Smogon Shoddy Server Statistics - December 2008

SoT

I leave and they change my avatar to this?
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Code:
you use [.code] without the period
I couldn't get it to work like Dougs, it was too hard. =[
 
...Wow. I see Bold Bliss is still more popular than Calm Bliss, and many of them still have no SPDEF EV's at all.

When will people learn?
 
...Wow. I see Bold Bliss is still more popular than Calm Bliss, and many of them still have no SPDEF EV's at all.

When will people learn?
People use bliss as a wall in general and dont focus on the special side due to having another pokemon that is both physically and specially defensive. imo
 

cim

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Blissey is first and foremost a Special Wall, and should be taking Special hits as well as possible, or at least enough so that no attack in the game 2HKOs you (216). 252 Def is really "all you need" too.
 
You are all wrong about Blissey. Defense is its most important stat, it should be made to withstand physical hits as much as possible.

714/130 Blissey forever. Maximize its ability to take physical hits. If you were to move its HP EV's into Special Defense (652/369), you'd only gain a little bit more Special survivability (versus 714/306) at the cost of Physical survivability. With all the mixed attackers out there, you need to make Blissey as able as possible to take the random Brick Breaks and such.
 

X-Act

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I need to remind everyone that, when comparing usages between two months, you need to compare the percentage usages, not the actual usages.
 
You are all wrong about Blissey. Defense is its most important stat, it should be made to withstand physical hits as much as possible.

714/130 Blissey forever. Maximize its ability to take physical hits. If you were to move its HP EV's into Special Defense (652/369), you'd only gain a little bit more Special survivability (versus 714/306) at the cost of Physical survivability. With all the mixed attackers out there, you need to make Blissey as able as possible to take the random Brick Breaks and such.
Well, of course, EVERY Blissey needs max Defense. But 714/130/306 Blissey can't wall special hits as effectively as Calm Bliss; the standard 651/119/385 Blissey ISN'T 2HKO'd by things like Choice Specs Lucario's Aura Sphere or Specs Alakazam's Focus Blast.

Don't forget that Blissey is, first and foremost, a special wall. This isn't Advance anymore, and Blissey NEEDS to be Calm and to have a good investment in SPDEF (176 or so EV's) in order to effectively wall special attackers. 714/130 Blissey is able to take physical hits fairly well, but you can't wall physical attackers (as once something throws Close Combat at you, you're dead anyway), and you can't even wall special sweepers as effectively anymore, which defeats the purpose of using Blissey.
 

skarm

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Well, of course, EVERY Blissey needs max Defense. But 714/130/306 Blissey can't wall special hits as effectively as Calm Bliss; the standard 651/119/385 Blissey ISN'T 2HKO'd by things like Choice Specs Lucario's Aura Sphere or Specs Alakazam's Focus Blast.

Don't forget that Blissey is, first and foremost, a special wall. This isn't Advance anymore, and Blissey NEEDS to be Calm and to have a good investment in SPDEF (176 or so EV's) in order to effectively wall special attackers. 714/130 Blissey is able to take physical hits fairly well, but you can't wall physical attackers (as once something throws Close Combat at you, you're dead anyway), and you can't even wall special sweepers as effectively anymore, which defeats the purpose of using Blissey.
I believe the point Ian is trying to make is that it is more effective against split attackers such as Salamence, or other such Pokemon that might be split. Blissey is fine at walling special attackers. If you're worried about something sitting there and using Nasty Plot in your face or what have you (such as the kind of hits you're suggesting Blissey take) then you need to rethink your game plan.
 

Jumpman16

np: Michael Jackson - "Mon in the Mirror" (DW mix)
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plus these very same statistics indicate that:

| Alakazam | Item | Choice Specs | 26.9 |
| Lucario | Item | Choice Specs | 10.1 |

and alakazam is only 48th in usage anyway. it literally is evident that it is now less worth it to worry about your two examples. i think the game's proven slant towards the physical in the past 2-4 months is making obi's suggestion of 385 SpD kind of outdated, if it ever was better than at least 688 HP/130 Def Bold in the first place.
 
It's practically enough just to have 252 DEF EVs with a Calm nature and 252 HP to make it take special hits with ease and not be 2hko'd by Zam / Lucario. Mixed salamence is still common and it's important to be able to take Brick Break or Outrage and be able to t-wave (like, not dying <<)
 
Outrage from Life Orb Salamence 2HKOs any varient of Blissey even with no attack EVs and a Neutral Nature, so thats a moot point.

