Approved by Sweep
Based on other Player of the Week threads
Co-hosted by Arii Stella
Art by NicoReaper
Welcome everyone to Ubers Player of the Week! This'll be a weekly project where Arii Stella & I alternatively interview well known players every week to try to get to know them better. If anyone has suggestions on who we should interview next, feel free to shoot Arii / me a PM. Anyways, lets get to it!
Hack
Favorite Pokemon(s):
Lugia and Ho-oh are my favourite Ubers Pokemon. I also like Crobat, because of nostalgia.
Most Known For:
9-0 record in POCL 2014, 10 consecutive round wins in Ubers Fall Seasonal 2015, being very knowledgeable about all Ubers metagames.
Tell us a little about yourself.
I'm a bachelor industrial engineering student, going to spend the next two years on a master's programme where I will focus on innovation economics and management. Privately, I'm a pretty straightforward guy. I enjoy sports, music and movies. Fucking love movies.
How did you derive your username?
I was initially on Smogon around 2012, when some friend of mine found the site while we were playing games against each other during the DPP era. At that point of time, I was still in a "troll" phase, so I thought it would be clever if I had a name reminiscent of the worst player in history, Ash from the Pokemon anime. I decided to name myself "Hack He Must," which is an anagram of Ash Ketchum. Later, I always found it too tedious to log onto 'Hack He Must' on PS!, so I requested a name change to "Hack," because it stuck with me more. It's honestly a top tier name anyway.
How and when did you get in Ubers?
Looking back at it, I think it was some sort of reaction to not being able to use legendaries, when playing with friends, who were more casual. So when I started playing online, I guess I was drawn towards something I hadn't experienced. I also found Ubers representing a tactical facet, although with absurdly overpowered mons, which I hadn't really felt before. A mon I remember liking at first in Ubers was Forretress; simply because it represented this shift from being mindless and spamming attacks to actually playing smart with a strategy. Another classic story was reading some old smogon article, regarding Blaziken in Ubers. I think that was pretty inspirational for similar reasons; since it showed that finesse sometimes outmatches higher stats.
What is your favorite generation in Ubers, and why?
That's a hard question to answer, because I enjoy all Ubers metagames and play them on a pretty high level. (except GSC but I'm friends with Isa so lol). Furthermore, I'm not on the same playing magnitude in all generations, obviously. So let me just break down the question into what I like the most about the Ubers metas I play.
ADV - I like this meta because it emphasises steady flow, low-medium risk and low-medium reward plays. I think the pace makes for some of the most strategic Ubers battles.
DPP - I enjoy DPP because it incorporates some of most savage offense ever seen
and it's stupidly fun. I also like the variety, since there are many cool techs and bulkier teams are practical as well.
BW2 - This is the meta where I became good at mons; it's very outlined and you generally know what to do. I also feel it is the metagame where your experience invariably outweighs someone who hasn't played the meta as much. The variety of Arceus-formes was also super fun to play with.
XY - Loved this meta, but I ultimately think it wasn't really ready for strong fairy types. This is evident from how gamefreak is now buffing the shit out of fairy checks. (Take ORAS Mega Metagross for example, and also Solgaleo from the new Pokemon Sun game.)
ORAS - I think it's ultimately less match up reliant than XY. Overall I think it's pretty cool, can't really put a finger on exactly why.
What's your favorite playstyle and why?
My favourite playstyle is stall; but that's really because I've always been obsessed with controlling every aspect of the match. However, stall also has its own flaws. I like most styles to be honest; well thought of offenses are intriguing. As for winning, I'd stick with balance mostly, and move to more extreme styles once in a while.
If you could change a few things in the ORAS metagame, what would those be?
We'll have Sun and Moon soon so this might be moot, however, hypothetically I would ban Stealth Rock on Deoxys-Speed. The thing about Deo-S is that it simply doesn't matter how good of a player you are - you get the same results those first 1-2 turns of the match, kind of like Baton Pass. As long as you know when to click Taunt and when to click Steath Rock, you can't go wrong, and that is a very low floor for skill. I'd go as far as to saying the first 3-4 turns of a battle with Deo-s are pre-determined. Some of the possibilities are:
1) Your opponent "anti-leads" you, but you can always still get up Stealth Rock.
2) Then you die the next turn, but you click taunt in case of set-up.
(Order of 1 and 2 can change sometimes, you always have the option to taunt turn 1)
3) You send out the appropriate mon to capitalize on your opponent's anti-lead (LOL DARKRAI). Even if it's a bit skillful to pick that mon, you can't really go wrong here either, you just need to know speed stats and type charts. (Again low floor)
4) You pretty much do whatever you want to capitalize on the momentum. (LOL DARKRAI)
In conclusion, having Stealth Rock on such a fast mon (that also has taunt and skill swap) is just not representative of battling skill in my opinion. You can argue that Darkrai falls into a similar category of style, which it does.
What are you most looking forward to in gen 7, Pokemon Sun & Moon?
