Apprentice Program - Round Fourty One (Suspect Edition)

[Flyingtacos]

Shoddy Battle Nick - Flying Tacos
Age - 14
Time zone - eastern
Regular online hours: - most weekdays I will be on at around 9 - 10/10:30. Depending on the day I might also be on from 3 - 4. weekends are pretty much fine anytime
Am I commited to voting in stage 3 - yes, if I can meet the requirements (if there are any)
About myself: I started pokemon competitively this year and I very much enjoy shoddy and wifi battling. Before this year, I had played a lot of pokemon sporatically but not competitively at all
Why I need help - I think I am ok at team building but I might need some help on that. My biggest problem is predicition which I anally suck at.
Edit: Oh yeah my UU team building skills aren't so great either.

 

[Flamewheeler]

Shoddy Battle nick: Flamewheeler/ Spearfrost/ Uberfail
Age: 18
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 2:00 p.m.- 9:00 p.m. weekdays/ weekends: Whenever
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Absolutely!
A little about myself: Well, I have been playing pokemon since it first came out, but only battling competively since D/P. I love it, but it can get frustrationg as it seems I am only "good" in one tier, and that's UU. Any other tier is....next! lol I play soccer, tennis, and I run cross-country (it's a sport). ^^ I do like to play video games, swim, and just hang out. I can be a bit lazy, but only when it comes to things I don't really care about, unlike the suspect test. :) I love to learn and I'm a very good listener. <-- Lmao it sounds like a dating website headline for a loser. i am graduating high school on June 6th (go '09'!) I'm going to college and I feel like a nerd playing pokemon as old as I am ,but whatever...don't judge me! I'm graduating in my top 20 even though I'm a slacker. Too late for excuses now...
Why I need help: I need help because I have never been in on the supect voting, but I would like to. Also, if you've seen my skill in any tier but UU, you would agree that I need it too. lol Suspect is new to me, but sounds very interesting. I'd like help with analyzing teams for specific threats and staying calm under pressure. My nerves get really bad with untimely hax. Well, that's abotu all I can think of so....when do we start? lol

 

[TSF]

Shoddy Battle nick: TSF
Age: 26 (man, now I feel old)
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): I can be on 9am-5pm EST, but will seem distracted and have random AFKs because I'm at work. Barring that, 7pm-2am EST on Sun, Mon, Weds, and Thurs.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Hells yeah.
A little about myself: I was pretty much a rank amateur flailing noob for everything from RBY through GSC. I picked up Emerald about a year after it came out and only then did I hear about this whole "competitive battling" thing - I absolutely love it, even if I'm terrible at it. It's like a trainwreck in motion.
Why I need help: On top of still needing help with the whole competitive battling aspect of things (I get most of the concepts, but am bad at execution and teambuilding), I really am interested in contributing to the suspect voting process. The fact that a process like this even *exists* fascinates me.

 

[polelover44]

Shoddy Battle nick: polelover44
Age: 19
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): Monday-Friday: 5:00PM-7:00PM
Saturday: 2:00 PM-4:00 PM
Sunday: 10:00 AM-11:00 AM
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: I will try my best to qualify for Stage 3 voting.
A little about myself: I picked up Pokemon in RSE, around the time XD: Gale of Darkenss came out. I immediately picked up a copy of Ruby and proceeded to lose it after defeating Wallace with a Torkoal. I started playing competetively in early November, right after Garchomp became Uber. Now, I'm fine at OU, although I want to participate more actively in Smogon events.
Why I need help: I have never battled with Garchomp or Deo-e. I know nothing about using them. Same with Latios and manaphy. I've used Latias and Shaymin-s, but am not extremely experienced with them. If these are going to become OU, I need enough experience to be able to understand
a) how to use them
b) how to take them down

 

[spraak48]

Shoddy Battle nick: spraak487
Age: 18
Time zone: GMT +10:00
Regular online hours: if I calculated correctly... 11pm till about 7am
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes, I believe I am. I both have the time and perseverance to push myself beyond my limits and attempt to come within the required rating.
A little about myself: Just a normal 18 year old Australian guy, with a passion for Pokemon (I have been playing it since the RBY days. Never got into competitive until about 6 months after i got my copy of Diamond (June 08). Next year I will be Studying Mechatronic Engineering at University (which uses two of my favorite subjects, maths and physics :p). I also have a large passion for music, so much so that I am playing drums for a band, which we go around my town and do small pub gigs.
Why I need help: I feel I at the stage where I can no longer teach myself the ins and outs of Pokemon. I frequently am trying to better myself at Pokemon, but to no avail. My main downfall is team building, basically working out what works in my teams and what doesn't. I just would like someone to aid in my learning so that I may become a better player overall and improve my contributions to the Smogon Community.

