Ask a Simple Question; Get a Simple Answer & General Resources (OU Edition)

[Eckswhyzed]

Hello everybody!

After randomly browsing this site for a while, I discovered the extremely convenient Pokemon Showdown simulator, and decided to dip my toes into the competitive pokemon pool.

The only prior experience I have is with battling my through the various in-game Battle Tower (and variants) since 4th gen.

So here are my simple questions:
-If I'm only looking to play casually (and hence not sign up for tutoring), what would be the best way to get started? Pick out a random team and jump into OU? Start on a different metagame? Find forumites who are willing to go easy on me? Run around screaming?
-Any other things I should really get to know? I'm pretty good with game mechanics, and I have some superficial knowledge of competitive terms, but is there any list of common n00b mistakes?

Anyway, thanks in advance and I look forward to spending more time here.

 

[Joel]

Hello everybody!

After randomly browsing this site for a while, I discovered the extremely convenient Pokemon Showdown simulator, and decided to dip my toes into the competitive pokemon pool.

The only prior experience I have is with battling my through the various in-game Battle Tower (and variants) since 4th gen.

So here are my simple questions:
-If I'm only looking to play casually (and hence not sign up for tutoring), what would be the best way to get started? Pick out a random team and jump into OU? Start on a different metagame? Find forumites who are willing to go easy on me? Run around screaming?
-Any other things I should really get to know? I'm pretty good with game mechanics, and I have some superficial knowledge of competitive terms, but is there any list of common n00b mistakes?

Anyway, thanks in advance and I look forward to spending more time here.

If you really want to use the simulator, and are not familiar with Gen. 5 yet, I would strongly suggest just using the "Random Battle (rated)" section of battling in the beggining. This way you can get a taste for how the simulator itself runs, and any changes to the in-game battling mechanics your would not yet be familiar with.

 

[alkinesthetase]

-If I'm only looking to play casually (and hence not sign up for tutoring), what would be the best way to get started? Pick out a random team and jump into OU? Start on a different metagame? Find forumites who are willing to go easy on me? Run around screaming?
-Any other things I should really get to know? I'm pretty good with game mechanics, and I have some superficial knowledge of competitive terms, but is there any list of common n00b mistakes?

rule #1 of smogon: if you didn't register 12 months ago, you haven't lurked enough. it's not like you can't post or anything, but smogon has history and it's not the place to go if you're looking for a community that accepts you however you are. it's a cultured place so when you go tripping through chloraforum and IRC and PS main chat, keep your mouth shut. great way to make yourself look like an idiot right there. learn to go with the flow and don't jump into conversations disruptively. if you intend to post in competitive sections of the game, make sure you appear to know what you're talking about (eg wandering into OU and posting a set for scyther as if it's soooo good. this actually happened like 2 days ago. don't be that guy), and be prepared to defend your positions accordingly.

rule #2 of smogon: read all the stickied threads and rules in every forum in which you intend to post. you're looking pretty good for this one since you posted your question here in SQSA, which many new users fail to do because they don't read the stickies. knowing the rules saves you the trouble of having them parroted back to you by a mod, complete with a warn/mute/threadlock. it also prevents you from making dumb mistakes. if you draw moderator attention, you want it to be in a good way.

as for getting into pokemon, any metagame is good. they all exist because they're all fun and people enjoy playing them. it's a question of how good you want to get at the game, really. it's quite possible to just play randbats for your entire pokemon career and have a hell of a lot of fun (not that randbats don't involve skill! but the teams are random lol). there are many ways to enjoy pokemon, even competitively. it's important to understand crucial mechanical concepts like EVs and IVs before you get into pokemon - there are people who come onto smogon not knowing what those things are, and you basically can't play competitive pokemon without them.

if you want to get good though, i'd recommend you lurk in places like C&C and the metagame forums of your choice. read analyses - a LOT of analyses - and learn to enjoy reading them for the hell of it. i read NU analyses for fun and when i see random magmortars in OU, it helps a ton to know they don't normally carry HP ice so your latias walls the shit out of them (this has happened to me). you will soak up a ton of theoretical knowledge about the game in this way, it's how i got my start. it also saves you the pain of just jumping into a metagame and feeling confused about everything. once you feel you're comfortable with the background information of your target metagame, throw together a team, hop on the ladder and don't take it personally when you lose - you will lose. ladder until you feel like your luck and will to play intelligently has run out, take a break for the day, then come back when you have more free time and do it again. do it enough and you'll get good sooner or later. tutoring helps a lot in this regard, but it's hardly necessary.

