CAP 15 CAP 4 - Topic Leader Nominations

This is the thread for people to announce their desire to become the Topic Leader (TL) for this creation project. Do not suggest other users. If someone wants to become the TL, they will post on their own, and if they don't have a strong urge to be it then they shouldn't be signing up anyway. The CAP project requires the utmost dedication and a substantial amount of free time, especially to lead, meaning that only those who have carefully considered the magnitude of their application will apply at all. If you are not prepared to fulfill all of the responsibilities to the very end, then do not throw your hat into the ring.

Topic leaders should have the following qualifications:

• Deep knowledge of the game of Pokemon
• Familiarity with competitive Pokemon concepts, strategy and philosophy, as practiced within Smogon
• Willing to voice opinions and lead others
• Open-minded to new ideas
• Creative, "outside-of-the-box" thinker
• Good writing skills
• Level-headed when resolving disputes
• Liked and respected by the CAP community

Once this CAP starts, the Topic Leader will be the most important, most visible member of the CAP community, and is expected to be a strong guiding force throughout the creation process. If you are selected, you will have a great deal of power to influence the project. But you also have a responsibility to stay on top of things. You will have forum moderators to help you, but you need to be regularly active on the project until it is complete. All potential candidates should look through both the Topic Leadership Guide and the CAP Process Archive, to get an idea of what will be expected of you, if you are selected to be the CAP 3 Topic Leader.

This thread is strictly for candidacy posts and posts supporting those candidates. Please stay on topic. Below are the guidelines for posting in this thread:

• Candidates must have been actively involved through the entire duration of the most recent CAP project. Involvement in multiple CAP projects is strongly preferred.
• Do not suggest other people. If you want you encourage someone else to run, then send them a PM or talk to them on IRC.
• If you are new to the CAP project, do not sign up to be a TL. Instead, spend a project or two lurking, learning, and participating first.
• Include a summary of your involvement in the CAP project.
• Make a pitch for why you should be selected. If you can't present and defend yourself, then you can't expect to lead a project whose primary function is discussion and debate. Convince us that you are a good choice.
• Poor spelling, punctuation, and grammar are great ways to look as though you don't know what you're talking about. A thoughtful and intelligent community leader should be capable of typing at a level above typical internet banter.
• Even if you don't think you are better qualified than certain other candidates, you still should consider posting your application. Candidates not selected as the TL for this project will be on the watch list by the PRC for next time around. Don't post your name if you don't intend to be active in the project, even if you are not selected, since people will be scrutinizing your involvement more closely.
• Feel free to post support for any candidates already named.
• Do not post disparaging remarks about any candidates.

If these rules are not followed, the offending user will be subject to moderation.

As an additional note. The TL and ATL procedure were changed right after CAP 2. The ATL no longer exists and the TL's duties have changed slightly. The moderators will work with whoever is picked to help them get settled into the new routine. The TL's main function as a visionary and leader has not been altered. Read more about it here. Best of luck to all applicants.

Looks like I'm up first.

While I have not considered applying for Topic Leader before, I believe that I am a pretty well-established member of the CAP community - I have been contributing heavily in every Project since Colossoil, and have been around for a bit longer than that - and as such I think that the time is right for me to cast my name into the hat, as it were. During my time here, I am fairly certain that I have built up a large base of knowledge, both about the Project and about the game itself, such that I am confident about my ability to make decisions and keep a level head during difficult discussions, which I feel will serve well going into the turbulent and more or less murky unknown that is BW2 OU, which CAP has not yet dipped its metaphorical feet into.

For my own part, I believe I have all the credentials necessary to be Topic Leader. As well as my experience, for what it's worth, I also have immense dedication to the Project (see my original Necturna analysis for an example of the lengths I have pushed myself to), a pretty sound competitive knowledge base (as OP of the OU Analysis Index I am obliged to read more or less every analysis that comes through that subforum), and a very solid organisational ability (see the aforementioned index, as well as the Moves/Abilities/Items Project). I have earned a Community Contributor badge through my efforts in the CAP community, a Contributor badge through my abilities in writing and in developing competitive ideas in C&C, and an Artist badge for what I would see as creativity mixed with the little talent I have. Hence, I have something of everything, or I would see it that way.

In contributing to the CAP Project, I have found that I have a penchant for making very long and all-encompassing posts, and I will defend the views expressed when I believe I am right, though I am not too proud to admit when I am wrong (which is more often than I'd like). I am willing to go against the flow of the thread and the Topic Leader if I believe there is something more to be said, and I will take all the time that is necessary to make sure that my views are well thought out and accurate. I will also stick to my vision even if the vast majority of voters disagree with me - and I will put plenty of effort into everything I do, even when I know it will be poorly received. I have also made every effort to try to point discussions in the right direction when they seem to be falling down, and I know well what we should expect to be getting out of every stage of discussion. Even so, though I may take things a little too seriously sometimes, that doesn't mean that I don't have a sense of humour at the same time.

As far as my vision is concerned, yes, I do have a vision for this CAP, were I to be chosen as Topic Leader. Recently, most of our CAPs have tended to fall under the umbrella of "What happens if we do this?" rather than "How do we go about accomplishing this?". I would like to challenge the community, to take a concept that forces us to think of imaginative, perhaps even considered daft, solutions - We have not really yet, in BW, had anything alike "Stop the Secondary" or "Decentraliser", and these are exactly the kind of concepts that I want to investigate further. So, yes, I have a very clear vision of what I want us to achieve - for me, a Project with discussions where we wrestle with a challenging problem is a success, irrespective of whether or not the end result is successful in the metagame. You may say, it's the journey that counts most. As the first CAP of BW2 OU, I should say that it's a good idea to take the plunge with a concept that will force us to think, and above all take risks in unfamiliar territory, irrespective of who the Topic Leader is.

I think I have a good idea of who else will be applying to be Topic Leader this time around, so I think I can safely say that, whoever wins, we'll be in good hands. Here's to a great CAP4!

So, I guess I’ll throw my name out there once again.

Hey everyone. For those of you who don’t know me, I first came to the CAP project right around the start of the Tomohawk process at the beginning of gen 5. Since then, I have participated heavily in CAP in as many ways as possible. I am always deeply involved in discussions, both during Pokémon creation and as a part of the policy review committee, on the forums and on IRC. Recently, I was even awarded the Community Contributor badge for my contributions to the project. I feel that the involvement I have had over the course of this generation has given me the experience I need to make a good Topic Leader.

During my time here on Smogon, I believe I have shown that I have the abilities needed to lead a project such as this. First off, I believe I have a vast amount of knowledge regarding the game of competitive Pokémon. I am not going to claim that I am one of greatest battlers in this community, but, over the past few years, I have consistently played and kept myself up todate on the strategies and activities of nearly all of Smogon’s main tiers. Additionally, when it comes to discussion, I am never afraid to share my opinions. Whether it be defending my position against prominent CAP members in an ability discussion, giving my opinion on the future of the project itself, or explaining my views on competitive Pokémon philosophy as a whole, I always try and make sure that people understand both what I am thinking and the reasons behind my beliefs.

In addition, I believe that I have the open-mindedness and creativity that a position like this requires. As many people who have faced me in a Pokémon battle could attest to, I very much enjoy trying new and unusual things, whether it be with an atypical set or an unusual team style. I feel that this willingness to try new things is very important, as we may be making something that the game has never seen before. Yet, at the same time, I know the limits of creativity, and understand that being different for its own sake will not always teach us what we are out to learn. As fun as it can be, at its heart, CAP is a learning experience, and I have and will always strive to make sure we get the most out of it.

I wish the best of luck to any and all other nominees, and regardless of outcome, I can’t wait to get another great CAP project underway.

I'm placing a 24 hour deadline on this thread. Let's get this rolling.

*obligatory mod nomination*... In all seriousness, though, the Topic Leader nomination is a huge deal. I told myself I'd only run this time if I could honestly say I could be the best candidate out of the people in this thread, and this has led me to what I am posting now.

I bring to the table several things. I have participated heavily in the past four CAP projects (including as "topic leader" for CAP 2's pre-evo project). In these projects and elsewhere, I have demonstrated my knowledge, understanding, and experience in discussing Pokémon battling in multiple metagames, including all of Smogon's usage tiers. Having experience in multiple metagames may not seem important at first, but it really does make a difference when I am exposed to all of these unique perspectives, not only from the metagames themselves but also from the sub-communities that care about them. I also have a certain amount of proficiency in battling, as well as an eagerness to use my opinions and knowledge to engage in fruitful discussion with others. I have, as well, contributed to articles for C&C (and one CAP article for The Smog - you may have read it).

I would like to think that I have the creativity that this position demands, or at least the kind of temperament that breeds it. I have studied mathematics and physics, subjects in which it is absolutely critical to be creative and open to new, unintuitive perspectives, while being prepared to shatter misguided intuitions. It is important to be contemplative, questioning ideas regardless of who says them or how long they have been established. This includes the self; I am frequently thinking of where I went wrong, where I went right, and what the consequences are for the future. Everything is a learning opportunity. This is exactly what I believe gives me the ability and justification to defend an idea vigorously and rigorously. I am willing to admit mistakes, but I am also willing to defend my actions where they are defensible. When I give an opinion, you can be sure that I gave it a lot of thought.

As a TL, I would strive to put many options on the table, but in a manner that recognizes the differences between opinion and fact. While everyone is entitled to have an opinion and express it with influence through an educated vote, the important thing is that decisions made by the community should be educated and based on really fulfilling the concept, rather than on ill-perceived decisions that don't actually do what they're supposed to do. I will also strive for greater participation in the discussions myself, because if I didn't think I could own up to that, I would not have posted this. I firmly believe that CAP is a great platform for talking about competitive Pokémon, and I like to talk about battling, so I would consider it an honor to be chosen as the Topic Leader. Any way this particular cookie crumbles, though, I hope above all that this project provides a good learning experience for all of us.

Deadline.

All three of these users are obviously outstanding members of the CAP community. They will all be moving on to the upcoming Topic Leader Poll; stay tuned for that in a few moments.