taunt/Substitute/Acrobatics

            While the Mixed Hone Claws set is built to outdo opponents regardless of their defensive stature, the Physical Hone Claws spread is here to optimize outright Attack damage. Seed Bomb and Rock Slide have nice power and coverage after +1 (and Rock Slide will thankfully never miss), and if you’re lucky enough to get up multiple boosts, it’s going to be very difficult for anything to effectively stop you.

            The last move is up for grabs here, as Taunt and Substitute both can prevent status, but Brick Break adds even more coverage to help out. Acrobatics may even be used here with Flight Gem, for a little bit of a surprise factor and to add in on the interesting coverage display.

5. SubSeed   
    40 Hp/216 SpAtk/252 Spe
    Timid @ Leftovers
    -Substitute    
    -Leech Seed    
    -Toxic/Taunt   
    -Energy Ball    

             The fact that Simisage is fast should never be overlooked, as, being a Grass type, it has one more benefit over many other support Pokemon in NU; Leech Seed. Despite its nearly absent defensive stats, 101 base Speed and enough offensive prowess to force out some walls make this set considerable, as a Substitute can be set up on a switch, and the opponent can be Seeded from there.

            The EV spread is for giving the most HP in the Substitutes, while still attempting to hit hard enough from the Special side.

           

            Conclusion:

            While Simisage will never see usage in RU as long as Sceptile remains, it is definitely not a complete lost cause. High Speed and decent offensive stats capable of being boosted make it a very underrated lower-tier threat, while its movepool is really not too detestable either. Surely in OU and UU you’ll have a very easy time finding a much more efficient offensive Grass type, but in NU Simisage shines more than it’s given credit for. Give it a go on one of your teams, and just watch how surprisingly good it actually can be.

Competitive Usability: 

Pros- 

• 101 base Speed
• Nasty Plot
• Movepool with all the coverage it needs.
• 98 base Attack and Special Attack

Cons- 

• Very poor defenses
• Less Speed, Power and Defenses than most competitively viable Grass types

Verdict:  6.5 out of 10 

            Of the three elemental monkeys in Black and White, Pansage was easily my favorite. It looked like it had a tree growing out of its head, which was cool. However, once it evolved it looked something like an Elvis impersonator; one that was trying way too hard. Admittedly none of the evolutions of these three monkeys are all that outstanding, but Simisage remains as probably the best-looking.

        

Aesthetic Design:  5.5 out of 10