Thread: Equal BST Metagame
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Old Apr 18th, 2012, 8:46:39 AM   #1
zyrefredric
 
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Join Date: Jun 2008
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Mandaue City, Philippines
Default Equal BST Metagame
Finally, we can all play this meta! Those who want to try their hand at it, head over here http://play.pokemonshowdown.com/~~du...o-ip.org/lobby.

Choose Equal BST in the format. Also, when you are using the teambuilder, the changed stats are no reflected, but it does work. You can check out the new stats here. https://public.sheet.zoho.com/public...bst-metagame-1.


VS

There are many reasons why the above match-up would never happen in a competitive scene. The two differ in typing, abilities, base stat distribution, movepool, and most importantly, base stat total or BST. Arceus currently has the highest BST of 720, while Sunkern has the lowest of only 180. All other Pokemon's BST falls in between these values. The pair above is the extreme, but I'd argue that base stat total is THE biggest determining factor that makes or breaks a Pokemon. Out of 600+ Pokemon, around only a third is usable simply because of this huge difference in BST. What if all Pokemon have the same BST while retaining all its other aspects?

This is what "Equal BST Metagame" is all about. Each Pokemon's stats were recalculated such that all of them will have the same BST. This is how it was done:
  • Each of the Pokemon's stats are multiplied by (720/BST).
  • Since this makes some stats greater than 255 (which is the highest a stat could ever be), with Chansey having a base HP stat of 400, all stats are then multiplied by (255/400), and then rounded off.
  • When the new BST's were calculated, they range from 457 to 462, with 459 as the median. To make them all of the same BST, the HP stat is adjusted to get a final BST of 459 for all Pokemon.
  • Below are the stats. They're also in this spreadsheet.

...


Top 10 Highest Attack:


Top 10 Highest Special Attack:


Top 10 Highest Statistical Defense:


Top 10 Highest Statistical Special Defense:


Top 10 Fastest Pokemon:



KEY DIFFERENCES
The general question is: Would a metagame where all Pokemon are of the same BST be an enjoyable and worthwhile metagame? Let's look at the major differences between this proposed metagame and the one we have now:
  • All Pokemon are differentiated only by their typing, abilities, movepool and stat distribution. That means even Ratatta may be a better Choice Bander than Snorlax, or a Sunkern could have advantages over a Grass Arceus.
  • In the normal metagame, virtually all NFE's are out-rightly outclassed by its evolution almost solely because of BST. This is not the case for Equal BST Metagame, where most NFE's usually have more specialized stat distributions. In connection, this means it's not just some 200+ Pokemon that could be used effectively. Instead, all 669 Pokemon (including all formes, and Uber legendaries) are useable, simply because they all have the same BST.
  • Although the metagame does not exist yet, it's clear why Eviolite should be banned. Giving all the pre-evos a +1/+1 defenses gives them higher effective BST which screws up the whole point of this meta. Under the same principle, it is up for disccusion whether a ban is necessary for the following items as well: DeepSeaScale, DeepSeaTooth, Light Ball, Lucky Punch, Metal Powder, Quick Powder, Soul Dew, Stick and Thick Club.

RISE OF THE NFE's
If you go through this thread, one of the comments is that in this metagame, pre-evos are almost always better than their evos. In the Top 10 list of highest stats, most of them are pre-evos, such as Cranidos, Solosis, Metapod, Happiny and Magikarp. This can be attributed to their higher stat ratios. Evolved Pokemon usually have balanced, thus underwhelming, stats. Looking over the stats alone, one could say Gastly outclasses Gengar. But would it be true to say that in this meta, pre-evos generally outclass their evos? That is certainly not the case. Below are the characteristics that differentiate them, allowing each to be usable/viable despite the other.
  • Differences in Typing
  • Differences in Abilities
  • Differences in Movepool

DIFFERENCES IN TYPING
Some Pokemon change typing upon evolution, and simply because of this, the pre-evo would not completely outclass its evolution. For example, Swablu (67-59-89-59-111-74) and Altaria (70-66-84-66-98-75) have very similar stats, but in terms of bulk, Swablu outclasses its evolution. However, because of the change in typing, Altaria still has the upper-hand (Dragon-Flying is arguably better than Normal-Flying. Here is a list of all Pokemon who changes typing upon evolution:
...


