This concept by Ignus was approved for discussion. Is this concept worth pursuing? If so, what questions could we ask? How could we improve this? Everyone is free to discuss the following submission as if this was a concept discussion.
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Name: Knock Off? Knock it off.
Description: A pokemon that not only successfully absorbs the move knock off from a variety of threats, but that uses the opportunity to steal that momentum from the opponent.
Justification: Knock Off. It's massive buff is one of the largest changes between gen 5 and gen 6 - it combined with the buffs to dark type's coverage created the monsters we fear known as bisharp, landorus-t, azumarill, and every other spammer of the damn move in the game. Fortunately, the same generation came with the introduction of mega-evolution: the only 'counter' to the otherwise unstoppable dark earthquake. Unfortunately, a team is limited to a single mega-evolution. But what if I want to use an offensive terror like Mega Latios or Mega Alakazam? Who's going to stop that stupid move now?
Enter CAP 20. The stage is set for the greatest knock off counter the world has ever seen. The best part? It doesn't take up your mega-slot. This introduces opportunities for some of the frailer Megas to get their chance in the limelight - theoretically opening up more teambuilding options in other slots as well.
Questions to be Answered:
The concept itself is relatively straightforward. Knock off is dumb. I don't like dumb things. Lets make our opponent sad for using dumb things. Hopefully, if this concept is executed correctly, we may see what could be considered one of the defining traits of the metagame make a visible shift at an underlying level, effecting everything from usage to move distribution.
As I mentioned earlier, the biggest reason this concept is strong is because it opens up options for the mega slot. Without its existence, potentially every Mega Evolution that's weak to dark moves or too frail to take the hit could see a bump in their popularity. Knock off is one of the best distributed dark type VGMs in the game, but honestly lacks power after the first hit. If there was a reliable, strong, manly counter out there, it's usage could potentially drop quite a bit. Not only that, but Knock Off is an extremely unique, and relevant, mechanic within the game. Exploring how to handle it could honestly teach us a load about the strengths and weaknesses of the pokemon who currently spam it, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the move itself.
In addition, the flexible nature of the concept allows us to approach it from a variety of directions. Do we want to abuse abilities like justified or unburden, or just be able to consistently tank and punish the move with an ability like flame body? Does it make sense to try and make a pokemon on the bulkier end of the spectrum despite the lack of an item like leftovers? While dark resistance will obviously be a big part of typing, does it make sense to take a fairy or fighting type when pokemon like Bisharp or Azumarill have STAB Super Effective moves against those types?
Such questions lead to some damn good debates, and hopefully push out some solid discussion in the upcoming steps.
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Name: Knock Off? Knock it off.
Description: A pokemon that not only successfully absorbs the move knock off from a variety of threats, but that uses the opportunity to steal that momentum from the opponent.
Justification: Knock Off. It's massive buff is one of the largest changes between gen 5 and gen 6 - it combined with the buffs to dark type's coverage created the monsters we fear known as bisharp, landorus-t, azumarill, and every other spammer of the damn move in the game. Fortunately, the same generation came with the introduction of mega-evolution: the only 'counter' to the otherwise unstoppable dark earthquake. Unfortunately, a team is limited to a single mega-evolution. But what if I want to use an offensive terror like Mega Latios or Mega Alakazam? Who's going to stop that stupid move now?
Enter CAP 20. The stage is set for the greatest knock off counter the world has ever seen. The best part? It doesn't take up your mega-slot. This introduces opportunities for some of the frailer Megas to get their chance in the limelight - theoretically opening up more teambuilding options in other slots as well.
Questions to be Answered:
- How important is Knock Off in the Metagame as of now?
- What benefit, if any, does an appearance of a "True Knock Off counter" contribute to the usage of Mega Evolutions weak to the move?
- What effect, if any, does a Knock Off counter have on the users of the move?
- What is the most effective way to handle the loss of an item? How does the lack of an item effect the choices you can make within a battle?
- What strengths and weaknesses do the vast majority of knock off users share?
The concept itself is relatively straightforward. Knock off is dumb. I don't like dumb things. Lets make our opponent sad for using dumb things. Hopefully, if this concept is executed correctly, we may see what could be considered one of the defining traits of the metagame make a visible shift at an underlying level, effecting everything from usage to move distribution.
As I mentioned earlier, the biggest reason this concept is strong is because it opens up options for the mega slot. Without its existence, potentially every Mega Evolution that's weak to dark moves or too frail to take the hit could see a bump in their popularity. Knock off is one of the best distributed dark type VGMs in the game, but honestly lacks power after the first hit. If there was a reliable, strong, manly counter out there, it's usage could potentially drop quite a bit. Not only that, but Knock Off is an extremely unique, and relevant, mechanic within the game. Exploring how to handle it could honestly teach us a load about the strengths and weaknesses of the pokemon who currently spam it, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the move itself.
In addition, the flexible nature of the concept allows us to approach it from a variety of directions. Do we want to abuse abilities like justified or unburden, or just be able to consistently tank and punish the move with an ability like flame body? Does it make sense to try and make a pokemon on the bulkier end of the spectrum despite the lack of an item like leftovers? While dark resistance will obviously be a big part of typing, does it make sense to take a fairy or fighting type when pokemon like Bisharp or Azumarill have STAB Super Effective moves against those types?
Such questions lead to some damn good debates, and hopefully push out some solid discussion in the upcoming steps.
