Hey everyone I'm HardCore and I would like to introduce everyone to an idea of mine called Pokémon Bash Sessions. If you're a fan of theorymoning, predicting wins, and having deep conversations about the metagame then this is the tournament for you! This event was created around the concept of sportscasters and Sports fans coming together and discussing who will be the winner of a sports match! Why not do it with Pokémon too! This tournament is really more of a writing competition to see who can support their side with the most finesse, and eloquence while still writing off of experience!
How it works:
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Each contestent will have to pick a side to support then write a paragraph (5-10 sentences) that eloquently convince people that the Pokémon team or Pokémon is either going to win or is most effective in OU. For the final round competitors can have a maximum of two 5-10 sentence paragraphs, because whole teams will be used in the final round! * There will only be a team match ups in the final round or as much as the tournament director wishes.*
After you have written, checked, and submitted your paragraphs to me or other judges in private messages(for this small scale tournament I will be the only judge) then it will be rated on a scale of 1-10. Once everyone has submitted there paragraphs judges will post the paragraphs here with the ratings and there notes. Judge Notes simply point out errors or positive creative writing skills that they like. If you are wondering why you lost that round or got a great rating then refer to these notes. Positive things that will impress the judges may include damage calculations, extremely well worded sentences, and sophisticated vocabulary that is perfectly used. Errors will include misspells, punctuation errors, bad language, run on sentences, etc. *Remember to keep your writing as real as possible. We want to see good grammar and great writing, but remember it's all about quality not quantity. So you don't need a ton of calculations or big words or else it just looks like you're trying too hard.*
Eliminations:
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Eliminations will happen just like in a normal tournament. Half of the contestants will be eliminated each round until there is a top 2-8 depending on the amount of contestants. Each round will have a different two Pokémon or Pokémon Teams. Based on the amount of people who are in the successful half of each round will determine what Pokémon wins the argument. It's like defending someone in court whether they are guilty or not you must defend your client. So feel free to pick and support which ever Pokémon or team you wish! The winner of the tournament will be decided by which team in the final round wins an actual best of three battle. The battlers will be either the finalist or a battler they choose to represent them!
Here is an example from the winner of the first round Pokemon0078. My judgement is at the bottom of the example. Round 1 was Celebi VS Mew and Pokemon0078 chose Celebi.
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Celebi has many clear advantages over Mew. They both possess the same stats, with great bulk on both sides and decent offenses, as well as a solid base 100 in Speed. However, Celebi can abuse its offenses with Nasty Plot and two excellent STABs in Giga Drain and Psychic, allowing it recovery just by attacking and giving great coverage. Celebi is resistant to Water- and Electric-type moves, which is huge in the current metagame that is dominated by powerful Water-type attackers and Thunders from the like of Thundurus-T, usually under rain. Celebi also has Natural Cure, which allows it to easily switch out and cure itself of any harmful status problems, giving defensive sets a major advantage over Mew. In addition, Celebi has access to Leaf Storm, giving it a nuke of a STAB move whereas Mew only has the average Psychic. While Mew may have a superior movepool, it has trouble doing any one thing effectively due to many of its options being outclassed by other Psychic-types, such as Calm Mind by Reuniclus and Celebi itself, as well as Baton Pass by users of SmashPass like Smeargle and Gorebyss, and even competes with Celebi for a teamslot as a Nasty Plot sweeper. While Mew is the jack of all trades and the master of none, Celebi is the jack of few trades and the master of many, being able to fill any role it wants to and effectively. Celebi can be a devastating Nasty Plot sweeper, an excellent special attacker with Choice Specs or Life Orb that can fit great in a VoltTurn core due to its Water-type resistance, a hard-to-break wall, a revenge killer, or even a combination of its offensive and defensive capabilities with its signature Tinkerbell set. It is almost impossible to guess what Celebi will do when it comes out on the field, and that is its main advantage over Mew, which is relegated to either support or Baton Pass roles in most cases, giving Celebi the nod over Mew for most any team.
Judge Notes: 8.5-10
I really like this paragraph more than most. It has a great flow and a great level of diction. I even enjoyed the way you added the phrase, “Celebi is the jack of few trades and the master of many.” You explain how Celebi is better than Mew and several ways that are valid. What I didn’t like is how you refer to Grass and Psychic as good stabs. Instead I would have written they make great stabs when partnered with moves like Earth Power and Hidden Power Fire. Teamslot was your only typo, which isn’t too bad. All around you were down to earth and used great phrases and colorful word choices, which made your work really stand out to me.