 

[Je-Muzu]

Is soul dew now legal to use, because i wasn't sure since it wasn't on the latios/latias page, yet sheer force Landorus is?

 

[alkinesthetase]

Is soul dew now legal to use, because i wasn't sure since it wasn't on the latios/latias page, yet sheer force Landorus is?

soul dew has its own clause which marks it as illegal in OU. it will never be tested if our council members are sane, which they most certainly are

 

[voodoo pimp]

It's legally obtainable in-game, but banned from OU. Presumably it's allowed in Ubers.

 

[DrunkDemon]

Regarding the part about the Landorus being updated while the Latis aren't, since all analyses are written by community members, not everything will get updated at the same time when a new game comes out.

 

[GatoDelFuego]

Holdups occur mostly because of a lack of contributors ATM, with very very few people continuously GP checking and many analyses have been out for almost a month without being updated. People should help out a bit more and get involved...

 

[SuperSei]

Should i replace my special dragonite with a rain dance tornadus?

Sets:
Dragonite-Muiltiscale
4 Hp 252 Spa 252 spd
Roost
Thunder
Hurricane
Dragon pulse


Tornadus- Prankster
4 hp 252 spa 252 spd
Rain dance
U-turn
Hurricane
Focus Blast

Thanks in advnce

or should i keep both and get rid of my ludicolo

Ludicolo-Rain Dish
252 Hp 4 Def 252 Spd
Subsitute
Leech seed
Toxic
Giga drain

 

[gamerno1]

-snip-

I don't think anyone can give proper advice on this without knowing the rest of the team, although if you go for tornadus use the new tornadus-T

 

[SuperSei]

I don't think anyone can give proper advice on this without knowing the rest of the team, although if you go for tornadus use the new tornadus-T

Trust me i would if i could. but i'm not using pokemonshowdown and i don't have B2W2


so i ca get better help here is my full team

Politoed - Drizzle
4hp 252Spk 252 spd
Choice Specs
hydro pump/Surf
Ice beam
Focus Blast
HP Grass

Toxicroak - dry skin
4 HP 252 atk 252 spd
Bulk up
Sucker punch
Drain punch
Subsitute

Rotom-W - Levitate
252 HP 4 Spk 252 spd
Light clay
Light screen
Reflect
Volt swtich
Hydro pump/surf

Dragonite - multiscale
4 hp 252 spk 252 spd
Life orb
Roost
Thunder
Hurricane
Dragon pulse

Ludicolo-Rain Dish
252 Hp 4 Def 252 Spd
Leftovers
Subsitute
Leech seed
Toxic
Giga drain

Cloyster - Skill link
4 hp 252 atk 252 spd
Choice band
Icicle Spear
Rock blast
Rapid spin
razor shell


which shoould i get rid of for this tornadus

Tornadus- Prankster
4 hp 252 spa 252 spd
Life Orb
Rain dance
U-turn
Hurricane
Focus Blast

 

[The QWAZ]

If you want proper team advice check out the RMT forum, make sure you read the rules though, currently your team thread would be locked.

 

[Zacchaeus]

so i ca get better help here is my full team

Your team is far from an official rating in the RMT forum. You didn't list the natures and items for each of your Pokémon. Toxicroak usually doesn't run that much Speed investment unless it is a Swords Dance or Nasty Plot variant. Choice Band Cloyster is pretty slow and would prove to be easier for your opponent to counter than the Shell Smash set. And personally, I would never suggest using a Choice item with Rapid Spin except maybe if you were using Switcheroo or Trick. To clarify for future reference, the most common abbreviations for stats would be Atk for Attack, Def for Defense, SpA for Special Attack, SpD for Special Defense, and Spe for Speed.

As far as your Tornadus question goes, you should create your team on Pokemon Showdown and test it out on the ladder. Once you've played around with it, you can tell what needs to be fixed on your team and where the weakest links are that would be best suited to be replaced. I would personally just change your Dragonite set around or replace it with Tornadus if you feel that Tornadus is necessary.

 

[Sork]

Since when has stuff like Kings Rocks been unbanned? I thought it was banned due to hax item clause.

