Up to now, Shrug has developed his reputation primarily on spreading his political views far and wide, as well as some controversial ORAS metagame posts, but beneath his pale complexion lies a formidable LC player who has taken on Snake Draft by storm. Though he was always acknowledged as a solid battler and creative teambuilder, nobody could have expected him to end round 1 of Snake 3-0. As of round 2, he still boasts a good record of 4-2; will he be able to carry Starmaster on his back to a trophy?
hm running through my stance on a list of issues would be boring and shitty, so i'll just say my overall political beliefs center around improving the material conditions of people and ensuring they have the ability to live their lives with dignity. im a big rights guy - constitutional ones, civil ones, human sometimes aswell.
What about your stances on Little Cup politics? What do you like most about our community? How do you think we can further improve?
Little Cup politics... now thats a subject i do not engage in. i think our community is very inclusive, which is maybe it's strongest point - we're willing to take in anyone who likes little cup and find them a social niche. We can further improve our collective showing in tournaments, which we seem to be doing already, but it'll be solidified when future slam finals are me vs. Brazilian Army.
Outside of yourself and Brazilian Army, which players are you most looking forward to watching in future LC tours?
I think fiend hound is going to be back in a big way later this year, probably with his typical teams that have resistances to less that 1/3 of the type chart but still manage to win - maybe shades of his semifinal (quarterfinal?) open run that ended unjustly. pumped to see dundies, a star communist in lcpl, choke people out with his bulky balances. tko has some fire HOs in the teambuilder which always makes games exciting. honestly i like watching a lot of players, hopefully i get to see a bunch of good games in person
What were your thoughts on how LCPL went? How did you feel of your team's performance? Would you draft differently if you had the chance?
I think lcpl went well overall, a good team won and it was a tight series in the final. I was proud of my team, we were close until the last week off of a furious start. I dont think i would draft differently - I earnestly believe with some better fortune in the middle weeks we'd have been legitimate contenders for the title, and I liked everyone on the team too much to not have picked them up.
What are your thoughts on Snake draft so far? How do you feel about being drafted? About being on the same team as Star?
snake draft has been great for me so far in terms of my team atmosphere. thanks to ict and Poek, snake's dominant manager duo, for picking me up, and to Star for stumping for me for some reason lol. much love to all my teammates too. We've seen a couple lc matches thus far and there hasnt been any groundbreaking innovations or dominant playstyles but im looking forward to seeing that (and the meta) change over the course of the 8 weeks. i love starm despite his fixation with posting graphic incest hentai in the lc chat of our team discord.
How do you feel about the current state of SM LC? Do you feel it is an improvement from ORAS LC? From older gens?
oh i really like sm lc. lots of new dynamics, and i feel people have built around the initial staleness brought by onix + staryu cores - they can be pretty easily taken apart and often leave their users on the backfoot against aggressively-played teams that commit to opening them up. Still good for beating dudes on the ladder but that's not a sign of metagame domination by any stretch. few things that maybe dampen my enthusiasm slightly: abra, which really does define a playstyle (webs) that has seen heavy usage in high-level situs as well as having a massive impact in every game it is brought to; vullaby, whose panoply of effective sets means u need to keep more counters alive for longer than u might be able to; torchic, which provides a threat on its own great enough to force the defending party into a position where they might not be able to stop the next boosted threat; and diglett / wynaut, who change game dynamics in interesting ways for sure. spirited debates could be had about all of these of course.
as for a comparison to other metagames, i think i like sm lc more, but thats not a claim with any objective basis. i think im just better at it as a result of getting better at pkmn over time, making me like it more.
What are some Pokemon you feel are underrated or overrated in the current metagame?
I feel like salandit is p underrated. Good stabs, good speed tier, p powerful. Uhhhhh grimer-a is overrated, it often has trouble impacting games where it doesnt have a clear purpose.
