Doubles OU Player of the Week #41 - Stax

Alright now that we got the shit questions out of the way, here come the :fire: :fire: :fire:

1. Favorite noodle type? (There IS a correct answer)
2. When was the last time you called your mother? I'm sure she's worried sick by now.
3. When making cereal, do you put the cereal or milk in first?
4. What is your favorite phase of the moon?
5. Do you believe in aliens? If so, what do you think they look like?
6. What is your favorite recent movie (I'm bored an need suggestions)
7. Favorite non-pokemon video game?
8. THOT's on baddies who don't use swagger?
9. Favorite form of excersize?
10. Were the pyramids worth the slave labor put into them?
11. Do you think that you could climb over Donald Trump's Wall? (In this scenario, you have a 30 foot rope and two ice picks)
12. If given the opportunity, would you go on a trip to Mars for science?
13. What is that dangly thing at the back of everybody's throat?
14. Do you enjoy VGC or Doubles more? Which do you find easier?
15. FINALLY, what is your astronomical sign, and do you take advantage of the incredibly helpful and accurate horoscopes that pertain to said sign?
 

Braverius

snowls
is a Past SPL Champion
when are you going to do the final bo9 vs n1n1
i am winer
ggs

did you ever end up getting those donuts (or was it popcorn?) with n10sit and talkingtree?
no :[

how do you feel that you won the legendary bo3 bo3 bo3 vs. n1n1
the same way someone feels when they take the largest shit of their life when they're constipated

Will next spl be a b03 b03 b03 b03 bo3 with n1n1?
ohgodno

Ggs. That was fun.

What's your website about? When can we see?
Pokemon! Mostly VGC but I'm willing to expand into Doubles if there's interest in using the platform for that, too. It'll hopefully be officially launched next weekend and continue to add features over the next month.

Alright now that we got the shit questions out of the way, here come the :fire: :fire: :fire:

1. Favorite noodle type? (There IS a correct answer)
2. When was the last time you called your mother? I'm sure she's worried sick by now.
3. When making cereal, do you put the cereal or milk in first?
4. What is your favorite phase of the moon?
5. Do you believe in aliens? If so, what do you think they look like?
6. What is your favorite recent movie (I'm bored an need suggestions)
7. Favorite non-pokemon video game?
8. THOT's on baddies who don't use swagger?
9. Favorite form of excersize?
10. Were the pyramids worth the slave labor put into them?
11. Do you think that you could climb over Donald Trump's Wall? (In this scenario, you have a 30 foot rope and two ice picks)
12. If given the opportunity, would you go on a trip to Mars for science?
13. What is that dangly thing at the back of everybody's throat?
14. Do you enjoy VGC or Doubles more? Which do you find easier?
15. FINALLY, what is your astronomical sign, and do you take advantage of the incredibly helpful and accurate horoscopes that pertain to said sign?
1) is rice a noodle? i don't eat noodles.
2) i actually talked with her yesterday for almost an hour! she also texted me her chocolate chip cookie recipe today n_n
3) the cereal, because my aforementioned mother taught me how food works and i promise you that milk never goes first
4) the one where it is most spooky
5) i don't think i've looked enough into all the theories to answer, but based on what i know, other life forms probably exist but we probably haven't ever made contact with them (or the other way around)
6) i haven't seen a movie in almost a year. the only one i've seen in the last 18 months was end of eva and you should only watch that while inebriated
7) toss up between Madden and MLB2k
8) why am i constantly being asked about swagger? it's a pr good move that is no worse than a jirachi.
9) swimming in summer, biking in fall/spring, getting out of bed in winter
10) i mean yeah, they stored a lot of grain which probably was helpful to the people of that time
11) you'd be correctly assuming that i'm in canada if i have two ice picks and donald trump is president
12) would i die on the journey... for science? MAYBE
13) a gagger thingy
14) doubles over the current format, i also find doubles easier at a high level probably because of the smaller playerbase (but tougher at a normal level because of a more educated playerbase)
15) Taurus, and you'd have to feed me a hell of a lot of hemp lattes and find me a nice pillow to sit on to get me to start feeling some astrology
 
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kaori

Fully Automated Gay Space Communism
is a Top Tiering Contributoris a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
mfk dawg kylecole majorbowman

thoughts on macaroni and cheese

did you ever put that omastar smoochum thing poster in your bathroom? if so take a pic
 

Braverius

snowls
is a Past SPL Champion
what the hell is a hemp latte?

has portland gone too far?
a latte with hemp milk

it's not too bad honestly just like

it's hippie juice

mfk dawg kylecole majorbowman

thoughts on macaroni and cheese

did you ever put that omastar smoochum thing poster in your bathroom? if so take a pic
mac and cheese is a sexually transmitted disease shapeshifting into the form of food. it also rhymes with sexually transmitted disease, COINCIDENCE??