**New Tips and Stuff to Remember**:
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Remember this is supposed to be a persuasive essay. You don't have to pick the "better" Pokémon just choose the one that you want. Support it as best as you can, but don't be boring! What I learned form judging R1 is that this is Pokémon after all. It's not data on the economy, so feel more than free to add phrases and terms that add flavor and color to your paragraph. A paragraph with high diction does not have to be work and no play. ( See what I did there?)
Please remember you can use pictures to screen your sets to save room in your paragraph. You can put damage calculations in your work too.
Description:
Pick a Pokémon and describe in a persuasive 5-10 sentenced paragraph how one of them is better. Remember this is taking both Pokémon's capabilities into consideration. So lets not have a one sided argument! You can win this round by eloquently composing a persuasive essay listing the reasons why you're defending one of the Pokémon. Keep the tips I've listed in mind! Good Luck!
You have to get good and lost to find places which cannot be found
While Scizor may be viewed as the ultimate Bug/Steel Pokemon by many, I believe Genesect has many clear advantages over its long established advesary. While both possess the same stabs, Genesect boasts the ability to have better coverage without using situational moves (looking at Superpower and Pursuit on Scizor compared to Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, and Flamethrower), as well as immediately threatening the foe with the ability of getting a Download boost. While it lacks the Piority of Scizor, the reliable coverage and the ability to increase its speed thanks to Rock Polish make up for that. Genesect also boasts unpredicatably, something Scizor lacks. When a Scizor is released, you can bet it will either be Bulky SD or Choice Band. Both of which can be countered with proper play. Genesect, on the other hand, boasts 4 different move sets. The speedy and popular Choice Scarf, the rare but effective Choice Specs, the devasting set-up sweeper that is Rock Polish, or the unexpected but reliable Choice Band set. Genesect also boasts the abiliity to check some of the metagames biggest threats in Thundurus-T, Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, Politoed, Tyranitar, Scizor, other Genesect, Breloom, and a plethora of other Pokemon. All in all, while Scizor is still an amazing Pokemon, I believe Genesect deserves the title as the best Bug/Steel Pokemon.
Ok I've got 3 of 4 paragraphs in (I got most today and one on the edge), so I will post their scores up tomorrow. Tomorrow will also be the beginning of the last round, which I'm changing a tad bit. It will still involve two teams, but the specifics won't be revealed until tomorrow!! It should be up between 5 and 8pm -5 GMT. If only I had a car lol. I will accept PapaBearAds paragraph if he gets it in before I begin judging tomorrow.
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Float like the Cassius swing like the Clay
Youtube- HQHardCore- Great honest commentaries on quality OU battles whether I win or lose!
Ok sorry for the wait. I've just felt lazy towards more paragraphs/ essays since school is in and I practically have been writing one almost everyday or more. In judging these paragraphs I realized that two people have gone over the limit. It could be because they thought this was a 2 paragraph round so I'm being slightly lenient. I judged them based on their first 10 sentences anyway. So here are the results.
Jimbon 5.5 out of 10
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Jimbon - 5.5 out of 10
With the release of Black and White 2, one of Black and White's most exciting prospects was released into the metagame. Introducing Genesect, the new best scouter in the tier. If you thought Scizor was good, then wait until you hear about Genesect. People often debate which is better, the #1 in usage for a long time in Scizor, or the new cool Bug in town that everyone wants to try. There are a lot of benefits Genesect has over Scizor, the main thing being the difference in their stats. Genesect has astounding offensive stats, sporting base 120 Attack and Special Attack. This gives Genesect the ability to run physical and specially orientated sets, heavily factoring to Genesect's diversity and unpredictability. Genesect also supports much better defences than Scizor. This may not be important for a Pokemon that should never have to run a defensive set, but the ability to switch in easier to Draco Meteors and such is very nice. Genesect's movepool is another thing to take into account, the options Genesect can run are countless, notable moves are Ice Beam, Bug Buzz, Flamethrower, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Rock Polish, U-Turn, Iron Head, Hidden Power. This makes it very difficult to predict what set Genesect is running, and even when you see it's entire moveset, you still may be asking yourself whether it is Choice Scarf, Expert Belt or Focus Sash, all of which are fine choices for Genesect. This leads me onto another main advantage of Genesect -- the diversity of viable sets. While Genesect can run many sets, Scizor on the other hand cannot perform as many sets, and is very predictable, with Choice Band being the most common set. This generally makes Scizor pretty easy to play around because if you don't see Swords Dance, it's pretty safe to say it is Choice Banded. Scizor's main role is that of a revenge killer and a scouter, both of which are performed better by Genesect. While Scizor does have the helpful priority that Genesect lacks, Genesect does not need it when it can viably run a Choice Scarf set to revenge opposing attackers. This more than makes up for the loss of priority as Genesect can hit faster foes who would otherwise resist Scizor's priority, essentially nerfing Scizor's role. Not to mention Steel is a pretty horrible offensive type, having a lot of common resists such as Water, Electric and Fire. This is the main downfall of Scizor, as it really does lose to a lot of faster threats, and cannot efficiently revenge everything it needs to. Genesect can actually muscle past its checks, while also being able to hit a lot more Pokemon for harder damage with Genesect's much better coverage. If you were on the fence about Genesect, then this is more than enough reason to use it over Scizor.