Fuck Blissey... I'm glad the whore is dropping rapidly. She is probably the biggest liability on a team since its so predictable to double switch when she comes in and set up something.

Also, whoever makes comments about Dragonite being "outclassed" or "sucks" need to actually use it first before talking. It plays differently then his other dragons... much differently.

| Gliscor | Speed EV | None | 50.4 |
| Gliscor | Speed EV | Very High (200+) | 19.7 |

^^^^This statistic just pisses me off...

| Magnezone | Move | HP-Fire | 51.7 |

You've gotta be kidding me?? I can't wait until Scizor starts running Shed Shell so people can stop using such a useless Hidden Power.
 
| Magnezone | Move | HP-Fire | 51.7 |

You've gotta be kidding me?? I can't wait until Scizor starts running Shed Shell so people can stop using such a useless Hidden Power.
I only use it for the guaranteed OHKO on Scizor (which Tbolt fails to do on the scarfer). Oh well, guess it'll happen soon...
 
Outrage from Life Orb Salamence 2HKOs any varient of Blissey even with no attack EVs and a Neutral Nature, so thats a moot point.

Fuck Blissey... I'm glad the whore is dropping rapidly. She is probably the biggest liability on a team since its so predictable to double switch when she comes in and set up something.

Also, whoever makes comments about Dragonite being "outclassed" or "sucks" need to actually use it first before talking. It plays differently then his other dragons... much differently.
What set?
And how differently (what sort of niche does it occupy)?
I've been thinking about running a hasty choice scarf dragonite with outrage/earthquake/thunderbolt/ice beam.
It should be able to revenge kill salamence without DDs, as well as gyarados with up to one, and generally it should be a decent late game sweeper.
Its attack stat, even with the nuetral nature and mediocre attack investments, would still give it a more powerful outrage then scarfgon (but EQ would be relatively lacking in power).

I'll need to read the magnezone thread in the platinum updates section before concluding on what type of Magnezone I should run for general sweeping and steel killing purposes.
 

DougJustDoug

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I added "Percent" to the usage stat listings in the OP. This is the percentage chance that a team on that ladder will have a given pokemon or lead a given pokemon, depending on the list.

X-Act's post earlier about percentages is what gave me the idea. I guess there are a couple of ways to calc percentages. But, I thought the percentage chance of appearing on a team would be easy for people to relate. Basically, it answers the question "How likely is it that I will have to face X on a team?"

I hope this helps!
 
If you don't know how the percentages are calculated, it's simply

Pokemon's usage / (Total battles * 2)

The percentages make it a lot easier to see how often you will see a Pokemon on any given team in any given battle. Thanks, Doug!
 
I find it surprising that Dusknoir and Dragonite are both still OU - I honestly don't think I've seen a single one in weeks. They are both outclassed by another pokemon quite soundly, so I'm not sure why their usage stats are so much higher than something like Porygon2, who has no better equivalent in OU.
Have you ever tried late game Dragonite?

Dragon Dance
Light Screen
Roost
Outrage/Dragon claw

was very useful against skymin when he wasn't banned as well. Any special attacker that thinks it can counter Salamence gets set up on like say Porygon2
 
Have you ever tried late game anything?

Ugh, I hate the "late game" argument. Seriously, anything can be good late game if it's counters are eliminated/weakened. I'm not even kidding. Really, everytime somebody warrants an uncommon pokemon, the term "late game" pops up. Considering the use of a pokemon because it can pwn late game is a massively flawed argument.

As much as I hear the shit, I'm surprised that teams even function properly. From the sound of things teams consist of 1 lead and 5 late game pokemon. What happens mid-game? Ugh.

Ok, I'm done ranting.


Thanks for adding percentages Doug. That helps a lot
 

cim

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Admittedly some late game things are better than others, either by ease of setting up or ease of eliminating counters or resists to priority moves. Hi Empoleon.
 

DHR-107

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Wow, awesome stats Doug ^^ I love looking at all these random things.

I have to ask though, does someone purposely use things like Magikarp and Caterpie on the uber tier JUST so they appear on your stat lists? Its kinda funny, but really random. Im glad Brelooms usage is going up :) and I havent seen a TTar for ages either O_o but its still really high on the leads stats...

Anyone tried running a HP Fire Empoleon? I know it wouldnt like SuperPower/Brick Break alot... But it would probably OHKO back :|
 
HP Fire.... for what?