You brought up Berry Juice as potentially banworthy last gen - would you still consider it banworthy? What about other major items?
hm my argument for banning gen 6 berry juice was sort of weird and context-specific - basically, i wanted dig gone as well as berry juice and (i think) abra, which i felt would make the metagame better by reducing the number of stupid things like zigzagoon, freeing floon, etc. i dont think id still advocate for this from like a council position, but it is interesting to think about a gen 6 meta without dig goth abra pony and berry juice. i can see it being a lot more fun and better overall, but thats a radical change that isnt appropriate for an old metagame. would be fun for a minitour, though.
What are your thoughts on potential retests?
hm i think missy, floon, goth etc are p clearly broken and dont need to be retested. only one i could see would be cutiefly, and only if we decide to ban baton pass, which we should probably consider with how quickly torchic has come to play a huge role in this meta almost out of nowhere.
Do you think that the metagame still has room to significantly develop without altering the banlist?
no, i dont think so. there's nothing left to be mined from the movepools of the current most powerful mons, and i cant forsee something like a drifloon showing up and changing the metagame drastically. i think there will be shifts in the vougish dominant element - torchicpass, webs, birdspam, etc - but the fundamental composition of the meta will remain the same imo.
Finally, do you have a team that you would like to share with us?
here you go, a team that tries to unlock opposing defensive cores and force a wincon through the door. z-snivy knocks down poison types for scraggy, staryu's hp fire allows ferro to die so z-wring works, etc. pursuit pawn breaks down like abra etc.
Thanks for the answers, Shrug!
Player of the Week 7: Shrug
What are your political stances and why?
hm running through my stance on a list of issues would be boring and shitty, so i'll just say my overall political beliefs center around improving the material conditions of people and ensuring they have the ability to live their lives with dignity. im a big rights guy - constitutional ones, civil ones, human sometimes aswell.
What about your stances on Little Cup politics? What do you like most about our community? How do you think we can further improve?
Little Cup politics... now thats a subject i do not engage in. i think our community is very inclusive, which is maybe it's strongest point - we're willing to take in anyone who likes little cup and find them a social niche. We can further improve our collective showing in tournaments, which we seem to be doing already, but it'll be solidified when future slam finals are me vs. Brazilian Army.
Outside of yourself and Brazilian Army, which players are you most looking forward to watching in future LC tours?
I think fiend hound is going to be back in a big way later this year, probably with his typical teams that have resistances to less that 1/3 of the type chart but still manage to win - maybe shades of his semifinal (quarterfinal?) open run that ended unjustly. pumped to see dundies, a star communist in lcpl, choke people out with his bulky balances. tko has some fire HOs in the teambuilder which always makes games exciting. honestly i like watching a lot of players, hopefully i get to see a bunch of good games in person
What were your thoughts on how LCPL went? How did you feel of your team's performance? Would you draft differently if you had the chance?
I think lcpl went well overall, a good team won and it was a tight series in the final. I was proud of my team, we were close until the last week off of a furious start. I dont think i would draft differently - I earnestly believe with some better fortune in the middle weeks we'd have been legitimate contenders for the title, and I liked everyone on the team too much to not have picked them up.
What are your thoughts on Snake draft so far? How do you feel about being drafted? About being on the same team as Star?
snake draft has been great for me so far in terms of my team atmosphere. thanks to ict and Poek, snake's dominant manager duo, for picking me up, and to Star for stumping for me for some reason lol. much love to all my teammates too. We've seen a couple lc matches thus far and there hasnt been any groundbreaking innovations or dominant playstyles but im looking forward to seeing that (and the meta) change over the course of the 8 weeks. i love starm despite his fixation with posting graphic incest hentai in the lc chat of our team discord.
