nominees are in
mostly alphabetical order!
stole doug's stylish format (how influential of him)
Best OU Battler - Earthworm, husk, Loki
All three are consistently great, creative, and understand how to build teams + play the game better than pretty much anybody else. When it comes down to it, these are the three players that make me think the most when I battle them, and are probably my top three players of this generation. For this category, I have to give a shout-out to imperfectluck; one of the most dedicated, patient, and smart players I've come across.
Best UU Battler - Eo Ut Mortus, Lemmiwinks MkII, Loki
Mortus is a monster on the UU ladder 365 days of the year, and Lemmiwinks is one of the most creative and knowledgeable players of the metagame. That last boy is a beast...
Best Ubers Battler - Atticus, Jibaku, -Mind-
While not everyone knows it, Atticus is one of the most consistently dangerous players in all of the uber metagame! Jibaku is responsible for almost singlehandedly popularizing uber stall, his sets can be seen on many teams, and most importantly he's a strong player himself. Until a few months ago, Mind was king of the uber ladder for as long as I can remember. He has also won Smogon Tours, and many more people have won or made it to the finals using his teams.
Best Tournament Player - Earthworm, Panamaxis, reachzero
Earthworm is one of the most active tournament players, and it's not really surprising when you see the success he has. He has one of the best tournament match win percentages of 2009, and tied for the most wins, if you count Oceania's World Cup victory. While reachzero doesn't quite have a top win ratio, his success is undeniable, as he also tied for most tournaments won. reachzero can always be counted on to make late appearances in the tournaments he joins. Panamaxis may not have as many tournament wins as the others, but he boasts one of the best win ratios of 2009, and is one the most consistently strong tournament players of the year, which is just as important as total wins (as long as you win some, which he has!), in my opinion.
Best Ladder Player - imperfectluck, Kevin Garrett, Krack
If you asked me who is first on the OU ladder at any random time, I would bet money that it's ipl without any prior knowledge. ipl has been first on every ladder except ubers, and is more dedicated than anyone else I've ever seen. KG is consistently one of the top three OU players, and Krack getting first simultaneously on every ladder is a huge accomplishment. Nah there's no way ipl doesn't win this.
Most Influential Player - Theorymon
Yeah when you pump out more viable sets than there are uber Pokemon every week, and "popularize" complete gimmicks, there can really be no contest for this one lol.
Most Gimmicky Player - Aeroblacktyl, imperfectluck, Theorymon
MoP thinks outside the box with every single team he makes, right down to the entire concept.
Probably because the people in the box banned him.
ipl will use absolutely any set if it fills a needed role on his teams, while I'm convinced that Theorymon will just use absolutely any set regardless.
Biggest Upset (This can be a person or a situation in general) - Atticus defeating Smogon Frontier, Flax reaching Smogon Tour finals, DarkLucario winning Smogon Tour
Yep.
Best Overall Battler - Earthworm, husk, Loki
My OU nominations said everything I need to say about these three. They big.
Nicest User - Earthworm, Jimbo, Serv
I'm not sure Earthworm is capable of wishing harm on anybody, and is one of the nicest people you can talk to. Jiiiiiiiiimmmmmmmmmbbbbbboooooo. Serv has to be the most pleasant person I've ever met.
Wittiest Poster - cookie, Doctor Heartbreak, DougJustDoug
Bandwagon etc.
Most Helpful Poster - Haunter, Jimbo, Jumpman16
Yeah sure why not.
Most Improved User - Heysup
From worst to reversed!
Most Overlooked User - Firestorm, Big Bayou, Teifu
More like underlooked who's with me
Most Approachable User - BlueKirby, darkie, Jimbo
They will hold their titles until someone invents the computer that transfers smells over the internet.
Best Debater - Brain, ColinJF, Tangerine
"One of the most logically consistent individuals I've ever met, he is more than capable of arguing you into a rhetorical corner.", "One of the most logically consistent individuals I've ever met, he is more than capable of arguing you into a rhetorical corner.", I never agree with Tangerine.
