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Pokemon Online Username: All Hail Da King2 Hall of Fame Standing: N/A Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: 5/6 of my team members are Dark Horses so I'd like some help as to whether this is allowed.(Froslass, Abomasnow, Poliwrath, Jynx, Mamoswine). Current Ladder Standing: 1000
I'll edit this when I get an answer on if I'm allowed to use 5 DH Pokes. Reason being is the team really blends(I tested it on All Hail Da King first forgot to register :( ). Any help on this is appreciated.
Pokemon Online Username: Grassy Solitude Hall of Fame Standing: none Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Tangrowth, Deoxys-D, Cobalion Current Ladder Standing: 1000
Pokemon Online Username: TehEpicTurtle Hall of Fame Standing: Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Hippodown! Current Ladder Standing: 1000 - > 1105 - > 1205 -> 1380
How did you choose your Dark Horse Pokemon for this project? Honesting, I was team building one day, and I wanted to include Terrakion on my team (before everyone used it, I was hipster mang!). Tyranitar and Terrakion just was too prone to getting defeated by Scizor and Conkeldurr,
so I considered Hippodown. After using Hippodown, I simply loved him/her so much and it's one of my main weather abusers now! When this project opened, I wanted to try Hippodown as it was a Pokemon which I felt comfortable with.
How did you go about building a team for your Dark Horse Pokemon? Which kinds of teammates did you consider? What factors contributed to the team you created?
Do you think it is more difficult or less difficult to ladder with a Dark Horse Pokemon? Why? Does the element of surprise play a factor in your battles? Is it easier to fight with a "highly used"" team or with Pokemon that are less common?
I feel my Dark Horse Pokemon made games more interesting and more difficult. The thing is, people remember Hippodown from 4th gen, so their really isn't a surprise factor, but it feels good hitting a Dragonite with Ice Fang when they don't expect it. Tyranitar would make it easier to laddering for it ends matches quicker, but Hippodown would make the game based more on MY skill and not just using a SE move to kill something. But that doesn't change anything, for using a "highly used" team doesn't necessarily mean its easier to fight, a lot of the highly used teams are heavily based around prediction (explaining why they go so high in the ladder) because if one just makes a team that relies little on prediction, it can go high, but it will be extremely hard to peak when you get into the high tier section of the ladder.
(For Hall of Fame members only)How did you reach the Hall of Fame? Was it easy or difficult? Did having a Dark Horse Pokemon on your team benefit you? What advice would you give to those laddering with Dark Horse Pokemon?
I just laddered causally, I watched Youtube videos while laddering to pass time and overall just had a fun time. It was neither easy or difficult, it felt it was the perfect difficulty for me. My Dark Horse Pokemon benefited me and basically held my team together (it's a sand team the focuses on Rotom-W spreading T-Wave so Hippodown can actually outspeed stuff and Substitute Terrakion w/ Rock Gem can hit 110 speeds and + without losing its sub). My advice would be 1. don't continue laddering when your going in a downward spiral. You often lose your spot when you lose one game and it makes you mad, dis-focusing you in the next game, causing you to lose that one and ect. 2. Switch your teammates up, for example, when I was at the 1000-1200 range, I used Jirachi and Latias, but once I got to 1200+, I switched them for Scizor and Celebi. Early in the ladder, I feel as though people don't focus on momentum and more on sweeps/stall. Once you go on in the later, a lot more people use Volt-Turn, so using your own Volt-Turn will make matches 75% less annoying. Really, this challenge is just for fun and don't make a real big deal of it!
I stopped at 1380, I simply stopped, for I couldn't find any matches =(. I think I mean go higher, or I might just stop here, chillax and go higher another day.
Pokemon Online Username: 2400 Dark Horse Pokemon: Latias Screenshot of Top 80 Ladder Ranking:
Dark Horse Pokemon Complete Set:
Latias 4 HP/252 Spec. Att./252 Speed Timid @Leftovers -Dragon Pulse -Hidden Power Fire -Surf -Calm Mind
This set has served me very well. Most of the time people forget that Latias can run an offensive calm mind set with an emphasis in flat out attacking. On the ladder this set can both absorb hits and fire back with some very powerful Super Effective and Neutral attacks. Latias is excellent in Sun or Rain, and its Special Defense has been a great help in balancing my teams more physical core. In some respects Latias is a whole lot better than its counterpart- Latios. The drop in Special Attack is off putting, but Latias still boasts base 110 Spec. Att. and great speed. One of the most important lessons I have learned on my way up the ladder is to think before I act.
Off the cuff battling seldomly works well because of the emotional and psychological battling. The key to laddering effectively with any team especially one with a Dark Horse Pokemon is to stay focused on the game. Also- never, ever ladder while in Tilt. If you find yourself frustrated or angry and ragequitting you need to stop before you seriously damage your momentum on the ladder.
