This is not the place to write Pokemon of the Week posts. If you're interested in writing those, private message me.
Here's a brief illustration as to what Trainer Tips are:
If you want to try your hand writing these, post your idea or write-up in this thread and I'll look over it and move from there! Don't be shy to at least take a shot; you can write about just about anything so long as it's relevant to competitive Pokemon/Smogon's official tiers! :]
Completed tips not yet used
Here's a brief illustration as to what Trainer Tips are:
- typically a couple of short paragraphs (can be written in whatever manner you wish as long as it's somewhat personal while retaining a competitive nature) on "how to better employ" a particular battle tactic or strategy;
- beneficial to both competitive and non-competitive parties interested in dabbling a bit in the competitive field.
Trainer Tip # 64 - Rain in OU
In Generation V, weather wars dominated the Overused tier, with many battles being decided by who can get their weather to stay permanently. With direct type advantage over the Sun and Sand setters, Politoed quickly became the poster child for Rain teams. Once Generation VI rolled in, Drizzle's effect was nerfed and the ban on Swift Swim + Drizzle was lifted. This paved the path to the offensive Rain teams we see in the ORAS OU tier today.
While Politoed sets the Rain, it relies on powerful Pokemon with Swift Swim to abuse strong attacks with doubled Speed. Threats such as Life Orb Kabutops and Choice Specs Kingdra are often the go-to sweepers, while some teams opt to use their Mega slot on Mega Swampert, a strong and bulky attacker that becomes a serious force under the Rain. Since most Pokemon with Swift Swim are already Water-types, their attacks not only receive the Rain boost, but a STAB boost as well, with only the most dedicated of walls able to withstand the hits.
Not all sweepers on Rain teams rely on Swift Swim. In the rain, Tornadus-Therian gets access to a perfect accuracy STAB Hurricane, which can put serious holes teams should they have no resist. With Regenerator and U-Turn, as well as tremendous base 121 Speed, Tornadus-T has no problem switching in and out of the battlefield to fire off attacks. Mega Manectric can use a perfect accuracy Thunder that rivals Life Orb Torn-T's Hurricane in power. Like Torn-T, Mega Manectric can pivot out with a fast Volt Switch and wreck havoc on the opponents.
Thanks to Cheek Pouch for the writeup and Andrew for the art! What Pokemon do you use as sweepers for your Rain teams? How do you combat the weather?
In Generation V, weather wars dominated the Overused tier, with many battles being decided by who can get their weather to stay permanently. With direct type advantage over the Sun and Sand setters, Politoed quickly became the poster child for Rain teams. Once Generation VI rolled in, Drizzle's effect was nerfed and the ban on Swift Swim + Drizzle was lifted. This paved the path to the offensive Rain teams we see in the ORAS OU tier today.
While Politoed sets the Rain, it relies on powerful Pokemon with Swift Swim to abuse strong attacks with doubled Speed. Threats such as Life Orb Kabutops and Choice Specs Kingdra are often the go-to sweepers, while some teams opt to use their Mega slot on Mega Swampert, a strong and bulky attacker that becomes a serious force under the Rain. Since most Pokemon with Swift Swim are already Water-types, their attacks not only receive the Rain boost, but a STAB boost as well, with only the most dedicated of walls able to withstand the hits.
Not all sweepers on Rain teams rely on Swift Swim. In the rain, Tornadus-Therian gets access to a perfect accuracy STAB Hurricane, which can put serious holes teams should they have no resist. With Regenerator and U-Turn, as well as tremendous base 121 Speed, Tornadus-T has no problem switching in and out of the battlefield to fire off attacks. Mega Manectric can use a perfect accuracy Thunder that rivals Life Orb Torn-T's Hurricane in power. Like Torn-T, Mega Manectric can pivot out with a fast Volt Switch and wreck havoc on the opponents.
Thanks to Cheek Pouch for the writeup and Andrew for the art! What Pokemon do you use as sweepers for your Rain teams? How do you combat the weather?
Trainer Tip #13 - Paralysis (in UnderUsed)
Feraligatr is paralyzed! It's unable to move!
Does this statement seem familiar? That's probably because it's the bane of all of our existences. Paralysis in UnderUsed (and paralysis in general) serves very specific and standardized purposes: to hamper the Speed stats of otherwise dangerous Pokemon, and generate more vulnerable turns for the user. However, the use of paralysis has always been a controversial topic, so much so that the term 'Yellow Magic' has been coined in retaliation to the notion that using methods of paralysis requires little to no skill. That being said, this game has many interesting nuances, and many ways to take advantage of them to win. In a tier that has decent staple Ground-types, such as Krookodile, Mamoswine, and Gligar, a few token Electric-types, such as Zapdos, Rotom, and Mega Ampharos, as well as multiple clerics, it's difficult to present a solid argument as to why 'Yellow Magic' should have its brain picked.