the omastar smoochum poster is on my wall by my square shelves, putting unframed posters in the bathroom ruins them bc of condensation apparently and as you have seen, my bathroom is a harry potter closet so theres no ventilation in there



also i just realized i missed miltank's question above - the format is much less ideal than vgc2015 but i also think people are grossly overreacting to it. it's iffy but it isn't catastrophically horrible and is definitely playable. the lack of access to legendaries is a big reason for the drop in attendance as well as stagnation of the circuit (no major improvements this year.)

regardless of the vgc format next year, the game will probably at least double in growth and i'm sure you'll start seeing venue size problems such as 2014 had. i'm thinking they'll realize how generally poor of an idea it is to allow legendary pokemon in a format, most of the other changes they've made to the format and the game reflect a possible huge step forward next season and i think we'll see a really good year next year.
 
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ryo yamada2001

ryo yamada2001
is a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus

Interviewee 39 - Dawgie
Sup, could you tell us who you are by giving a small introduction about yourself?
Hi there, my name is Luke, and I’m a doubles player from Australia. I’m currently a first year at university / college with not a clue as to what direction his life is headed!

Where does your username come from, and why did you stick with it?
It originated from Dog-For-Dinner, which I created out of frustration with not having the "dog" or "dawg" alt on PS!, to match my nuggetbridge username. Zarel was kind enough when I obtained global voice to give me the inactive account *Dawg*.

When did you start playing competitive Pokémon, when did you start playing competitive Doubles, and why did you stick around?
I started playing competitive Pokemon in late 2013, after watching the VGC world championships, VGC since then and Doubles in late 2015. I stuck around because I had been playing chess my whole life, and enjoyed the different challenges expressed in Pokémon, specifically doubles.

What is your favourite Pokémon to use competitively and why? What is your favourite Pokémon overall and why?
Amoongus is my favourite Pokémon to use competitively as it allows for strong defensive control and manipulation of board position, especially with the use of spore, and regenerator w/ volt/turn. Stoutland is my favourite overall because it is a mad DAWG.

What do you think is the strongest playstyle or Pokémon in this metagame right now, and why?

In terms of Pokémon, I’m personally astounded more people don’t use Jirachi Azumarill. When you start trying to theory the matchup of almost anything against Jirachi Azumarill, you’ll find that Jirachi Azumarill generally prevails.

Do you think there's a Pokémon or set that is currently underrated in the meta? I think Jirachi Azumarill is still criminally underrated. There are really not that many things that do tremendously well against it, and I think that people need to ask themselves more why they are not using it, before they use something else.

Do you think there is anything that should be suspected right now? Considering you're on the council now, are there any direct plans for the metagame?
I’ve been a big believer since I started playing doubles that the Mega-Salamence ban really needed a look in. From an outsider’s perspective it seemed that the ban was just a reaction to the common Jirachi / Salamence combo, I think this is admittedly strong, but I think there are certainly avenues toward bringing Salamence back into the metagame, and perhaps an option to keep Salamence + Jirachi out.

What are your thoughts on Swagger?
I think Swagger is overrated phenomenally and poorly applied and used. I think the average players in doubles fail to successfully apply the pressure that made swagger so dreaded in metagames such as vgc 12/13/15, and see it as ONLY a luck move to attempt to bail oneself out of bad positions, and not to attempt to improve board positioning. On a balance note, whilst I’d like a “Swaggerless” metagame, when you have a metagame that people have chosen to support guaranteeing certain Pokémon free boosts with limited consequences, a swagger rise to deal with this, and provide extra win cons, is only logical.

Could you give us a team that resembles your playing and building style and give a little explanation about it?

Diancie @ Diancite
Ability: Clear Body
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 208 Atk / 48 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Moonblast
- Earth Power
- Diamond Storm
- Protect

Amoonguss @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Regenerator
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Spore
- Rage Powder
- Giga Drain
- Sunny Day

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 156 Atk / 92 Def / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Superpower

Heatran @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 24 HP / 16 Def / 208 SpA / 8 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Heat Wave
- Substitute
- Earth Power
- Protect

Rotom-Wash @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Levitate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 244 HP / 4 Def / 8 SpA / 116 SpD / 136 Spe
Calm Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
- Will-O-Wisp
- Protect

Hydreigon @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 36 HP / 36 Def / 184 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Tailwind
- Dark Pulse
- Draco Meteor
- Protect

This Diancie Squad is my sample team and I think it represents how I go about playing doubles. I like to create teams which give me varying options regarding playing defensively and most importantly being able to switch, but also with the potential to offensively pressure the opponent – allowing me the capacity to make hard reads.