Hmmmm, those percentages are very useful. I almost disbelieve them though since I see Heatran on EVERY team instead of the 20 or so percent the statistics indicate... oh well.
 
Blissey at least needs DEF (Bold 252) to take a crit. You can the best special wall all you want, but without defense, you can't wall any special hits if you're dead to a Pursuit Tyranitar..
 
Have you ever tried late game anything?

Ugh, I hate the "late game" argument. Seriously, anything can be good late game if it's counters are eliminated/weakened. I'm not even kidding. Really, everytime somebody warrants an uncommon pokemon, the term "late game" pops up. Considering the use of a pokemon because it can pwn late game is a massively flawed argument.

As much as I hear the shit, I'm surprised that teams even function properly. From the sound of things teams consist of 1 lead and 5 late game pokemon. What happens mid-game? Ugh.

Ok, I'm done ranting.


Thanks for adding percentages Doug. That helps a lot

This is why so many teams get completely fucked by criticals, instead of just a little fucked because they rely on Pokemon that are nearly useless if they are forced to come out early in the match.
 
Uber analysis for this month:

1. Kyogre (=)
2. Darkrai (+2)
3. Rayquaza (-1)
4. Dialga (+1)
5. Groudon (-2)
6. Palkia (+1)
7. Lugia (+1)
8. Mewtwo (-2)
9. Scizor (=)
10. Blissey (+3)
11. Deoxys-f (=)
12. Latias (+2)
13. Giratina (-1)
14. Garchomp (+3)
15. Giratina-o (+5)
16. Deoxys-e (-6)
17. Tyranitar (+2)
18. Mew (-3)
19. Metagross (-3)
--- OU cut-off point
20. Ho-oh (+2)
21. Forretress (=)
22. Wobbuffet (+6)
23. Celebi (+9)
24. Latios (+1)
25. Deoxys-l (+1)

Top leads: Darkrai, who led a whopping 2.4 times more than the #2 lead, Deoxys-f.

My prediction last month did not come true. Neither Rayquaza nor Groudon have taken the #1 spot, and Kyogre remains the #1 most used pokemon (and as of right now, I don't see that changing) and by a respectable margin. For the first time in this ladder's history, the RSE trio's grip on the top 3 has been shattered. There are a number of reasons for this. One battler, by himself, had significantly impacted usage by himself by using the same team repeatedly (Darkrai/Dialga/Groudon/Mewtwo/Scizor/Rayquaza). Out of the 4249 uber battles last month, he played in a staggering 1022 of them, meaning that he is responsible for approximately 12% of all usages that month. To my knowledge, he has played very little this month, so any conclusions on shifts in usages must keep this in mind. Second, Darkrai and Dialga still rose this month (especially for the former). I'll go into more detail on these individually.

As I mentioned above, Kyogre remains at #1, virtually unphased by the metagame shifts. Surprisingly, the Choice Scarf set was more common this month, for some reason. This doesn't really make sense considering that most things that the scarfer dislikes dealing with has risen in usage. More DD Rays, similar ScarfPalkias, more Blisseys, more Latias, more bulky Dialgas. Specs or CM both look clearly superior. I've had very little trouble with them with any of my teams, and I really don't know what to make of it. Timid Scarfers can take out Adamant DD Ray, but that's about all I see. Specs is still strong though, followed distantly by a straight CM set (usually with lefties; and which I've been told has worked well, but, for me anyway, has only forced me to reveal more of my team midgame) and restalk sets. Few CMRestalkers though (supported by even lower Defense-heavy spreads on the restalkers); those that I have encountered have actually chosen Ice Beam over Surf.

Darkrai usage continued to skyrocket this month, launching him to #2 for the first time, but his climb should stop here. As widespread as the Choice Scarf, Trick, and Nasty Plot sets have become, people are experimenting with checks. Scizor usage was relatively higher this month, and I've also seen a surprisingly effective anti-lead Celebi, a Sleep Talk Kyogre with three attacks, and more Wobbuffets.