Facts: “This may not be important for a Pokemon that should never have to run a defensive set, but the ability to switch in easier to Draco Meteors and such is very nice.”
I actually have a problem with this quote, because most scarf Genesect are Naive nature and the one you’ve linked is too. Therefore the majority of Genesect take more damage from Draco Meteor than Scizor, because Scizor has room for HP evs. Scizor’s hp eats the stab and makes him a better switch in (if he has to) for Dragons. This is a bit in depth however so it won’t really effect your score negatively I just want to point that out.
As for the rest of the 10 sentences excluding your topic sentence for your own benefit you’ve made valid points about why Genesect is better than Scizor. Based on my discernment I feel like this essay is a little bit better than your last one, so you’ll be scored out of 10 but with a -2 deduction for the 22 sentences, which wouldn’t even be justified by a two-5 through 10 sentenced paragraphs.
ThisMysteriousGuy - 7.5- 10
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ThisMysteriousGuy - 7.5 - 10
With the advent of Genesect, a Pokemon who is fairly bulky, has good offenses, good speed, the incredible ability Download,and the awesome Bug/Steel type, it may seem to have a rivalry with Scizor, who doesn’t sport the good speed, Special Attack, or amazing ability Download that Genesect does. However, Scizor is in fact different from Genesect in many different ways and is better than Genesect since it generally much easier to put onto teams. Scizor isn’t really a sweeper and revenge killer like Genesect, it’s more known as a Choice Banded offensive utility Pokemon: It provides very important offensive moves teams tend to need which, when combined with high Attack, good bulk, and Technician make not only for a potent threat, but as a Pokemon that can hold teams together. Scizor is also able to invest more in bulk due to a not very usable speed stat. This might not seem like enough over Genesect however, whose perks still seem to make it the better Pokemon. However, the particular moves Scizor has are more than enough to warrant use over Genesect. First there is Bullet Punch, a very powerful priority move when considering the above factors that give it a boost, and allows it to revenge kill threats such as Choice Scarf Salamence which Genesect cannot due to lesser speed. U-turn is move that Genesect can also use. Despite this, Scizor’s is usually more powerful unless you invest heavily into Attack for Genesect:
252 Atk Choice Band Scizor (+Atk) U-turn vs 192 HP/64 Def Reuniclus: 107.82% - 127.63% Guaranteed OHKO (Assuming the Choice Band set)
4 +1 Atk Genesect U-turn vs 192 HP/64 Def Reuniclus: 75.55% - 89.49% 2 hits to KO (Assuming the Scarf set)
Scizor has Superpower which allows it to deal massive damage with fantastic coverage, specifically destroying the ever present Tyranitar:
Worst case scenario for Choice Band Scizor
252 Atk Choice Band Scizor (+Atk) Superpower vs 252 HP/0 Def Chople Berry Tyranitar: 98.02% - 115.84% 87.5% chance to OHKO
Best case scenario for Choice Scarf Genesect
4 +1 Atk Genesect U-turn vs 0 HP/0 Def Tyranitar: 72.14% - 85.34% 2 hits to KO (Due to Sandstorm messing with Download)
The last move is a very important move to using Scizor over Genesect: Pursuit, which traps Psychic, and Ghost types. Take Scarf Latios for example: Unlike Genesect who can KO him with U-Turn, Scizor can outright checkmate him with Pursuit, meaning he can’t escape his inevitable doom whereas he can simply switch out of Genesect. Even outside of using Choice Band Scizor has Swords Dance on his side, which allows for a deadly threat thanks to having priority in the form of Bullet Punch, Roost, and the powerful STAB and Technician boosted Bug Bite, while Genesect’s option for set up sweeping is Rock Polish, and while it makes him fast, it also makes him frail due to heavy reliance on Life Orb and the lack of reliable recovery, whereas Scizor can afford Leftovers due to the power provided by Swords Dance. In conclusion, while it might seem Genesect has plenty of valuable traits over Scizor thanks to being an all-out sweeper, Scizor still remains a powerful Pokemon that can hold teams together with offensive utility moves.
