Announcement Global Warming

[Arcticblast]

I am stepping down from my position as DOU moderator.

I've been here for a really, really long time. I started playing DOU at the very beginning, seeing the format grow from a rising star in OMs to a core metagame, and outside of a stint in 2016, have been around through thick and thin ever since. I've watched players come and go, watched every sort of game you can think of; I've seen the birth and death of legends. I've had my own moments in the sun, and likewise face down in the dirt. I have met so many incredible people in this community, many of whom have molded my life for the better, far beyond what I have the words for here. If I tried to write individual shoutouts I'd hit the character limit on multiple posts in a row.

But I turned 30 this year. I'm old! (At least for this site!) My Smogon account has been old enough to drive for a while now. The same incredible stories still come out of the community, but the names feel blurry. As I've watched the community over my tenure, and as my personal life has changed and grown, I feel like I'm slowly losing my grasp on what it means to be a DOU mod. I'm finding increasingly often that I just don't have the same drive or energy to do the things I want to do for this community, like host more tournaments, write more badge noms (which are still in the works!), and help coordinate community projects, while also balancing other commitments and free time. I'm having a hard time keeping track of all the new names, even as they stop being new. As such, I think it's time I leave this position. I would like more agency to treat this game as a hobby, rather than as a requirement. I'm not walking out on the community I love! Just opening the door for new people to lead us into the future.

I've had my missteps, but I firmly believe I have done everything I can for this community, and I hope that my efforts have left a positive impact. This community - and my role within it - have shaped the person I am today for the better, and it's all been an incredible adventure. See you in a month when I try to kill your DLT run!

 

[kaori]

would it be appropriate to say your motivation fell off of a

Cliff

 

[mimi]

ha, old

 

[Tenzai]

All my respects, Arctic

 

[aVocado]

o7

 

[Yoda2798]

It's weird for me to see Arcticblast finally stepping down, when I first joined the community around the beginning of 2015 I was like "damn this guy joined Smogon in 2008, that was ages ago". I'm sure nowadays there are people who feel similarly about me, but to this very day, in my mind, I still think "I've been around a while, but not that long compared to someone like Arctic". Objectively, though, I have been on here a long time, over 10 years now; but the crazy part is Arcticblast has still been around for over 50% longer than me! On top of that, aside from the hiatus in 2016 that he mentioned, Arctic has contributed pretty much continuously in his time here, which the significance of really cannot be understated. It's genuinely difficult to think of anyone else (at least from a DOU perspective) who comes close to the longevity Arctic has had.

There are a number of people still active who joined during generation 6, like myself, but naturally people's motivation ebbs and flows over time, and so they take breaks from contributing and instead only play, or even take breaks from Pokemon entirely. There's also the people who get burnt out completely or just move on from the game indefinitely, which is particularly common if you look at past mods or other people who have been around the site since the days of DOU's humble beginnings during generation 5. If you look back through old threads or tournaments you will see countless names who for whatever reason are no longer around, or only make rare appearances such as for DPL; however, Arcticblast has managed to remain as the constant in a sea of change, and not only as a participant, but as an active force for good in the community.

Arctic has currently been a DOU mod since 2018 (I've "only" been one since 2020), and then also has his earlier run of being an OM mod (and later DOU mod) from 2013 until the aforementioned hiatus in 2016. That's even without mentioning that he obviously contributed before first being promoted, and was also notably a PS mod back in those early days, and that even after stepping down in 2016, Arctic was still very much contributing to DOU and making posts in the time between then and being repromoted. Arcticblast's shorter stint is a solid resume in itself, and then his second term alone dwarfs practically anyone else's time in charge; his length of tenure is unprecedented and I don't believe will ever be matched.

Equally as important as longevity is the variety of Arcticblast's work, and I don't think it's an exaggeration to say there isn't an area of the tier or community that he hasn't been involved in. From moderating and helping noobs across Smogon, Pokemon Showdown, and Discord (and in ye olden days Skype and IRC); to running tours and helping run the DOU circuit overall; to being a perennial part of C&C; to running various forum projects, notably including showing some much needed love to less popular formats such as DUbers or BDSP DOU; to being an RMT mainstay (and having made several of his own); to also finding success in tours, with a number of trophies to his name both as a player and as a manager. The list is so countless I'm sure there's things I'm forgetting, like just now I'm also remembering his role in the creation and improvement of new sets for doubles RandBats. Arctic has never been one to shy away from any particular work, always willing to fill in where needed and go above and beyond that. He's been an invaluable part of numerous projects, either in direct involvement or helping out behind the scenes, and is always willing to listen to fresh ideas or help start something entirely new, driving forward the tier immeasurably.

Though perhaps even more amazing than the amount of work Arcticblast has done is the impression he leaves on people. I think it's fair to say that Arctic has been the face of DOU in many ways, usually being the first point of contact for new people and helping them to fit in, and often being a representative of the tier in the wider Smogon community. I can't imagine there being anyone with any real familiarity with the tier who doesn't fear know the name Arcticblast. Jokes aside, I also don't know anyone who has legitimate grievances with Arctic outside of people who have rightfully been banned or infracted, and even in those situations he's someone that will try to see the good in someone and will attempt to help them work things out more amicably before only resorting to those tools when necessary. Even long in the past when the community has had problems with toxicity, Arctic has never been part of the problem, he's always someone pushing forwards trying to make things better; and this is someone who successfully recovered from being a League of Legends player, so let that be a lesson to everyone that there is still time to change and be better. Arcticblast's good-natured and level-headed approach has been a big inspiration for me as a mod and as a person, and I truly believe he is a model citizen that we should all aspire to be more like.

While people might debate who the GOAT DOU player is, when it comes to contributors I think there is no debate: Arcticblast is the giant whose shoulders the rest of us stand on.

Arcticblast, thank you for everything you've done (and I'm sure will continue to do), u will be sorely missed.

 

[Darkmalice]

It's sad to see you step down Arctic. But at the same time, it's heartwarming to hear long you've been with DOU, how much you've enjoyed your time here, and how much you've done for the DOU community.