How do you feel about the current state of SM LC? Do you feel it is an improvement from ORAS LC? From older gens?
oh i really like sm lc. lots of new dynamics, and i feel people have built around the initial staleness brought by onix + staryu cores - they can be pretty easily taken apart and often leave their users on the backfoot against aggressively-played teams that commit to opening them up. Still good for beating dudes on the ladder but that's not a sign of metagame domination by any stretch. few things that maybe dampen my enthusiasm slightly: abra, which really does define a playstyle (webs) that has seen heavy usage in high-level situs as well as having a massive impact in every game it is brought to; vullaby, whose panoply of effective sets means u need to keep more counters alive for longer than u might be able to; torchic, which provides a threat on its own great enough to force the defending party into a position where they might not be able to stop the next boosted threat; and diglett / wynaut, who change game dynamics in interesting ways for sure. spirited debates could be had about all of these of course.
as for a comparison to other metagames, i think i like sm lc more, but thats not a claim with any objective basis. i think im just better at it as a result of getting better at pkmn over time, making me like it more.
What are some Pokemon you feel are underrated or overrated in the current metagame?
I feel like salandit is p underrated. Good stabs, good speed tier, p powerful. Uhhhhh grimer-a is overrated, it often has trouble impacting games where it doesnt have a clear purpose.
You brought up Berry Juice as potentially banworthy last gen - would you still consider it banworthy? What about other major items?
hm my argument for banning gen 6 berry juice was sort of weird and context-specific - basically, i wanted dig gone as well as berry juice and (i think) abra, which i felt would make the metagame better by reducing the number of stupid things like zigzagoon, freeing floon, etc. i dont think id still advocate for this from like a council position, but it is interesting to think about a gen 6 meta without dig goth abra pony and berry juice. i can see it being a lot more fun and better overall, but thats a radical change that isnt appropriate for an old metagame. would be fun for a minitour, though.
What are your thoughts on potential retests?
hm i think missy, floon, goth etc are p clearly broken and dont need to be retested. only one i could see would be cutiefly, and only if we decide to ban baton pass, which we should probably consider with how quickly torchic has come to play a huge role in this meta almost out of nowhere.
Do you think that the metagame still has room to significantly develop without altering the banlist?
no, i dont think so. there's nothing left to be mined from the movepools of the current most powerful mons, and i cant forsee something like a drifloon showing up and changing the metagame drastically. i think there will be shifts in the vougish dominant element - torchicpass, webs, birdspam, etc - but the fundamental composition of the meta will remain the same imo.
Finally, do you have a team that you would like to share with us?
Spritzee @ Eviolite
Ability: Aroma Veil
Level: 5
EVs: 212 HP / 196 Def / 12 SpA / 76 SpD / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Protect
- Moonblast
- Reflect
Pawniard @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Defiant
Level: 5
EVs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 36 SpD / 196 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Pursuit
Vullaby @ Eviolite
Ability: Overcoat
Level: 5
EVs: 156 Atk / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 76 SpD / 116 Spe
- Knock Off
- Brave Bird
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
Snivy @ Normalium Z
Ability: Contrary
Level: 5
EVs: 236 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Wring Out
- Knock Off
- Glare
Scraggy @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Moxie
Level: 5
EVs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
Adamant Nature
- High Jump Kick
- Knock Off
- Drain Punch
- Iron Head
Staryu @ Eviolite
Ability: Analytic
Level: 5
EVs: 36 HP / 200 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Rapid Spin
Ability: Aroma Veil
Level: 5
EVs: 212 HP / 196 Def / 12 SpA / 76 SpD / 12 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Wish
- Protect
- Moonblast
- Reflect
Pawniard @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Defiant
Level: 5
EVs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 36 SpD / 196 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Pursuit
Vullaby @ Eviolite
Ability: Overcoat
Level: 5
EVs: 156 Atk / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 76 SpD / 116 Spe
- Knock Off
- Brave Bird
- U-turn
- Heat Wave
Snivy @ Normalium Z
Ability: Contrary
Level: 5
EVs: 236 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Leaf Storm
- Wring Out
- Knock Off
- Glare
Scraggy @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Moxie
Level: 5
EVs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
Adamant Nature
- High Jump Kick
- Knock Off
- Drain Punch
- Iron Head
Staryu @ Eviolite
Ability: Analytic
Level: 5
EVs: 36 HP / 200 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Rapid Spin
Thanks for the answers, Shrug!