Pokemon Online Username: Grassy Solitude Hall of Fame Standing: none Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Tangrowth, Deoxys-D Current Ladder Standing: 1000 ---> 1289 ---> 1329
Pokemon Online Username: PillsburyDoughBoy A3
Hall of Fame Standing: None
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Swampert
Current Ladder Standing: None
Pokemon Online Username: Ranger Cyan
Hall of Fame Standing: N/A
Dark Horse Pokemon Currently Working With: Hitmontop, Steelix, Empoleon
Current Ladder Standing: 1118
How did you choose your Dark Horse Pokemon for this project? What lead you to choose the Pokemon you did? Did you have regrets or were you happy with your selection?
Well, I've got this really simple two-part philosophy when it comes to Pokemon: A) always use the best mons and cores on your teams, and B) usage stats mean jack shit.
People seem to think the Dark Horse Project is about finding a way to break 1350 with gimmicks, and frankly I just didn't approach it that way. I figured I would make a good solid team that happened to have underappreciated Pokemon, and to me Slowbro has always been such a gem. If I had it my way, I wouldn't be posting here now, because he shouldn't be a Dark Horse.
How did you go about building a team for your Dark Horse Pokemon? Which kinds of teammates did you consider? What factors contributed to the team you created?
The first thing I started by doing when I made my current team was go "hey mienshao and Slowbro are two really underrated mons." I didn't care how much or little they worked together, I loved them, and by god they would both be on my team. Next, I began looking for Slowbro's perfect match. It basically had to be Steel or Fighting, because the Bro wanted Bug and Dark resists. It had to be specially defensive. That left Heatran. I never looked back.
After finding my first three, I went on Marriland Team Builder and fiddled around. I needed a Water resist for Rain Teams and I needed a Scarfer. Hydreigon covered both of these, and could counter ScRotom in a pinch. I needed a Spinner and an Electric resist, so Donphan was my man. I went offensive because I don't like a mon with base 120 Atk pussyfooting around, and besides, Slowbro could take anything. Donphan could also set Rocks, which let Heatran run Roar instead, which would prove so god damn helpful against set up sweepers. Last, I needed a Rotom counter that could get back HP and so I went to Celebi. The astute observer will notice that this is the team I used in my Warstory vs Taylor.
However, it was imperfect. Specifically, Gengar and VolTurn are assholes. So after some stimulating forum discussion I switched Celebi for my own homebrew VolTurn fucker and by God Roserade is good. This allowed me as well to switch toxic for WoW on Tran. Also, I took out Hydreigon for the more defense-oriented Zapdos, who still packs a punch, without being a wuss. Now this team has problems with fastmons, specifically Gengar and Tornadus. However, two days after these changes I went from sub-1200 to Hall of Famer, so read into that what you will. It's just a shame only Slowbro gets the glory. EXPECT AN RMT SHORTLY.
Also, after my achievement, to celebrate I cleverly snuck "bro" into each of my mons' names, so if you're laddering and you see that, look at the name.
Do you think it is more difficult or less difficult to ladder with a Dark Horse Pokemon? Why? Does the element of surprise play a factor in your battles? Is it easier to fight with a "highly used"" team or with Pokemon that are less common?
As I've said before, for me the challenge had nothing to do with usage. 1300 was something I'd never broken in my life, Dark Horse or no Dark Horse. This was just about making the best team possible, and anyway, Slowbro is hardly surprising.
That said, after adding in Zapdos and Roserade there was a definite element of "what are these mons" in some of my opponents, but out of kindness I'll attribute that to my unconventional set rather than incompetence.
How did you reach the Hall of Fame? Was it easy or difficult? Did having a Dark Horse Pokemon on your team benefit you? What advice would you give to those laddering with Dark Horse Pokemon?
Patience. This bears repeating so: patience patience patience. For one, the teambuilding / threat spotting / adjusting process cannot be rushed, or you will find yourself making a worse team sometimes rather than better. As is, I know my team is far from perfect - Donphan, for one, is terrible, and I play Zapdos like an imbecile. But I know that every change I've made (possibly excepting WoW on Tran) has made it stronger.
Reaching top 80 was quite possibly the toughest POKEMON RELATED thing I have honestly done in my life, and toward the end of my climb I can cite multiple times I almost shit myself. I kid you not when I say that every time I lost a battle, I would exit PO. I was that cautious of tilt. Eventually, though, I did make it. Nothing gives you quite as much pride as hitting that milestone with a team designed, engineered, and played solely by you.
I inadvertently have reached the top 65 with 7 alts, 5 of which utilized at least one Dark Horse mon in every battle. Am i still eligible as a hall of famer even though i did not indicate my project here?
Pokemon Online Username: The White Horse. Dark Horse Pokemon: Feraligatr Current Ladder Standing: (20:38:39) *** You are not ranked in Standard OU yet! Dark Horse Pokemon Complete Set:
Feraligatr (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Aqua Jet
- Ice Punch
- Superpower
- Swords Dance
I inadvertently have reached the top 65 with 7 alts, 5 of which utilized at least one Dark Horse mon in every battle. Am i still eligible as a hall of famer even though i did not indicate my project here?
Hello ladies and gentlemen, here am I again, and I am extremely proud to announce that:
Spinda made it to the top-80!
Proof:
This time, laddering was way harder that the first time, as people don't laugh when they see Spinda on the team preview. Thus, I have even sweeped all my opponent's six pokes with Spinda when laddering. Maybe I should make a RMT?