Rayquaza has dropped to #3, but he's still quite popular. The SD set has dropped further in popularity in favor of DD. This is likely because the SD set is walled by mostly the same things as the DD set at the moment and that DD already has enough power to hurt what it needs to hurt right now, "so why bother". The general trend, however, is still towards Boosting Move/Dragon Move/Extreme Speed/Miscellaneous Coverage Move (in that order of likelihood). Although I haven't used it recently, I'd wager ES is still useful on the DD sets for picking off miscellaneous threats and for kamikaze strikes and is still more useful than two miscellaneous coverage moves. EQ has dropped in usage somewhat, but that's probably because Outrage already hurts Dialga enough and Scizor is the other most common Steel now. Allot of people are plugging that last slot with a fire move, evidently, although I can't vouch for this from personal experience as opposing Rays have rarely used anything other than Boosting Move/Dragon Move on me. Mixed Rays and CBers (surprisingly) fill out the remaining usage, which aim to catch Ray's usual counters off-guard with no set-up sets, although they're both relatively small in number. Mixed sets did rise this month, but not as much as predicted. Odds look favorable for them this month, but only if DD declines, which is a possibility but still early to tell. SD sets will not regain their former popularity, not any time soon.

Dialga is back to #4, serving primarily as a special attacker and/or special tank. Its two most common moves, by far, were Draco Meteor and Thunder. Thunder is a staple in many sets, but the disparity in usage between Thunder's usage and other moves that would typically be present along with it means people are using Dialga as a Kyogre counter more than before (which again begs the question "why are people running Scarfogre?"). Support/Bulky Attacker, BURestalk, Mixed, and Scarfed follow in what should be that order, which makes sense. Dialga may be the best restalker right now, and the Scarf set has less to prey on.

Groudon has dropped to #5, another first for this ladder. He hasn't gotten any worse - it's just that the services of all the pokemon above him are more called upon than his own. Rock Polish is still the most common set, but SD and support sets now follow closely behind.

Choice Scarf Palkia is still the most popular variant by far but has given way slightly to Lustrous Orb. Palkia's moves this month are slightly more varied too. More people are running Aura Sphere, Fire Blast, and Outrage (probably over Draco Meteor) and preferring Thunder over Surf.

Lugia usage remains steady. The spreads are slightly more varied this time (some emphasize Defense over Speed and vice versa), but there are otherwise no significant changes. While it may seem that Palkia and Lugia have made some gains this month, Mewtwo's drop in usage is the real reason they're higher up. Mewtwo himself functions virtually the same as he did last month, but some of the perceived changes this month (more scarfers, DD Ray) hurt him.

Scizor saw relatively more use this month, solidifying his position as the premier Steel trapper over Metagross, whose usage has in turn dropped significantly. The drop in Mew and Deoxys-e usage usage leaves fewer Scizor carrying Brick Break.

In response to the considerable rise of special threats this month, Blissey usage has shot up this month. The sets are largely the same, but more Blissey that weren't already running Defense EVs before are running them now.

Deoxys-f remains unchanged. Mewtwo generally serves its role better at the moment, but it's still a respectable lead.

Latias was also used more this month, surprisingly. The sets are very similar to last months', but the spreads are different. More maxed HP, ran some Defense, ran much less Special Attack, and ran a little less Speed. Fewer ran Grass Knot (and more HP Fire), so this may have been for Scizor instead. I'm also assuming they were counting on Stealth Rock damage for Palkia or have another pokemon for dealing with Palkia, since an unboosted Dragon Pulse with no SpA EVs will never OHKO it without residual damage.

Giratina is largely being passed over for Lugia for physical walling at the moment, as Lugia deals with most physical threats (bar Groudon) better. Given the state of the metagame, I'm surprised the Wow set is more popular than the CMer.

Garchomp was used primarily as a revenge killer. Sets were mostly Choice Scarf this month, and Garchomp had few problems switching in and out to pick off threats with Earthquake and Dragon Claw early on and then using Outrage later on. Many used Outrage immediately, and there's not much that could switch in, take it out, and make it out alive.

Giratina-o is finally "OU". Given that its typing is a big double-edged sword and that it's not raw power incarnate, I doubt it will rise much higher on the ladder, but this vicinity is where it belongs. Substitute sets dominated to make up for its lack of speed (and, to a lesser extent, to battle stall). Most ran either CM or mixed sets.

Deoxys-es and Mews have settled down in response to being directly anti-metagamed. They dropped regularly through the month.

Tyranitars increased this month, although it's not just because of Garchomp. Most of the Tyranitars I saw were on teams without Garchomp, actually. Nearly all of them were Choice Banders, meant to pick off specific prey or just take a chunk of damage out of something. There were a fewer Dragon Dancers and Subbers, but Tyranitar has a tough time setting up at the moment and the immediate power of CB is generally more threatening than its other sets. Most of the spreads favored HP and Special Defense over Attack this month.
 

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