Jumpman16
np: Michael Jackson - "Mon in the Mirror" (DW mix)
Last week chaos asked me to come up with a plan to get to the bottom of the many metagame issues surrounding competitive pokemon and post a topic to this effect in Inside Scoop. I did, and came up with a "five-step process" I felt would have given us our desired result eventually with the most objectivity possible. While the collection and analysis of battle logs that were the third and fourth steps respectively wasn't received well by the rest of the IS posters as far as Wobby and Deoxys-S was concerned (though chaos has called for the collection of logs on a future No Garchomp ladder), the first two steps were generally agreed with, so I will repaste here.
*****
There's no simple way to go from 493 pokémon (or, technically, 492, which is the subject of one of the topics I will get to) to perfectly created and balanced tiers that allow for perfectly played competitive metagames. There is, though, an objective and regimented way of going about creating the rules fairly. With our own Smogon server on Shoddy Battle, we have our long-awaited power over key influences on competitive battle, but with this power comes a world of responsibility.
We can pick it up from scratch. It has been said that we need, in no particular order, to examine:
Lati@s
Mew
Manaphy
Garchomp
Darkrai
Arceus
Evasion Clause
Species Clause
UU Tiers
OHKO Clause
That's a lot. Some feel that, to move any pokemon from any tier fairly, its performance in the metagame in which it is being tested must be analyzed in a tournament. Some would champion its performance on the ladder over a fair period of time, say 2-3 months. Blue Kirby has suggested a long-term "tour" featuring any one pokemon that needs to be tested. All are good ideas, but first:
1. We must decide on the order of importance of the issues concerning competitive pokemon.
Divide and conquer. We can decide in here what the most important issues are currently, by ranking them in order, and then taking the ones with the lowest "points" and dealing with them in that order (1=Wobbuffet, 2=Garchomp, 3=Manaphy...you get the idea). There is no question, though, that we should be focusing our efforts on the most important issues first and foremost.
The next step refers to the methodology above.
2. We need to come to a decision on how exactly to conduct an analysis on a given issue.
Sure, it may be the case that a test of Garchomp and Lati@s would all benefit from a "Special Smogon Tour", but this may not be the way UU Tiers or Species Clause should be tested. It may also be the case that it would greatly benefit the community to test more than one suspect at a time. Regardless, we need to pin down what would be the most effective way of tackling the most important issue or issues at any time before we can go forward. And, of course, issues like Arceus and the Legendary IV clause can't be "tested" the same way, but rather discussed in Policy Review/Stark Mountain properly.
After this, it gets a little more difficult, but nothing we can't collectively handle.
*****
And that's where we can pick it up again. If you have posted in the IS thread, please copy and paste your post, insert your ranking of OHKO Clause and number the remaining 10 issues. You can explain your rankings if you want to. I've removed Wobby, DX-S, Event Moves and IV Clause from the list and added OHKO moves, and will be double posting my new ranking because I am awesome and totally above the rules.
edit: pasting Jabba and my three-Stage Suspect Test process here for posterity
Stage 1: Analysis of a single Suspect in a suspect-free standard metagame
Stage 2: Our assessment of Uber or OU for any Suspect's impact on a suspect-free metagame, following the respective Suspect's completion of Stage 1.
Stage 3: Analysis of all the Suspects in the standard metagame with the knowledge of which are considered Uber and OU in a Suspect-free metagame.
edit two:
thought i'd paste the results of our Order of Operations so it's on the first page, and yes im fully aware that dx-s then skymin are before lati@s:
1. Garchomp (75)
2. Lati@s (116)
3. Evasion Clause (126)
4. Manaphy (127)
5. Species Clause (136)
6. OHKO Clause (150)
7. UU Tiers (158)
8. Mew (159)
9. Arceus (172)
edit three:Suspect: Any Pokémon, move or clause that respectively may benefit competitive standard or uber battle if moved or implemented elsewhere.
*****
There's no simple way to go from 493 pokémon (or, technically, 492, which is the subject of one of the topics I will get to) to perfectly created and balanced tiers that allow for perfectly played competitive metagames. There is, though, an objective and regimented way of going about creating the rules fairly. With our own Smogon server on Shoddy Battle, we have our long-awaited power over key influences on competitive battle, but with this power comes a world of responsibility.
We can pick it up from scratch. It has been said that we need, in no particular order, to examine:
Lati@s
Mew
Manaphy
Garchomp
Darkrai
Arceus
Evasion Clause
Species Clause
UU Tiers
OHKO Clause
That's a lot. Some feel that, to move any pokemon from any tier fairly, its performance in the metagame in which it is being tested must be analyzed in a tournament. Some would champion its performance on the ladder over a fair period of time, say 2-3 months. Blue Kirby has suggested a long-term "tour" featuring any one pokemon that needs to be tested. All are good ideas, but first:
1. We must decide on the order of importance of the issues concerning competitive pokemon.
Divide and conquer. We can decide in here what the most important issues are currently, by ranking them in order, and then taking the ones with the lowest "points" and dealing with them in that order (1=Wobbuffet, 2=Garchomp, 3=Manaphy...you get the idea). There is no question, though, that we should be focusing our efforts on the most important issues first and foremost.
The next step refers to the methodology above.
2. We need to come to a decision on how exactly to conduct an analysis on a given issue.
Sure, it may be the case that a test of Garchomp and Lati@s would all benefit from a "Special Smogon Tour", but this may not be the way UU Tiers or Species Clause should be tested. It may also be the case that it would greatly benefit the community to test more than one suspect at a time. Regardless, we need to pin down what would be the most effective way of tackling the most important issue or issues at any time before we can go forward. And, of course, issues like Arceus and the Legendary IV clause can't be "tested" the same way, but rather discussed in Policy Review/Stark Mountain properly.
After this, it gets a little more difficult, but nothing we can't collectively handle.
*****
And that's where we can pick it up again. If you have posted in the IS thread, please copy and paste your post, insert your ranking of OHKO Clause and number the remaining 10 issues. You can explain your rankings if you want to. I've removed Wobby, DX-S, Event Moves and IV Clause from the list and added OHKO moves, and will be double posting my new ranking because I am awesome and totally above the rules.
edit: pasting Jabba and my three-Stage Suspect Test process here for posterity
Stage 1: Analysis of a single Suspect in a suspect-free standard metagame
Stage 2: Our assessment of Uber or OU for any Suspect's impact on a suspect-free metagame, following the respective Suspect's completion of Stage 1.
Stage 3: Analysis of all the Suspects in the standard metagame with the knowledge of which are considered Uber and OU in a Suspect-free metagame.
edit two:
thought i'd paste the results of our Order of Operations so it's on the first page, and yes im fully aware that dx-s then skymin are before lati@s:
1. Garchomp (75)
2. Lati@s (116)
3. Evasion Clause (126)
4. Manaphy (127)
5. Species Clause (136)
6. OHKO Clause (150)
7. UU Tiers (158)
8. Mew (159)
9. Arceus (172)
edit three:Suspect: Any Pokémon, move or clause that respectively may benefit competitive standard or uber battle if moved or implemented elsewhere.