 

[Pocket]

The ban on hax items were like in the era of ADV or maybe even DPP, but I guess it was reversed (except for Bright Powder / Lax Incense -.-)

 

[Princess Bubblegum]

If you want help for your team and don't want to go the extra mile and make an fancy RMT go to the the #ratemyteam channel on irc.

 

[Ames]

What base speed with a double speed boost (e.g. Chlorophyll/Rock Polish) do 108 base Scarfers outspeed?

Sorry if this isn't very clear, wasn't quite sure how to explain it.

 

[FaceFaceFace]

What base speed with a double speed boost (e.g. Chlorophyll/Rock Polish) do 108 base Scarfers outspeed?

Sorry if this isn't very clear, wasn't quite sure how to explain it.

I believe this has been answered, in a way, rather recently.

Everything with more than base 108 Speed can outspeed Modest 252 Venusaur in the Sun. This includes Infernape, Keldeo and Terrakion, as these Scarfers hit 519 with a +Spe Nature while Modest Venusaur reaches 518. Timid Venusaur on the other hand is a lot different, generally people only run 180 Speed EVs with Timid because the fastest thing you need to outspeed is Scarf Latios at 525, and after that there are no relevant benchmarks you need to hit. Timid Venusaur is a lot harder to outspeed, as all the common scarfers are outsped and dealt with. I've been trying Scarf Tornadus-T to help against Chlorophyll abusers -- it's surprisingly good and no-one expects it.

As for Lilligant and Sawsbuck, it depends on the set in question. Max Speed sets with a +Spe Nature outspeed pretty much everything, except +2 Ninjask lol.. You can tweak with Speed EVs to find out what you need to outspeed while still outspeeding a lot with an Adamant / Modest Nature. If you want to know what to outspeed, use this.

 

[Ames]

Yeah I do remember reading that, sorry. It only really explains (to someone who doesn't know much about speed tiers) that a non +nature base 80 speed mon will be outsped by a 108 scarfer though... what other base speeds lower than 80 can they outspeed if the pokemon being outsped has max speed and a double boost?

 

[ganj4lF]

Yeah I do remember reading that, sorry. It only really explains (to someone who doesn't know much about speed tiers) that a non +nature base 80 speed mon will be outsped by a 108 scarfer though... what other base speeds lower than 80 can they outspeed if the pokemon being outsped has max speed and a double boost?

Scarf base 108 positive reaches 519 Speed, so everything with Base Speed greater or equal to 69, max EVs and IVs and a positive nature can outspeed at +2. If not using a positive nature, you need base 81 speed to be able to do so (Venusaur got trolled by 1 point...).

 

[cim]

This is a dumb question, but I honestly can't find a damage calculator that people recommend as accurate for Gen 5. Any suggestions?

 

[bro fist]

http://masara.byethost15.com/SilverlightDmgCalcTestPage.html

or http://honko.freehosting.com/manly_calc.html

 

[Princess Bubblegum]

Yeah Honkos is the best, silver light just doesn't work right any more have has some pretty outdated spreads and sets. Honkos also gives chances for KOs after rocks/ spikes and weather.

For speed, just muliply the speed by 2 or 1.5. If you want a nice list the actual thread has a more detailed list featuring scarfs and +2 boosts.

On that note, does the speed of a pokemon round up or down after a 1.5 boost and you get a decimal?

 

[Skore]

On that note, does the speed of a pokemon round up or down after a 1.5 boost and you get a decimal?

I thought everything in pokemon got rounded down.

 

[Gary]

I'm definitely not new here, been here for a good year. However, one thing has always for some reason never been answered or confirmed for me: The difference between a Check and a Counter.

I know I'm not the only one, as a counter and a check sound like they would almost mean the same thing. Here's what I think they mean, but if they are wrong please correct me. If I'm right, let me know.

Check: Term used when a Pokemon has the ability to take out a threat with ease, or without having to take much damage in order to demolish it.

Example: Technician Breloom is a good check against Scarfed Terrakion.

Counter: Term used when a Pokemon has the ability to switch into and has the right type or defense to wall or stop the threat dead in it's tracks.

Example: Blissey and Chansey are good at countering special attackers such as Alakazam and Reuniclus. Ferrothorn is a good counter against Dragons locked into Outrage, and has the ability to counter fast sweepers by paralyzing them with Thunder Wave.