As for the singles format, I'm not looking forward to the newer gen at all. The focus gamefreak has is clearly not directed on making singles enjoyable, and it's going to get worse. Albeit, I'm optimistic about playing VGC in Sun and Moon though. That format will be cared about in a way the singles won't. I might sound a little hopeless, but what I've experienced these past years from gamefreak is just a decreased quality of tiers overall, not just Ubers.
Favorite UPL/Seasonal/Ubers Open game(s)?
There are a lot of games I've enjoyed playing, but if I had to pick one, it would be my Ubers game vs aim in SPL 6. I think this was a super important turning point in my SPL run. I was down 0-1 after losing miserably to Jibaku, so I desperately needed to win that game. Aim is obviously a tough opponent, and I did exactly what you should never do against him. T3 was a huge misplay, considering my Ho-oh was practically guaranteed a kill every time it got into Klefki. After that, I just had to outplay. I rarely predict that much but here I just had to; in the end, I feel like his weakness to Diancie + Arceus-Ground won me that game rather than me playing that well.
Do you plan on managing/playing in next year's UPL? Also, what would be the one thing you would want to alter in UPL?
I'm not sure about either managing or playing, we'll see when the time comes. I think UPL worked fine in terms of what tiers were represented, but I don't think XY deserves another shot. As fun as it was to revisit, it quickly died down. One thing that sucks is the format, which basically puts too much emphasis on the early weeks. Some teams are practically automatically out after the second week, which is lame. I guess best of 3s in all games is neat. Though, it's still hard to fix the format issues.
Can you provide any healthy tips for newer users?
There's nothing wrong with being curious, interacting with other users, posting on forums etc. Just don't be stupid about it, behave well. In terms of getting better at the game, I used to ladder a lot, but that was a long time ago. All in all, just play a lot and be nice.
Finally, can you provide us a team with a brief explanation on how it works?
I think the combination of U-Turn Landorus-T + Deoxys-Attack is super fun in this meta. It's a pretty straightforward team, easy to use. Also, I run toxic Arceus-Fairy because I do not like losing to random CM Arceus-formes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Big thanks to Hack for taking out time to complete this interview.
Make sure you ask him any (respectful) questions below!
Based on other Player of the Week threads
Co-hosted by Arii Stella
Art by NicoReaper
Welcome everyone to Ubers Player of the Week! This'll be a weekly project where Arii Stella & I alternatively interview well known players every week to try to get to know them better. If anyone has suggestions on who we should interview next, feel free to shoot Arii / me a PM. Anyways, lets get to it!
Hack
Favorite Pokemon(s):
Lugia and Ho-oh are my favourite Ubers Pokemon. I also like Crobat, because of nostalgia.
Most Known For:
9-0 record in POCL 2014, 10 consecutive round wins in Ubers Fall Seasonal 2015, being very knowledgeable about all Ubers metagames.
I'm a bachelor industrial engineering student, going to spend the next two years on a master's programme where I will focus on innovation economics and management. Privately, I'm a pretty straightforward guy. I enjoy sports, music and movies. Fucking love movies.
How did you derive your username?
I was initially on Smogon around 2012, when some friend of mine found the site while we were playing games against each other during the DPP era. At that point of time, I was still in a "troll" phase, so I thought it would be clever if I had a name reminiscent of the worst player in history, Ash from the Pokemon anime. I decided to name myself "Hack He Must," which is an anagram of Ash Ketchum. Later, I always found it too tedious to log onto 'Hack He Must' on PS!, so I requested a name change to "Hack," because it stuck with me more. It's honestly a top tier name anyway.
How and when did you get in Ubers?
Looking back at it, I think it was some sort of reaction to not being able to use legendaries, when playing with friends, who were more casual. So when I started playing online, I guess I was drawn towards something I hadn't experienced. I also found Ubers representing a tactical facet, although with absurdly overpowered mons, which I hadn't really felt before. A mon I remember liking at first in Ubers was Forretress; simply because it represented this shift from being mindless and spamming attacks to actually playing smart with a strategy. Another classic story was reading some old smogon article, regarding Blaziken in Ubers. I think that was pretty inspirational for similar reasons; since it showed that finesse sometimes outmatches higher stats.
What is your favorite generation in Ubers, and why?
That's a hard question to answer, because I enjoy all Ubers metagames and play them on a pretty high level. (except GSC but I'm friends with Isa so lol). Furthermore, I'm not on the same playing magnitude in all generations, obviously. So let me just break down the question into what I like the most about the Ubers metas I play.
ADV - I like this meta because it emphasises steady flow, low-medium risk and low-medium reward plays. I think the pace makes for some of the most strategic Ubers battles.
DPP - I enjoy DPP because it incorporates some of most savage offense ever seen
and it's stupidly fun. I also like the variety, since there are many cool techs and bulkier teams are practical as well.
BW2 - This is the meta where I became good at mons; it's very outlined and you generally know what to do. I also feel it is the metagame where your experience invariably outweighs someone who hasn't played the meta as much. The variety of Arceus-formes was also super fun to play with.
XY - Loved this meta, but I ultimately think it wasn't really ready for strong fairy types. This is evident from how gamefreak is now buffing the shit out of fairy checks. (Take ORAS Mega Metagross for example, and also Solgaleo from the new Pokemon Sun game.)