DIFFERENCES IN ABILITIES
Some Pokemon families have different abilities among them. An extreme example is Numel and Camerupt. Although they share the same typing and similar stats and movepools, their abilities are completely different. Numel has Oblivious, Simple or Own Tempo, while Camerupt has Magma Armor, Solid Rock, Anger Point. This allows them to serve completely different roles. Below is a list of Pokemon families with differences in abilities. Note that abilities they have in common are omitted from the list.
...


DIFFERENCES IN MOVEPOOL
Some evolved Pokemon have superior movepool over their pre-evos, such as Butterfree and Gyarados, and are thus not outclassed. FOr others, the differences in movepool are minimal, but sometimes crucial in choosing whcih Pokemon to use. For example, take the Abra (38-30-22-155-81-133) and Alakazam (52-47-42-126-80-112) case. By stats alone, Abra wins hands down. However, looking into their movepools and you'll see Alakazam has moves Abra doesn't: Confusion, Disable, Focus Blast, Future Sight, Giga Impac, Hyper Beam, Kinesis, Miracle Eye, Psybeam, Psycho Cut and Recover. It's not much, except for that Focus Blast. Abra would have to settle for the weaker HP FIghting, while Alakazam had 120 BP fighting move, and a free Hidden Power slot. Is this enough for Zam to escape Abra's shadow? I'd say we will not know for sure unless we get to play in this metagame.


SOME CALCULATIONS

The first time I saw the stats, I thought: "Woah, some of these Pokemon have rocket-high attacking stats! Shedinja, Cranidos, Carvanha unleash powerful physical assaults, while Solosis, Abra, and Gastly take care of the special side. It's hard to imagine anything able to take attacks from them.!" Well at least, that's what I initially thought. But when I decided to make some calcs, and it turns out it's not that bad.

Shedinja @ Focus Sash
Ability: Wonder Guard
Adamant; 252 Atk / 252 Spe
~ Swords Dance*
~ Shadow Sneak
~ X-Scissor
~ Sucker Punch
Shedinja stands out with a frightening base 175 Attack stat. With Wonder Guard granting it immunity to many attacks, it's not that hard to get a Swords Dance, netting himself 986 Attack. With Shadow Sneak / Sucker Punch priority, facing this guy seems a futile task. However, such is not the case, as the calcs show below:
sample calcs

Abra @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Adamant; 252 SpA / 252 Spe
~ Psychic / Psyshock
~ Shadow Ball
~ Charge Beam
~ Hidden Power Fire / Ice
Abra is very notable for having the best special sweeping stats, with SpA and Spe base stats of 155 and 133, respectively. It may seem that it outclasses Alakazam entirely, but it missed out Focus Blast, which is a big thing. Note that because it does not have Focus Blast, the pink blobs Happiny (and evos) and even Cleffa stops it entirely if it opts to use Psychic over Psyshock. But even with Psyshock, there is a always a counter depending on its Hidden Power of Choice:
sample calcs

Choice Banded, Adamant, 252 Atk EVs, Head Smash from a Cranidos with base Attack stat of 164 is probably the strongest Physical attack one will ever face in this meta. It's so strong, that out of 665 Pokemon to choose from, only 19 Pokemon can avoid being 2HKOed! Thankfully each of them can retaliate well enough.
each calc assumin 252 EV's in HP and Def, with +Def nature

As of now, I'm still researching how to put up this meta. I've formally proposed this both to Pokemon Online and Pokemon Showdown, and am awaiting for feedback.
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Want to PLAY a brand new metagame? Visit this Equal BST Metagame thread and tell us what you think.

Ever tried A Monotype Take on the OU Metagame? Visit the thread and share your experience.
Last edited by zyrefredric; Nov 15th, 2012 at 10:15:39 PM.
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