 

[Safe_Kid]

Shoddy Battle nick: Wario310, Safe_Kid
Age: 15
Time zone: GMT
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 11 Am - 4 PM
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yep
A little about myself: Started playing competitively back in 2007, im good at the OU metagame and fairly good at Ubers. I was tutored by Schaft, as was a few others here. I'm just looking to gain some experience with the suspect pokes. I'd love to request Phillip7086 as my tutor if i make it in.
I normally wouldn't sign up for a tutoring program, but since this is a suspect one. =]
Why I need help: Just getting to know the suspect pokes.

 

[darkforce]

Shoddy Battle nick: Darkforce
Age: 15
Time zone: Mountain standard time
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): Weekdays: 6:30 p.m. - about 11:30 p.m. Weekends: anytime throughout the day after about 11:00 a.m.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: yes
A little about myself: I've been playing competitive for about half a year switching between teirs I've played UU, OU, Uber, Little cup, however this will be my first time in suspect which, seems like a very interesting and upredictable teir. Also I feel it will give me a reason to post around the site and contribute a bit. (yes I am a bit of a lurker)
Why I need help: This, as I said will be my first time in suspect and I don't know very much about it, and my skills are often hit and miss

 

[melikefood]

Shoddy Battle nick:melikefood
Age:15
Time zone:Pacific (-8:00)
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 7:30Pm-11:00Pm Weekdays and on Saturday the only Guaranteed time is at 3:00Am-5:00am and Sunday is extremely busy. Summer break is coming up in June and that might free up more time.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: I'm gonna try. Voting Suspects interests me.
A little about myself: I started playing Pokémon at version yellow, I started competitively at D/P. I love making Weather teams and Doubles teams. I like experimenting sets and strategies (I think Toxic/Dig/Roost/Sceech Flygon would be awesome if it got a Trap pass). I also draw a tiny bit.
Why I need help: I never really found out what makes an Uber an Uber. I'd also like to know how to formulate a better argument when discussing the Suspects. I don't wanna sound like a n00b when jumping into discussion.

 

[Theorymon]

Shoddy Battle nick: Theorymon
Age: 17
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): I'm pretty damn flexiable
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes
A little about myself: I signed up here last Januarary. I am generally an Uber battler, but I am very curious about the suspect test, as it includes several Pokemon I use a lot in Ubers (Garchomp, Skymin and Deo-S).
Why I need help: Well... I really suck at OU xD. Because I can't use the Pokemon I have come to know and love like Wobbuffet and Groudon, I am defintly going to need some helping adjusting to this metagame!

P.S. Misaki-chi siad she would really like to be my tutor, and I agreed. it would be great if we could be paired up here!

 

[ARK9]

Modified Signup Template:
Shoddy Battle nick: ARK9
Age: 17
Time zone: GMT -6
Regular online hours (Eastern only!):
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Im sure i can
A little about myself: What to say, i've been playing competitively for about 1 year now, have gotten around 1520 CRE as best so far, Reyscarface has been helping me out a lot, but i still need some help, its the first time i consider entering the tutoring program.
Why I need help: I feel i need help in teambuolding, as well as gaining confidence in my predictions, yet, don't go overpredicting. i feel a suspect metagame is perfect toimprove teambulding.

In case i get chosen, and if posible, i'd like a tutor that goes mainly offensive, i don't really like stall, but anyone is fine.

 

[POWhaha]

Shoddy Battle nick: POWhaha
Age: 19
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): Usually 3-10 PM weekdays, flexible hours on weekends
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes
A little about myself: I've only recently come back to competitive pokemon since the days of GSC NetBattle, and I've been trying to practice on the OU/BL ladders. I'm interested in this round because the suspects are near 'ubers', and I haven't tried them in the uber environment yet.
Why I need help:
I'm looking for help in most of the basics again, especially with original team building in the different ladders.