Judge Notes: 7.5 - 10 (since if the scoring was close to another competitors I might have had to read you and the other top scorers again so this score could have been anywhere form 8 to 10. I’m not a hard grader.)
Typos: 0
Facts: Nothing wrong that I care enough to rebuttal.
Overall: I think this is a good essay that would be close to winning. Unfortunately you also went over the 10 sentence limit. I stopped reading at the sentence after the damage calculations. I counted the calcs as your images. My main problem is that you could have combined more sentences, which you did do for the most part. So you will also receive a -2 deduction from your score. This wasn’t too boring to read and I do like a couple words you added to your entry. It would have been even better if you stuck to the limit. Oh yes and I would hate to not mention that you added facts that I was looking for (Pursuit and Scizor's bulk factor), which without wouldn't put as much proof in your essay.
PapaBearAds - 6 out of 10
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PapaBearAds - 6 out of 10
For a long time Scizor has been THE King of OU, and for very good reasons at that; only one weakness in Fire, sky-high base Attack, an impressive movepool and not to mention it's ability Technician boosting two of his STABs to astronomical levels of ouchy. However, with the coming of BW2 we got a new monster metalbug to deal with, and it's name is Genesect. First and foremost, let's take a look at the attacking stats; base 120 Attack AND Special Attack which is scary enough standing by themselves, when combined with its ability Download which gives it a free +1 to Attack or Special Attack (whichever is more effective against your current opponent Pokémon) it becomes a pure terror of a Pokémon; in stark contrast Scizor has higher a higher base Attack at 130, but has no Special Attack to shout about. When you add into the equation Genesect's decent 99 base Speed, which in comparison to Scizor's at 65 means sweeping and revenging is a hell of a lot easier in general. Apart from attacking stats, the defensive stats of the two are nearly identical; Genesect weighing in at a respectable 71/95/95, with Scizor coming in at 70/100/80, both are relatively bulky, but I must give the advantage to Genesect for taking hits from both sides of the spectrum well. Okay we've seen the stats, but they mean nothing without the tools with which to abuse them; Genesect has so many awesome moves at its disposal it actually becomes difficult to make a decision as to which set to run with; U-Turn, Bug Buzz, Flamethrower, Ice Beam, Thunder(bolt), Giga Drain, Psychic, Quick Attack, Shadow Claw, Iron Head, Zen Headbutt.... the list goes on. Scizor on the other hand has U-Turn, Bullet Punch, Quick Attack, Pursuit, Superpower, Bug Bite, Aerial Ace and Night Slash; worse coverage and pure Physical, nowhere near as impressive as Genesect. In summary, Genesect offers a hell of a lot more than Scizor does. Potentially higher Attack stat with a Download boost, massive Special Attack stat, better base Speed, better defenses, preferable coverage moves and that "surprise" factor that keeps your opponent on edge as they try to guess the set you are running. My hat still goes off to Scizor, what it does it does undeniably well, but I think Genesect has the upper hand in almost all departments.
Judge Notes: 6 out of 10
Typos: 11 sentences... -1
Facts: You almost contradicted yourself a bit, but I noticed that number 1 in OU under his belt does deserve a little something. Also [bold] I’m not a fan of cursing[/bold], but I do slightly appreciate the level of realness. However I did mention specifically that these paragraphs are to have a formal level of diction. The usage of the word ouchy went against that rule too. I won’t count either however against you, because these aren’t things done on purpose.
