Engineer Pikachu
Good morning, you bastards!
This post isn't really for suggesting any abilities, but just for a question for reach: What is your stance on custom abilities?
As I said right at the beginning when we first began, I am utterly opposed to creating any kind of custom ability or move for this CAP. This is the first CAP of 5th Generation, and there are already dozens of new abilities and moves to choose from. In addition, there are practical issues with implementing custom abilities/moves on Pokemon Online that make it implausible anyway.This post isn't really for suggesting any abilities, but just for a question for reach: What is your stance on custom abilities?
Moody is useless because its banned, just saying.Moody could definitely be useful and add an element of unpredictability to CAP1 which considering its nature as a momentum pokemon could be very useful. Furthermore, it could help put opponents off their guard, also making stat raising moves less needed for our CAP.
Looking at the posts since this one, I'm changing my stance to agree with others who have posted that Intimidate is the ideal option.Regenerator, Intimidate, and Insomnia all seem like great choices for the purposes of allowing it to switch in and out easily against different threats, for reasons previously stated. Regenerator seems like the most effective choice, but that might make it the worst choice with regard to fulfilling the concept... If it gets chosen, we'll have to make sure to keep the Pokemon's movepool in check.
It's whole purpose is to take physical hits well enough to scare off the opponent, or kill it. As it is, CAP 1 won't be able to switch into these powerful physical attacks and stay in long enough to actually do anything. Giving it Intimidate will make switching in and taking an attack that much easier, and it will punish pokes trying to get in a swords dance/dragon dance on a predicted switch by being able to survive the following attack with ease, and OHKO back.We all know Intimidate is a great ability and as such has gotten a lot of support. However, take a look at the Pokemon that get intimidate. Most are physical attackers whose main use of intimidate is to get a free set up turn. I feel if we give CAP1 Intimidate we would have to avoid giving it any boosting moves at all or it will just become anothe one of these sweepers.
Additionally, on the defensive side, even without a boosting move, Intimidate could be seen as overpowered. It already takes physical hits well and intimidate just amplifies that. Looking once again at the other Pokemon who get intimidate, CAP1 is already significanly bulkier on the physical side than any of them. It's physical Tankieness is almost 10 points higher than Scrafty, the next most bulky Intimidater, and 22 points higher than all others. Helping it out physically is not needed and may just be overpowering. Besides, wasn't the idea behind its typing to give it good immunities and resists (ground and fighting) to switch into.
Yeah, taking physical hits well is one part of its purpose, but not all of it. Additionally, as I said, we designed its typing to give it the ability to switch in on common physical attacking types. You can't tell me that it needs intimidate to take Fighting attacks well (or bug or grass or [obviously] ground]). We are not trying to build a physical wall here, so we don't need to be able to take on every physical attacker and force them out.It's whole purpose is to take physical hits well enough to scare off the opponent, or kill it. As it is, CAP 1 won't be able to switch into these powerful physical attacks and stay in long enough to shift the momentum. Giving it Intimidate will make switching in and taking an attack that much easier, and it will punish pokes trying to get in a swords dance/dragon dance on a predicted switch by being able to survive the following attack with ease, and OHKO back.
I definitely agree with you when you say that we want it to switch it into resisted attacks, and that having Intimidate will make these attacks do very little. The only problem is that, even with the stats we have, it still gets 2HKO'd by stat boosters like Excadrill, Landorus, Blaziken, and Terrakion without some help. Odds are not every switch in will be to a resist for the CAP, so if it ends up in the face of even an unboosted ScarfChomp Outrage, we want the CAP to be able to survive with some certainty. People have suggested Unaware simply because of the power of stat-boosters in the metagame, and Intimidate will usually impact these stat boosters less than Unaware. Intimidate helps the CAP take hits and force switches. If it can't do this it is useless.Yeah, taking physical hits well is one part of its purpose, but not all of it. Additionally, as I said, we designed its typing to give it the ability to switch in on common physical attacking types. You can't tell me that it needs intimidate to take Fighting attacks well (or bug or grass or [obviously] ground]). We are not trying to build a physical wall here, so we don't need to be able to take on every physical attacker and force them out.
An ability giving it more specific moves to switch into (Vital Spirit, Limber, Thick Fat), or one that can make you more useful in the long run (Regenerator) would be much more appropriate for CAP1 than Intimidate, which would make it into more of an all-purpose physical tank.