ORAS - I think it's ultimately less match up reliant than XY. Overall I think it's pretty cool, can't really put a finger on exactly why.
What's your favorite playstyle and why?
My favourite playstyle is stall; but that's really because I've always been obsessed with controlling every aspect of the match. However, stall also has its own flaws. I like most styles to be honest; well thought of offenses are intriguing. As for winning, I'd stick with balance mostly, and move to more extreme styles once in a while.
If you could change a few things in the ORAS metagame, what would those be?
We'll have Sun and Moon soon so this might be moot, however, hypothetically I would ban Stealth Rock on Deoxys-Speed. The thing about Deo-S is that it simply doesn't matter how good of a player you are - you get the same results those first 1-2 turns of the match, kind of like Baton Pass. As long as you know when to click Taunt and when to click Steath Rock, you can't go wrong, and that is a very low floor for skill. I'd go as far as to saying the first 3-4 turns of a battle with Deo-s are pre-determined. Some of the possibilities are:
1) Your opponent "anti-leads" you, but you can always still get up Stealth Rock.
2) Then you die the next turn, but you click taunt in case of set-up.
(Order of 1 and 2 can change sometimes, you always have the option to taunt turn 1)
3) You send out the appropriate mon to capitalize on your opponent's anti-lead (LOL DARKRAI). Even if it's a bit skillful to pick that mon, you can't really go wrong here either, you just need to know speed stats and type charts. (Again low floor)
4) You pretty much do whatever you want to capitalize on the momentum. (LOL DARKRAI)
In conclusion, having Stealth Rock on such a fast mon (that also has taunt and skill swap) is just not representative of battling skill in my opinion. You can argue that Darkrai falls into a similar category of style, which it does.
What are you most looking forward to in gen 7, Pokemon Sun & Moon?
As for the singles format, I'm not looking forward to the newer gen at all. The focus gamefreak has is clearly not directed on making singles enjoyable, and it's going to get worse. Albeit, I'm optimistic about playing VGC in Sun and Moon though. That format will be cared about in a way the singles won't. I might sound a little hopeless, but what I've experienced these past years from gamefreak is just a decreased quality of tiers overall, not just Ubers.
Favorite UPL/Seasonal/Ubers Open game(s)?
There are a lot of games I've enjoyed playing, but if I had to pick one, it would be my Ubers game vs aim in SPL 6. I think this was a super important turning point in my SPL run. I was down 0-1 after losing miserably to Jibaku, so I desperately needed to win that game. Aim is obviously a tough opponent, and I did exactly what you should never do against him. T3 was a huge misplay, considering my Ho-oh was practically guaranteed a kill every time it got into Klefki. After that, I just had to outplay. I rarely predict that much but here I just had to; in the end, I feel like his weakness to Diancie + Arceus-Ground won me that game rather than me playing that well.
Do you plan on managing/playing in next year's UPL? Also, what would be the one thing you would want to alter in UPL?
I'm not sure about either managing or playing, we'll see when the time comes. I think UPL worked fine in terms of what tiers were represented, but I don't think XY deserves another shot. As fun as it was to revisit, it quickly died down. One thing that sucks is the format, which basically puts too much emphasis on the early weeks. Some teams are practically automatically out after the second week, which is lame. I guess best of 3s in all games is neat. Though, it's still hard to fix the format issues.
Can you provide any healthy tips for newer users?
There's nothing wrong with being curious, interacting with other users, posting on forums etc. Just don't be stupid about it, behave well. In terms of getting better at the game, I used to ladder a lot, but that was a long time ago. All in all, just play a lot and be nice.
Finally, can you provide us a team with a brief explanation on how it works?
Excadrill @ Focus Sash
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
Salamence @ Salamencite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 200 HP / 132 Atk / 176 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Double-Edge
- Facade
- Roost
Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 Atk / 64 Def / 196 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Sleep Talk
Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 96 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Precipice Blades
- Dragon Claw
- Rock Polish
- Fire Punch
Arceus-Fairy @ Pixie Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Judgment
- Toxic
- Stone Edge
- Recover
Deoxys-Attack @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 20 Atk / 252 SpA / 236 Spe
Rash Nature
- Psycho Boost
- Knock Off
- Superpower
- Extreme Speed
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Toxic
- Rapid Spin
Salamence @ Salamencite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 200 HP / 132 Atk / 176 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Double-Edge
- Facade
- Roost
Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 Atk / 64 Def / 196 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Sleep Talk
Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 96 SpD / 56 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Precipice Blades
- Dragon Claw
- Rock Polish
- Fire Punch
Arceus-Fairy @ Pixie Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Judgment
- Toxic
- Stone Edge
- Recover
Deoxys-Attack @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 20 Atk / 252 SpA / 236 Spe
Rash Nature
- Psycho Boost
- Knock Off
- Superpower
- Extreme Speed
I think the combination of U-Turn Landorus-T + Deoxys-Attack is super fun in this meta. It's a pretty straightforward team, easy to use. Also, I run toxic Arceus-Fairy because I do not like losing to random CM Arceus-formes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Big thanks to Hack for taking out time to complete this interview.
Make sure you ask him any (respectful) questions below!
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