With this in mind, a question is begged: is paralysis truly a broken feature in UU, or is it just another tool to be used carefully and intuitively to secure a win? The answer, in my opinion, is the latter. Too arrogantly do we switch in our Crobat's on Stealth Rock Cobalion, assuming advantage over a lack of Swords Dance by firing off several Brave Birds and Roosting. Too assuredly do we spam our Entei's Sacred Fires against Will-O-Wisp Rotom-Heat, thinking we have a win secured with only a weakened Mamoswine to trump, when Thunder Wave appears and completely changes the outcome of the game. In short, we're not careful enough as battlers and tacticians, and we complain about a status condition that has been present since day one.
Paralysis has been profoundly influential since the dawn of RBY OU, where games were literally decided based on how effectively one uses Thunder Wave. In a game where 24 move slots spell a win or a loss, sparing one for a situational game changer is a risk, and one that will not always pay off. Furthermore, Pokemon is a game that rests on on the "best" course of action, not the "ultimate" course of action; just because you made the right play doesn't mean that the RNG will always reward you with the optimal outcome. This is a limitation placed upon the game for a specific purpose: luck is fun, and it adds dimension to an otherwise perfectly controlled environment. Paralysis is a way to generate your own luck based on the limits of your intuition.
In UnderUsed, there is always a steady rise of paralysis users, including, but not limited to, Whimsicott, Rotom-Heat, and Cobalion. These Pokemon utilize paralysis in response to very fast and powerful forces in the tier such as Mega Beedrill, Hydreigon, Salamence, Darmanitan, and Mega Aerodactyl. The response is associated with the overall offensive nature of the tier; in some instances, paralysis evens the playing field for more diverse playstyles, an important component of a healthy tier. Overall, the backlash over paralysis tends to be generated by the same users that refuse to use it. In response, we at Smogon University suggest that you become slightly more open-minded in your pursuits. And happy paralyzing.
Thanks to King UU for the writeup and chameleonskyes for the art.
Feraligatr is paralyzed! It's unable to move!
Does this statement seem familiar? That's probably because it's the bane of all of our existences. Paralysis in UnderUsed (and paralysis in general) serves very specific and standardized purposes: to hamper the Speed stats of otherwise dangerous Pokemon, and generate more vulnerable turns for the user. However, the use of paralysis has always been a controversial topic, so much so that the term 'Yellow Magic' has been coined in retaliation to the notion that using methods of paralysis requires little to no skill. That being said, this game has many interesting nuances, and many ways to take advantage of them to win. In a tier that has decent staple Ground-types, such as Krookodile, Mamoswine, and Gligar, a few token Electric-types, such as Zapdos, Rotom, and Mega Ampharos, as well as multiple clerics, it's difficult to present a solid argument as to why 'Yellow Magic' should have its brain picked.
With this in mind, a question is begged: is paralysis truly a broken feature in UU, or is it just another tool to be used carefully and intuitively to secure a win? The answer, in my opinion, is the latter. Too arrogantly do we switch in our Crobat's on Stealth Rock Cobalion, assuming advantage over a lack of Swords Dance by firing off several Brave Birds and Roosting. Too assuredly do we spam our Entei's Sacred Fires against Will-O-Wisp Rotom-Heat, thinking we have a win secured with only a weakened Mamoswine to trump, when Thunder Wave appears and completely changes the outcome of the game. In short, we're not careful enough as battlers and tacticians, and we complain about a status condition that has been present since day one.
Paralysis has been profoundly influential since the dawn of RBY OU, where games were literally decided based on how effectively one uses Thunder Wave. In a game where 24 move slots spell a win or a loss, sparing one for a situational game changer is a risk, and one that will not always pay off. Furthermore, Pokemon is a game that rests on on the "best" course of action, not the "ultimate" course of action; just because you made the right play doesn't mean that the RNG will always reward you with the optimal outcome. This is a limitation placed upon the game for a specific purpose: luck is fun, and it adds dimension to an otherwise perfectly controlled environment. Paralysis is a way to generate your own luck based on the limits of your intuition.
