Project PU Player of the Week - TJ

[ishtar]

Approved by Akir
Inspired partially by the previous iteration of Player of the Week as well as Player Interview

TJ
Favorite Pokemon:
Most used SS PU Pokemon:
Currently most known for: Manager and player of the PUPL VI winning team the Clairvoyant Claydols, PU Snake Draft player, PU voice.
​

Whats up TJ, how are you doing today?

Hanging in there. I'm preparing to vacate my house at short notice in the event of a mandatory evacuation due to all the wildfires over here. Regarding Smogon, I’ve been enjoying the game a lot and look forward to Snake.

Hope youre staying safe, dude. Can you tell us a bit about yourself outside of Smogon?

I’m a 19 year old guy from California studying Political Science while working a job at a local tire shop. Outside of Smogon, my hobbies include playing other games, doing MMA, listening to music, watching tv shows, and walking my dog.

Awesome! First of all I wanna congratulate you and your team on winning PUPL IV! It was a hard fought struggle week after week for many, but what do you think was the recipe for success in terms of you and the team dynamic within the Claydols?

Thanks! @ktutverde covered this already in his shoutouts post but I think our recipe for success was simply our amazing team synergy and support.

Synergy definitely showed throught the whole tour, even if results are shown sort of on a player by player basis. You performed really well through this tour playing for SS. What do you attribute this success to in terms of your growth as a player?

I went into this tour with a different mindset and took each game one at a time.

What advice would you give to other players tryna learn this fluctuating meta?

Build your own teams and don’t believe what influential players tell you until you have tried it yourself. Just keep playing, gain experience and find your groove.

Ofc, its all trial and error, and through this sort of process we saw a great number of fantastic games. Which have been some of your favorite games for this PUPL? What made these matches so great in your opinion?

yandaud vs HJAD / SG were probably my favorite games to watch during this pupl because yan (an unknown player by most of the community) won very convincingly over them when he was predicted against. One thing I respect a lot about yan is that even if he loses, he never blames hax or bad matchups. I hope others can follow his footsteps.

Ofc, its always nice seeing players like him hop on the scene and put on a good show. Which opponent gave you the most trouble preparing for?

None really, I was confident with my teams and outplaying bad mus if needed.

On the topic of confidence and getting yourself out there, hich up and coming players surprised you through this PUPL?

I think yandaud, Lilburr, Skipkan, keppy, Procopius, Brandon, twitch.tv/Bag_of_Trixx, and zS exceeded most people’s expectations.

On the subject of growth, you've been one of the up and coming players that have managed to get into Snake for the first time. Who are you most excited to face for this tour

I am most excited to face my good friend, @ktutverde.

F yea, i think were all looking forward to that one! How do you feel about the pool of drafted players? Are you satisfied with the mainers that managed to get in?

I’m pretty happy with how the draft went overall, I think everyone who was drafted was deserving. I just wish a few more teams sought to pick up mains like MZ, termi, asa, zS, gum, and Squash17.

I agree with this whole statement. Definitely a step in the right direction from last year, but some people definitely deserved a bit better. Ok TJ, let's spill the sinistea right now. Whats one thing you'll miss about being on the Claydols and whats one thing you definitely won't miss?

I already miss reading @urusius’ weekly speeches and all of the good times I had with the lads on the claydols. One thing that I definitely won’t miss is when Alkione gave us all those heart attacks

Who's the most deceitful Spyfall or Among Us player you know from the community?

Definitely Specs and avarice.

Who do you hate losing to the most in those two games?

I’d say twitch.tv/Bag_of_Trixx and Musharnanigans because its pretty clear to me when they are the spy / imposters in those games.

Will you ever finish your Among Us tasks?

Lol, never.

Not sus at all, TJ lmao. Finally, case to mention some of your favorite people in the community?

Honorable mentions to GeneralAnnoyance, Specs, Ktütverde , Urusius, Musharnanigans, PTF, Taskr, LordST, Akir, Skipkan, yandaud, twitch.tv/Bag_of_Trixx , gum, 2xTheTap, asa, Drud, ShuckleDeath, Plans, Machoker, EviGaro, avarice, INSANE CARZY GUY, Oathkeepre, Estarossa, keppy, tlenit1, Xiri, Brandon, PH, Sam I Yam, Squash17, Chloe UberSkitty, and zS - thanks for being great friends and making my time in this community enjoyable over the years, love you guys Sorry if i forgot someone btw ):

Well there you have it! Congrats again on your great run with the Claydols and hoping to see some great games for Snake! Ty TJ for lending me the time to go through this.

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Yall know how it goes, ask TJ some questions to figure out if hes the spy!​

 

[Oathkeeper]

TJ, while I'm not a member of the PU community, I am truly grateful to you for being a great friend of mine! You've helped me in my bad times and praised me for my good ones and I ask nothing more from a friend like you dude! For the record, I'm do plan to get back into PU and can't wait to have some fun battles with ya!

 

[TTK]

As I'm still around and I probably got a dead question anyway, why is Gourgeist your most used SS PU mon?

 

[UberSkitty]

Are you a Pokemon Master?

Did you enjoy being interviewed after interviewing others?

Did you know you misspelled Ktütverde and Urusius as well as left no comma between me and Chloe?

What's your opinion on Bagon, Shelgon, and bagels?

Will you ever learn that Claydol isn't in PU?

How many posters of Thanos do you have in your room?

 

[War Incarnate]

I may not be a member of the PU community but this doesn't mean I can't start a conversation!

What has been your least favorite pokemon to face against in PU?

What has been your favorite pokemon to use? Your least favorite?

Have you played other metas outside of PU? If you have, what was the experience like? If you haven't, what would you say has been preventing you from doing so, other than usage stats?

What has made you like Salamence?

What do you think of the Gen 8 starters?

What was it like first playing PU?

What battles have you fought and lost where you thought you had the game in the bag only to realize the opponent had a trick up his/her sleeve?

What battles have you fought and lost where the above question applied, only this time you had the hidden trick all along?

 

[INSANE CARZY GUY]

What's the furthest You've ever thrown a frisbee?

 

[LordST]

Do you still remember testing dumbass teams in Oras with me when we both sucked?

 

[zoowi]

do you like mega salamence?

 

[atomicllamas]

Why do you always choose to murder other people right in front of me in among us? Is it some kind of perverse impulsion?

 

[Finchinator]

With Snake starting up soon, you are going to have to scout, build, and play at a very high level. Which aspect of your overall performance are you most confident about in this metagame and which are you most excited to improve?

With massive tier shifts coming sooner or later, are there any Pokemon you are hoping will drop or hoping will not drop for the sake of the metagame and your personal enjoyment/performance?

 

[TaxiCab]

if you're chamagne papi then whats your favorite drake album?

 

[MZ]

What're you reading/watching/playing/listening to/etc.? Whatever media you're into right now.

 

[BulbaBrain]

Hi TJ!

Just b4 we get into things, I like how you shout out basically all of the trixx studio members apart from me. That made me feel valued, as always.

1) What are some of the 'other games' you play?
2) What is ur fav mon in SS PU?
3) If you wish for one mon that could be PU that is not in SS currently (could be in the DLC) to be in SS now, what would that mon be?
4) Who do you think is/are up and coming player(s) that we should watch out for in Snake (or WCoPU if they haven't signed up)?
5) You say that you take Political Science. Are you an avid philosopher in that case?

Luv u TJ! Keppy ya done a great job yet again! Man I love these interviews.