 

[Tsunami]

Shoddy Battle nick: WhiteTsunami
Age: 13 Time zone: Eastern,
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 3:00 To 5:00
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes, I really want to contribute my opinion to the new suspect voting
A little about myself: I began playing pokemon frequently when I first bought diamond. After I watched Marriland being destroyed by Disfunction, and learning about Smogon after his rant, I lurked the forums for a year, made a account, and began my rise to be the best.
Why I need help: Prediction, I'm ok at, but team building and how to outmaneuver I need help with

 

[Sheek]

Shoddy Battle nick: Sheek
Age: 18
Time zone: -3:30 GMT (Newfoundland Standard Time)
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 9AM to 1 AM (Weekdays). Not available on weekends due to prior commitments.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes. I've recently blossomed as a competent and confident battler in DPPt and have been following the Suspect Tests for several months now. Due to previous time constraints, I've found myself unable to participate in them. However, with those constraints gone, I truly wish to have a say in the future of Smogon's DPPt metagame and I'm looking forward to the interesting and exciting possibilities of the upcoming weeks should I be chosen to participate.
A little about myself: I'm 18 years old, and waiting to start college in September, meaning I've got pretty much all day to do whatever I want. I used to play RBY and GSC back when they first came out, but lost interest just before RSE. Last March I picked up a DS and Pokemon Diamond, reigniting my interest, largely because of the possibility of online play and the presence of an intriguing metagame. After screwing around with the game for a couple months, I decided to get serious and started studying the OU metagame, something I couldn't have done without Smogon. Now, after quite a bit of practice, I feel I could use this program as an extra step to allow my skills to reach new heights. I've applied for the past three or four Apprentice Programs, but unfortunately I either applied too late or simply wasn't chosen. I would strongly like for this time to be different.
Why I need help: While I've done plenty of testing and research, I think I lack a little something when it comes to battling and team building. I can predict fairly well most of the time, although I have a habit of overpredicting which I'd like some help on. In addition to this, I've always wanted to try out my skills on a Suspect Ladder, and I feel having a tutor would allow me to accomplish that goal much more efficiently.

 

[Potential]

Shoddy Battle nickname: Non-Smogonite. (from before I joined)
Age: 14
Time zone: U.S. Eastern (GMT -4, I think, with daylight savings)

Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 3:00 - 4:00 PM on weekdays, possibly longer; weekends are erratic, sorry. Towards the end, around the 28th of June, I won't get much time, since I'll have to get ready to go to summer camp beginning then and get settled. Other than that, I'm pretty regular, since school's also winding down.

Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: I think it would be a good idea, so yes.

A little about myself: Well, I really like math, I do various music things, I'm involved in a lot of academics (i.e. I'm taking a class I'm not supposed to be in until next year and one that I'm not technically in at all, etc.)... I like a sort of balanced team, leaning slightly towards stall, and, call me crazy, but I will definitely always want Shuckle and Flygon on my teams (for OU (Suspect in this case), of course).

Why I need help: Really, I think I have at least decent potential. I only have a few minor troubles in team building (not caused by Shuckle and Flygon). But the main reason I want help is that I have the ability to predict very well, but I never heed my first instinct, which, most of the time, is consistently correct. Altering my playstyle would be the best way, I feel, to improve. Plus, this would help me to get used to a new metagame more easily.

And, if I could, I'd request Legacy Raider as my Tutor. He's worked with me some before and he seems to know my play style. If I'm allowed to even request and he's allowed (he's already consented) of course.

(Yes, I've finally made it! (EDIT: Agh, it looks like there may not be enough Tutors to fit me in... oh well, if not this time, then the next is fine) And thanks very much to Blue Kirby for setting this thing up)

 

[Unownasofyet]

Shoddy Battle nick: Unownasofyet
Age: I am not giving my age for privacy reasons.
Time zone: EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 3:00-9:00 P.M.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes I am.
A little about myself: I am a rock cellist and a classical pianist. I also am a very good chess player.
Why I need help: I have had problems shifting from last generation to this generation, and although I went 6-0 about half my games on Netbattle, I am not having any success on Shoddy. Pokemon is a nice break from chess, and I want to improve at it!

 

[Ace Trainer Link]

Shoddy Battle nick: notsneaky
Age: 15
Time zone: PST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 7pm-1am (Times may vary due to relatives on the computer)
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes
A little about myself: I've been on smogon for almost a year now. I started out as a complete noob to competitive battling being 5-0'd using gimmick ash teams. Then I got the hang of the metagame a month later but things have been going downhill from there.
Why I need help: My only real weakness is team building, im fairly decent at everything else in my opinion, but the teams that I build in this metagame are outright terrible and unoriginal. Also I need help in strategy, I don't know how it could be applied to competitive pokemon battling in that respect.

 

[Aeden]

Shoddy Battle Nick: Aeden

Age: 21

Time Zone: EST

Regular Online Hours: 12-4pm, 12-3am, I work retail so this may vary

Are you committed to qualifying for stage 3 voting?: Yes

A little about myself: Just turned 21, moved to Lexington, KY from upstate NY a few years ago, and I am currently going to the University of Kentucky

Why I need help: I have been playing since RBY casually for what seems like a decade now, and this includes pinball, puzzle league, snap, trading card game. I first heard of competitive battling during the ruby/sapphire era and became intrigued about the mechanics of the game. Now that it is 4th gen, I still feel as if I don't have a complete understanding of the metagame and I need some holes of information to be filled in, or at the very least, helped with. I feel that with the help of a tutor, I can hone my game and be better at one of the best games of all time.