In UnderUsed, there is always a steady rise of paralysis users, including, but not limited to, Whimsicott, Rotom-Heat, and Cobalion. These Pokemon utilize paralysis in response to very fast and powerful forces in the tier such as Mega Beedrill, Hydreigon, Salamence, Darmanitan, and Mega Aerodactyl. The response is associated with the overall offensive nature of the tier; in some instances, paralysis evens the playing field for more diverse playstyles, an important component of a healthy tier. Overall, the backlash over paralysis tends to be generated by the same users that refuse to use it. In response, we at Smogon University suggest that you become slightly more open-minded in your pursuits. And happy paralyzing.
Thanks to King UU for the writeup and chameleonskyes for the art.
If you want to try your hand writing these, post your idea or write-up in this thread and I'll look over it and move from there! Don't be shy to at least take a shot; you can write about just about anything so long as it's relevant to competitive Pokemon/Smogon's official tiers! :]
Completed tips not yet used
Trainer tip #???- Spikes in PU
In a tier dominated by entry hazards, PU has plenty of different Spikes users to choose from. Roselia is the most notable as a former S rank, not only for Spikes but also for being a great defensive wall and incredibly hard to switch into when running offensive sets, making it incredibly unpredictable. It's easy to switch in expecting a weak defensive hit and then get blown away by an offensive Leaf Storm. Meanwhile, it can set up both Spikes and Toxic Spikes, and still has more useful support options with Sleep Powder an Synthesis. Quilladin has been gaining some notoriety as an alternative option recently thanks to its offensive spiking set which can lay hazards on common threats such as Roselia and Golem. While it still sees use as a defensive Spiker thanks to its great bulk and Synthesis, offensive sets can threaten foes like Pawniard and Stunfisk and use the switches it forces to lay Spikes.
PU also has a number of suicide spiking leads. Venipede has access to both types of Spikes, Endeavor, and Speed Boost, making it annoying to deal with for unprepared teams. Glalie only has access to regular Spikes, but gets Taunt, Freeze Dry, and Explosion so it can't easily be set up or removed on. Quilladin also has a suicide set, while it faces competition from Glalie as a Spiker with Taunt it can use its natural typing to handle Golem more effectively and gets Endeavor to mess with foes. Dwebble, while being the only Pokemon with both Stealth Rock and Spikes, can also be setup fodder for a large portion of the tier.
Spikes are best abused by strong attackers and sweepers like Stoutland, Fraxure, and Floatzel who can force a lot of switches and wear down grounded counters like Gourgeist-XL. Toxic Spikes, on the other hand, mostly benefit special attackers such as Rotom-F and Chatot, as many of the best specially defensive walls such as Audino, Grumpig, and Assault Vest Bouffalant are susceptible to the poison. Running Pokemon to deter Defog like Pawniard and Electric-types to threaten Vullaby and Swanna can also help to keep Spikes up over a long game.
In a tier dominated by entry hazards, PU has plenty of different Spikes users to choose from. Roselia is the most notable as a former S rank, not only for Spikes but also for being a great defensive wall and incredibly hard to switch into when running offensive sets, making it incredibly unpredictable. It's easy to switch in expecting a weak defensive hit and then get blown away by an offensive Leaf Storm. Meanwhile, it can set up both Spikes and Toxic Spikes, and still has more useful support options with Sleep Powder an Synthesis. Quilladin has been gaining some notoriety as an alternative option recently thanks to its offensive spiking set which can lay hazards on common threats such as Roselia and Golem. While it still sees use as a defensive Spiker thanks to its great bulk and Synthesis, offensive sets can threaten foes like Pawniard and Stunfisk and use the switches it forces to lay Spikes.
PU also has a number of suicide spiking leads. Venipede has access to both types of Spikes, Endeavor, and Speed Boost, making it annoying to deal with for unprepared teams. Glalie only has access to regular Spikes, but gets Taunt, Freeze Dry, and Explosion so it can't easily be set up or removed on. Quilladin also has a suicide set, while it faces competition from Glalie as a Spiker with Taunt it can use its natural typing to handle Golem more effectively and gets Endeavor to mess with foes. Dwebble, while being the only Pokemon with both Stealth Rock and Spikes, can also be setup fodder for a large portion of the tier.
Spikes are best abused by strong attackers and sweepers like Stoutland, Fraxure, and Floatzel who can force a lot of switches and wear down grounded counters like Gourgeist-XL. Toxic Spikes, on the other hand, mostly benefit special attackers such as Rotom-F and Chatot, as many of the best specially defensive walls such as Audino, Grumpig, and Assault Vest Bouffalant are susceptible to the poison. Running Pokemon to deter Defog like Pawniard and Electric-types to threaten Vullaby and Swanna can also help to keep Spikes up over a long game.
Last edited: