(This interview was conducted during the 2nd week of scl. As a result, some information may be outdated.)
FBK INTERVIEWS
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Kushalos
Favorite Pokémon: Exeggutor
Most used Pokémon: Volcanion
Most known for: being a stalwart of the game and community. cooking up fire techs.
It was not long after the fiasco of the 1800s that I found myself behind enemy lines again, this time infiltrating a top secret European laboratory.
As I moved through the ventilation system above the unsuspecting scientists, I caught sight of something very peculiar. Right in the middle of the vent stood a massive restaurant, the likes of which you would usually find on a busy street in metropolis. Before I could investigate however, I was left paralysed by a light ball flung at me from above, evidently the work of the chef who had caught me snooping around the place. I did not plan on being mincemeat this early in my career, so I decided to distract him before he could alert the facility.
hi!
Hey man
First ofc would you like to introduce yourself to the fans?
Hi, im Kushalos. I'm a 28 year old cook from the Netherlands who has been playing the game competitively since 2013 and is now an RU starter in SCL for the Foxes
You're a storied veteran of the game as we've seen over the years, but how did you get into pokemon and ps! in the first place?
Ive loved pokemon since i was a kid, from watching the anime at my grandmas house(she was the only one i knew who received fox kids) to watching an older friend playing pokemon crystal on his gameboy on vacations. When i was 6 years old i got my own gameboy and pokemon ruby. In 2004 my gameboy+emerald was stolen from my fathers car(absolutely traumatizing)so I got a DS with pearl on it. As I got older I gave my DS+games to my little brother and when i saw him enjoying himself as I had the urge to play it started to come back to me as well. The games got far too easy for me however so I looked at showdown for a challenge. After that Smogon followed as well as I grew a friend group with players like tdk, col49 and tokyo tom to name a few.
That is pretty sick yeah. What was the catalyst that drew you to RU? (I'm casting dark magic on whoever stole your gameboy)
Haha thank you for cursing them. I started playing RU when BW was the main gen in 2013. I loved how colorful the tier looked with pokemon like Slowking, Druddigon, Emboar and Escavalier. An infamous user from that time named Calloflochie taught me a lot of his building tactics at the time and thats how i took off myself. My playing continued into ORAS RU where I made the finals of RU open and Grand Slam playoffs only to get Mazar'd™ and after underperforming in the following SPL I dropped RU for two generations in a row because NU had captivated me for a long time. This generation of RU has been great so far because it takes me back to the structures that worked during early ORAS UU, which is one of my favorite metas of all time.
Dang older smogon really was the wild west. It's cool that you're enjoying ru again so I gotta ask, what about sv ru (and oras uu I guess) do you enjoy in particular?
Competitively and designwise im a big fan of pokemon like Hippowdon, Slowbro, Bisharp and Mew, mons that were all around during that era. Unfortunately you cant get as lazy with regen cores as you used to during oras but theyre still very effective with the inclusion of Cyclizar.
LMAO big cyclizar holding down the fort. The big new toy this generation is terastalization. How do you feel about tera and its uses, both offensively and defensively?
I have been very vocal about terastalization and its effect on the gen ever since dlc2 came out. A random timing based mechanic that can warp the game around like that is in my opinion almost just as bad as dynamaxing was in SS. At least with Z moves there was counterplay because you had to sacrifice an item slot and it was a one off thing, but now Tera Blast gives mons ridiculous coverage moves who wouldnt be shit without it like Yanmega. The synergy it has with abilities like levitate and water absorb also feels beyond insane.
I feel you there not gonna lie, thinking twice before clicking moonblast in front of a fighting type is not something I thought would ever happen. Moving back to you though, how do you approach the game with respect to building and playing?
Because ive been doing this for so long it all comes very instinctual. I make sure I have a resist or counterplay for every type in the game, that my team can deal with (scald)burns, paralysis and poison and something to take a knock off/trick. During playing I use my heart more than my brains, I'm still trying to get that reversed haha. I also always try to get an interesting gimmick in there for the fans whether it pans out or not, this game is supposed to be fun and interesting for me and spectators after all.
You've already spoken about calloflochie giving you insight into his teambuilding techniques. Who else would you say have helped and inspired you to become the player you are today?
id say getting insight into col49s teams and spreads has helped me out a lot in my growth as a builder. When it comes to players id say aim, omfuga, mcmeghan, blarajan, levi and stathakis have had philosophies that really stuck out to me off the top off my head. At the end there are so many ideas in this community that i kind of pull from everywhere by watching notable replays with ideas that i incorporate into my own building.also shoutouts europes own vincnumbers, you can still feel the pressure from his impact
Yo no way vincune?
yessir
That's awesome dude what
that set has gone back and revolutionized 2 gens before its time subcmtect entei was absolutely not a thing in bw ru before he came around
Holy its crazy because vincune/tei/kou have basically been immortalized in competitive pokemon lingo. I got a lighter question for you tho, what pokemon do you think would make for the best dish? Thought it would be best to get an expert's opinion
its a classic but honestly id like to taste what slowpoke tail is like, must be really good if team rocket is willing to get their hands dirty for it.
You're going to have to fork up 1 billion pokedollars for that I fear those things are not cheap lol. On another note, how do you feel about ru in this year's scl? Of course it's early days in the tour but is there a player/pokemon that has stood out to you so far?
i personally loved what stresh brought to the table this week and cant wait what he thinks of next. With Thundurus expectedly sitting at the top in usage i think teras like dark/ground/electric will become the most popular and with all the U-turn spam Rocky Helmet will probably pick up in usage as well. Thats all I can disclose without shooting myself in the foot for now :X
Completely understandable lol I wish you the best of luck for all your future scl games. Before we wrap this up, would you like to share a particular game/series you played that you found interesting?
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9ru-786827?p2
I think this game vs LBN shows he best way to use balance in the current meta. I was pretty proud of that team and im honored that it has been stolen a lot since haha. Maybe ill share it officially after the tour if the shifts dont make it completely irrelevant
Calm mind slowbro galar really cooked there. I find it to be a very underappreciated mon. Anyhow thank you for your time kushalos it has been a pleasure
my pleasure thanks for interviewing me
You got it (: gl with scl
FBK INTERVIEWS
(logo pending)
Kushalos
Favorite Pokémon: Exeggutor
Most used Pokémon: Volcanion
Most known for: being a stalwart of the game and community. cooking up fire techs.
It was not long after the fiasco of the 1800s that I found myself behind enemy lines again, this time infiltrating a top secret European laboratory.
As I moved through the ventilation system above the unsuspecting scientists, I caught sight of something very peculiar. Right in the middle of the vent stood a massive restaurant, the likes of which you would usually find on a busy street in metropolis. Before I could investigate however, I was left paralysed by a light ball flung at me from above, evidently the work of the chef who had caught me snooping around the place. I did not plan on being mincemeat this early in my career, so I decided to distract him before he could alert the facility.
I think this game vs LBN shows he best way to use balance in the current meta. I was pretty proud of that team and im honored that it has been stolen a lot since haha. Maybe ill share it officially after the tour if the shifts dont make it completely irrelevant
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Feel free to ask Kushalos any questions you want!
If you have any suggestions, please feel free to DM me!
If you have any suggestions, please feel free to DM me!
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