 

[les gets]

Limitless has agreed to be my tutor. :)

Shoddy Battle nick: Fun Fact
Age: 103*
Time zone: Eastern
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): (during school), anywhere from 4 PM - 11 PM weekdays, online random times during the weekends
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yup.

A little about myself:

I won't make this too tl:dr for you. :)

In real life, I'm a quiet guy who lives a conservative life with much time on my hands, always trying to balance school, family, sports, and various other hobbies (including Pokemon) accordingly. I'm a determined person, and when I set my mind to accomplishing something, I pretty much ignore everything until I achieve it (sometimes a good thing and sometimes a bad thing; I'd say it's a good thing, in this case).

For many months, my current goal has been to become a successful competitive Pokemon battler in the DPP metagame, specifically OU (for the time being, anyways). I've been battling for about 5 months now, and I'm eager to learn something new every day, constantly testing teams and individual Pokemon just to see what works and what doesn't for my own (and other's!) benefit. I can construct pretty much every type of team, ranging from slow-paced Stall to fast-paced Offense. I can build and ladder with a team of my own, consistently achieving a rating of at least above 1400, usually stopping there after I get bored of whatever team I'm using. For me, competitive battling is, for lack of a better word, "fun"; it's "fun" building your own team and inputing your own personal modifications to make battling more "fun" or easier for you, or to help surprise your opponent. Of course, winning is always more "fun" than losing. :)

Although I'm not (yet) as good of a battler as many others in the Community, I'm pretty much not stopping until I am, or at least get close, as in be able to get on the (OU?) leaderboard somewhat regularly. I hope to, and will, come close to accomplishing or even accomplish this near impossible task of becoming one of the greats with the help of an awesome tutor, via suspect battling. Or at least come close. :naughty:

Why I need help:

As I've stated before, I'm learning something new every day, but how one chooses to utilize the information given to them varies from one battler to the next. I believe a tutor can lead me down a successful path, guiding me and teaching me what is right and wrong in certain situations as I experience them. I believe I have a sturdy foundation, and I'm aiming to expand on what I already know with the help of a tutor, avoiding getting into bad habits (or maybe fixing some old ones along the way).

In general though, one of my goals is perhaps to acquire a better understanding for some other types of teams, opponents, and even Pokemon that I'm not too familiar with; a great example of this is that I've never done or participated in anything Suspect-related in the past. I'm definitely eager to learn everything there is to know about Suspect with alongside my tutor to bounce off ideas with and such.

I'm excited about this unique opportunity because I'm positive that it will make me a (much) better battler. Whatever my tutor thinks I need to learn to get better, I'll learn it; there's always something to improve on. :)

-


* My tutor is the only one who needs to know my age.

 

[Fleursily34]

Modified Signup Template:

Shoddy Battle nick: 7ay, Rex Bennard
Age: 18
Time zone: California Time.

Regular online hours (Eastern only!): N/A?

Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: I'll make it my goal. No more standard ladder this month.

A little about myself: Hey, I'm a fairly content, pacifictic, optimistic, extrovert. I have never really had a 'Tutor' before. I have also never been very active in the Suspect ladder. So I think now would be a great time to really go for that. I have been on Smogon University Server since it's immaculate conception at least a year ago. So im "well versed" in experiance.

Why I need help: I've been here for awhile, and I seem to just hover at 1400. I guess I still haven't learned how to climb a ladder : )

 

[Darkvirus]

Shoddy Battle nick: Darkvirus
Age:19
Time zone: GMT
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): not really sre what my "regular" hours are you can find me on jsut about any time depending on what day but i think its 2-7PM (but not too sure)
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes i miss out on the change to learn about many of these pokemon as i was still learning the standerd metagame at the time and wish to be able to impot my own ideas into how the game should evolve
A little about myself: I enjoy the community that is on here helping everyone out (i try do my part) and i feel i have much room for improvement on my current level of play. If i play something that i enjoy i feel i need to learn and become a top rank player because its who i am i have to win XD but then again im sure alot of us feel that way. I am now currently trying to make my 1st compettitive team on Pearl even though i have no wi-fi as this site inspired :D
Why I need help: Because i not as good as i feel i can become and i was to show everyone how gould i can be and because i like i said i want to help the game evolve and help put my ideas into things and become a better part of smogon as a whole

 

[Ffancrzy]

Shoddy Battle nick: Mister Militia, Bias Logic
Age: 19
Time zone: EST

Regular online hours (Eastern only!): On and off between 6 PM and 12AM, usually 9-12. Sometimes I can be on as early as 12 noon if I don't work.

Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: I would most defiantly, I want to get a firm grasp on the possibilities for the upcoming metagame

A little about myself: I'm a college student trying to find out what he wants to do with himself in life. I'm very competitive by nature and have been to events for MLG, and Magic the Gathering, but haven't been able to commit all the way due to travel issues. I love competitive games in general, and have been a pokemon fan ever since RBY. I've only truly gotten into competitive Pokemon in the last 2 months, but I've lurked for the better part of my sign-up here and have dabbled a bit in netbattle before that. I've also been trying to get integrated into the smogon community through CAP, LNTs (which I have participated in all of, despite the timezone disparity), RMTs, Warstories, and Tournaments.

Why I need help: As many others, my biggest problem is team building. Additionally I have a much better time focusing on the metagame when I have someone to bounce ideas off of, and we can break down the metagame. Recently I have been trying to build teams with a certain goal in mind, whether it be setting up for a 1-2 pokemon sweep, or removing the biggest wall breaking threats to be able to stall. However I need to focus my efforts better. Additionally when actually playing I can have rare games where I play near flawlessly and win, and many others where I make stupid mistakes (such as letting my main DD-sweeper counter die before I'm sure they don't have 1). A tutor would help that. This will also get me into the suspect process, which I have neglected before.


As a side note, I notice MS is not among the available tutors. Before It was known that this tutor/apprentice round was geared towards the suspect testing, MS said he would tutor me this round. If this is not possible I would gladly accept anyone who is willing.

 

[thechocolatebunny]

Shoddybattle nick: Thechocolatebunny
Age 15
Time Zone EST
Online hours weekdays 6-10 weekends are random hours

Are you commttied for qualifying for stage 3 voting rights: I can't promise that I'll make it especially since I don't know the requirements but I will do my best to qualify

A little about myself: I was in apprentice for the first time last round and got a lot out of it. I can't contact a tutor via AIM/IRC so if possible I'd like to request a tutor that I can contact here at smogon or on shoddy. I've never taken part in suspect testing and thought I should start trying to get voting rights and I could definitely use the help of a tutor

Why I need help: My team building has gotten better but it's not great. Suspect is also a different metagame than standard so it would be good if I had some help because of a different metagame.

 

[D0nut eater5]

Shoddy Battle nick: D0nut Eater5
Age: 16
Time zone: North American Central Standard/GMT-6
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): Over the weekend you can usually contact me. School will end soon but until it does usually on from about 5-9pm (may vary).
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: Yes
A little about myself: I'm a pretty average guy. No musical or artistic talent, but i maintain fairly good grades in high school and I take taekwondo.
Why I need help: I've been into Pokemon since red and blue were released. I did not learn about competitive battling until this generation. I have taught myself most of the basics, and am a decent battler, but I believe this could help me take it to the next level. I could also use help with team building.

 

[Dragonknight!]

Shoddy Battle nick:Dragonknight08.
Age:15
Time zone:EST
Regular online hours (Eastern only!):4-10, off and on.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?:yes
A little about myself:I'm what most people would call, an "asian failure". My grades aren't the best, and im not in 234265223 clubs at school. I enjoy helping people, talking to people about their problems, how they can improve, etc.
Why I need help:Whenever there is a new suspect pokemon, I always have trouble thinking of good ways to utilize the suspect pokemon. I see others using new sets, finding that they don't work for me, and then changing, but constantly finding major flaws that I have trouble fixing. I guess I just have trouble identifying major flaws and minor flaws.
I also want to eventually become a tutor, because i enjoy helping people learn and watching them improve. I want to get a few more of these tutoring things in to learn more about the game from tutors, and different tutoring/teaching styles different tutors have.

 

[askaninjask]

Shoddy Battle nick: askaninjask
Age: 13
Time zone: Eastern
Regular online hours (Eastern only!): 7PM-12AM, and over the next week I will have loads of time in the day as well.
Are you committed to qualifying for Stage 3 voting?: No, but I do want to become as good as possible and hopefully I will qualify
A little about myself: I'm a diehard juggler who competitively competes in juggling tournaments and competitively plays pokemon as well. I would like to be able to become good enough to compete in Smogon tournaments.
Why I need help: As soon as I started competitive pokemon battling, my CRE shot up to about 1300. But as Scizor gained popularity, my record declined more and more. I need some help team building wise, my teams always seem to get in the way of my strategy, and when I fix those problems I suddenly have a new set of problems with my team to deal with.