As far as your information is concerned. I did want to see calculations of some type, but you make your point on that end. I don’t recall anyone mentioning EB Genesect and frankly your information tied in was heavily opinion based. These facts only hit the surface of the argument in my opinion. I liked the more formal words you used and the fact that I could read your level of enthusiasm. You also remembered the accent mark in Pokémon. The overall quality wasn’t as good as in the last round.
pokemon0078 - 9 out of 10
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pokemon0078 - 9 out of 10
Welcome to the OU metagame, a land where the clashes of Pokemon with the same Bug/Steel typing happens daily. You will soon find that the dominant of the most powerful two, Scizor and Genesect, is the latter. Meet Scizor 2.0, aka Genesect, the quirky transformer that boasts everything Scizor wishes it could have, such as a much higher Speed stat and perfect coverage, as well as twin base 120 offenses that Scizor only dreams of emulating with its lone 130 base Attack. Comparing their Choice Scarf sets, you can right away tell that there is no comparison, with Genesect's much higher Speed and ability to revenge kill almost every Pokemon in the OU metagame due to its aforementioned perfect coverage, which just happens to be the famed BoltBeam combination with Flamethrower to roast the few Pokemon that are able to take on the fabled combination. Let's compare their Choice Band sets; even here, Genesect comes out on top, arguably, as it is capable of KOing every single Pokemon that could come in and take its powerful physical attacks, assuming the right prediction, as even its greatest counter, Heatran, has a 97.66% chance of being 2HKOed after Stealth Rock damage by Thunderbolt, while Scizor has multiple Pokemon, such as Skarmory, Bronzong, Jellicent, and Vaporeon, that can take every single one of its attacks under almost any circumstance. You can also think of it this way: every time Scizor comes out on the field, you know it will be running one of two sets, a powerful but very predictable Choice Band set, a Swords Dance set that is almost impossible to setup against most offensive teams, or Choice Scarf is very rare due to being outclassed by Genesect. Now let's see what Genesect is capable of running: a Choice Scarf set that can revenge kill almost every Pokemon in OU, an All-Out Attacker set capable of bluffing a Choice item with an Expert Belt and scaring out opposing Pokemon in fear of it being a Choice Scarf variant, a powerful Choice Band set that can get past every physical wall with Flamethrower and Ice Beam, and even a Rock Polish sweeper capable of plowing through teams if given a single free turn. Now you may ask yourself, if all of my reasoning does not convince you, "But pokemon0078, why aren't you comparing the their best sets, Choice Band Scizor and Choice Scarf Genesect?" and I will gladly be obliged to do so; just from a look at the two, both are revenge killers in their own right, with Scizor's STAB Technician priority Bullet Punch being, understandably, the main reason for its use, and Genesect of course having its Speed boost from its item of choice. Genesect is the better of the two, as Scizor's Bullet Punch lacks the coverage that Genesect's much higher Speed will allow it to smack Pokemon with, and against the right Pokemon, Genesect will have roughly the equivalent of a Choice Band or Choice Specs, just running a Choice Scarf. As you can tell, Scizor has nothing on Genesect, with the latter capable of transforming itself via Download to be ready for any situation that it may be in, and the former being stuck inside its metal structure, unable to change anything and making its advantages null.
Judge Notes - 9 out of 10
Typos:
Facts:
Lets skip everything and go straight to the judging. This paragraph is nearly perfect. the only reason you aren’t getting a 10 out of 10 is because you miss used too many of your colons and semi colons, which allowed you to cram more into your 10 sentences. I’m a fan of long compound-complex sentences, but only when done correctly of course. There are other ways to extend your sentences to even further lengths like using hyphens and various types of clauses. For a 14 year old not only is this paragraph full of life, but it’s full of eloquence. I mean really you almost make me feel bad. At my best I use the following: words of wisdom, King James English, big words, and compound complex sentences. That gives me a certain style, but the amount of color and life you bring to your work is very impressive. I asked Mikel from PS to help me find the one major flaw of your paper, which was the grammar error I mentioned before, and he also felt the same way about the paper. I’d suggest you to write like this all of the time and major or minor in some type of English course. I bet those A’s on your papers come with accolades too.
I encourage everyone to look at this paper and try to have the elements he has in his paper.
Formal Diction
Colorful/ exuberant/ almost flamboyant word choice that isn’t too mature for the sentence.
Keep it real and back up all of your argument with facts!
Utilizing every last sentence/ line you can to get your point across.
Clever sayings
Aug 31st, 2012, 7:23:32 PM
Pokémon Bash Sessions Round 2
VS 