Best Discussion Sparker - Aldaron, Deck Knight, Tangerine
Aldaron and Tangerine are two of the biggest proponents of change, and never fail to get people talking. Deck Knight is absolutely the greatest troll I've ever seen, I hope.
Most Influential User - ColinJF, Jumpman16, Tangerine
Makes huge contributions to the forum's features, is probably the most respected programmer on Smogon, and kinda created the program that allows us all to easily battle, as well as the future one. Jump has been the face of the entire suspect process, and has not only made his mark on countless new Battle Tower players, but could probably keep the entire Frontier scene interesting to follow singlehandedly. Tangerine is always looking for things to improve (more like CHANGE sometimes), is one of the most looked-up-to members on smogon, and has influence beyond his status!
Best Overall IRC User - Aldaron, ColinJF, Tangerine
Uhhh active speakers who are always up for discussion and are a best?
Best Overall Smogoner - ColinJF, DougJustDoug, Jumpman16
I see big things in these kids' futures.
Best Congregation Poster - Brain, Luduan, Obi
Can we please just have the forums send Luduan a notification every time Deck Knight posts?
Best Firebot Poster - Big Bayou, cookie, Foreys
if i were someone i would make foreys 9999 posts, cookie 9999 posts, big bayou 9999 posts, glen 9999 posts The Name would be Firebot
Best Stark/Policy Review Poster - Jumpman16, Lee, Lemmiwinks MkII
Best Battle Frontier and Suspect poster; consistently great discussion sparker and generally interesting poster; best UU poster. Can I stop writing now,,,,,
Best Thread of 2009 - A special presentation: cookie travels to the other side,
Hax In Pokemon Battles
Best Trou Thread of 2009 - Corrections for Modding, Future Team Raters,
need IzPack Installation of shoddy battle server info
Best Overall Poster - Big Bayou, DougJustDoug, Jumpman16
Doug's and Jump's posts are some of the most consistently informative and entertaining posts on the forums! Also they're long... this is a good thing! Find me a bad Bayou post (yes this was one of the last nominations left and i just wanted to finish).
Best Shoddy Mod - imperfectluck, Panamaxis, Seven Deadly Sins
They are the only active mods that I've seen on Shoddy lately x)
Best Forum Mod - cookie, Haunter, Legacy Raider
Pretty much keeps Firebot alive at times. Haunter is one of the most active posters in all of Stark, and constantly keeps watch over pretty much every thread. I'm not sure how active LR is currently, but over the past year he has definitely been in the same S.S. Anne as Haunter.
Most Promising New User - Panamaxis
Shows flashes of brilliance in one battle, then makes me scratch my head in the next. However, these questionable decisions are outnumbered heavily by solid play. He is definitely one of the better battlers of this generation, and I believe he can still get better. He's also one of the nicest battlers you'll come across, especially among great players.
Best Non official Tournament - Ban List Tournament, The Late Night Tournament, Pass the Trash
Ban List was run extremely well by die eter, had a very cool concept, and adapting your team every round or two was interesting. While I think I've only played in one LNT ever, it's hard to believe that TAY and co. can keep the themes fresh so consistently. Pass the Trash gets a nod for similar reasons to Ban List, although I didn't join it myself so maybe it was terrible!!
Best Researcher - ColinJF, Mingot
I can't imagine how much time and effort Mingot put into his work cracking the RNG, and it has arguably made the biggest impact on the (un)competitive (kidding!) wi-fi battling scene this side of fourth gen Pokemon's release. Colin not only heads the DP Research Thread, but has compiled nearly everything there is to know about 4th gen mechanics in his work developing Shoddy Battle 2.
Best Contributor - Theorymon
Get some sleep!
Best Artist - cyzir_visheen, Pirika, Rocket Grunt
Rocket Grunt you are the coolest, Pirika seriously made a huge impact on the World Cup experience whether you realize it or not, and I've enjoyed every cyzir drawing I've come across!