Do you think there is a significant difference between Doubles and VGC players in building and/or playing?
I think there is a significant difference in both, probably as a result of generally only the better VGC players moving across to play doubles. It’s really clear that VGC players are not here with

Will you be around for SPL? Would you like to play in that tournament?
I’m honestly not sure where I see myself and this game in 6-12 months’ time, I’m at a point in my life where I think something might have to give, so if I choose to slow down Pokémon, I may not be able to play in such an awesome tournament.

Who do you think is most likely to win this seasonal?
A lot of Doubles players probably don’t have a clue who he is, but as much as I hate predicting against my friends MajorBowman and SamVGC still in the tournament, Bopper is a phenomenal player who I think is incredibly hard to predict against in this sort of tournament.

Is there anybody you see as an up and coming player?
I see Bopper as an up and coming player in the Tier, but as I spoke briefly about earlier, that’s mainly due to how good I think he is at Pokemon in general.

Is there anybody you look up to as a player?

I look up to level 51, the man appears to be a doubles God, but is a Genius in disguise.

Is there any other metagame you play outside of Doubles and VGC?

I’m kind of a professional challenge cup player, I’m told that Cloud9 will be contacting me in the near future.

Are you excited for Pokemon Sun/Moon? What do you want to see next generation?
As a defensive player I’d love to (not) see mega-evolutions. I’m not a fan of their effect on making the game a lot more hyper offensive in nature.

What are your hobbies outside of playing Pokemon? What are you interested in? In terms of games, I really enjoy CS: GO, a real breath of fresh air compared to Pokémon. In terms of life I enjoy meeting up with friends and attempting to drink away my University Debt. It’ll work someday.

Who is your waifu, and why?
Level 51.

Is there anything else you would like to say or speak about?
Thanks for offering me the opportunity for an interview, Doubles is a lot of fun, and with a new game ahead we need to make sure that we need to make sure we engage a whole lot of new players to get involved in doubles. How we do that though, is another question.

[17:11] Yoda2798: is he a dog irl
Of course!

[18:17] %Nido-Rus: Does he eat dogs for dinner
That would make me a cannibal

Elegy - Where did he come up with the name dog-for-dinner
See q,2

[21:20] not dad1 i promise: mfk sam dawg bowman
K Bowman K Sam M Dawg I cheated. Sorry.

---
Silverwhiteblue here it is ;)
 
HERE WE GO FAM

What is the last thing you do before bed at night?
Where is the last place you shopped at?
Who are you voting for in the US elections?
Follow Up: How are you going to gain the right to vote in the US elections before November?
Is Cthulhu real?
Have you ever shoplifted?
Do you own Toy Story 3 on DVD? If so, can I buy it from you?
If you could be on any reality TV show, which one would it be and why?
MFK: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson | Christian Bale in his Batman costume | Nala from the Lion King
Who is your third favorite NBA player?
Is Draymond Green the scum of the Earth?
What feelings come to you when you read the words "VAPE NATION!!"?
AND FINALLY
What is your favorite meal to eat for dinner?
 
r u and checkmater beefing? if so what is the next step in your feud, a diss track maybe or will it stick to passive aggressive posts in the viability rankings thread?

"It’s really clear that VGC players are not here with"
is there more to this answer? seems like it got cut out D:

what breed of dog is your favorite(to have as a pet or to eat idc)
 
oh fuck.

I didnt really notice this so ill try and answer some q.s quickly



why am i your waifu?
xo


r u and checkmater beefing? if so what is the next step in your feud, a diss track maybe or will it stick to passive aggressive posts in the viability rankings thread?

"It’s really clear that VGC players are not here with"
is there more to this answer? seems like it got cut out D:

With - the mindset of being creative, they often know what works and will just beat suboptimal creative teams because they will happily do this. There is also a mindset that a number of strategies are Dirty that people really dislike in dou, namely perish trap, not having an open mind to teams with phenomenal success is a mistake i think a lot of dou players make.


what breed of dog is your favorite(to have as a pet or to eat idc)
I disagree with checkmater fundamentally on a number of core pokemon issues, I think we see the game and how it should be played completely differently, this isnt a bad thing, what is bad, is people mindlessly thinking walls of texts = valid points, or STRONG BIG WORDS = smart post.

With - the mindset of being creative, they often know what works and will just beat suboptimal creative teams because they will happily do this. There is also a mindset that a number of strategies are Dirty that people really dislike in dou, namely perish trap, not having an open mind to teams with phenomenal success is a mistake i think a lot of dou players make.

Schnauzers are my favourite

What is the last thing you do before bed at night?
feed my facebook addiction

Where is the last place you shopped at?

Who are you voting for in the US elections?
I'm not a US citizen, but likely Hillary

Follow Up: How are you going to gain the right to vote in the US elections before November?
marry


Is Cthulhu real?
wtf
Have you ever shoplifted?
n
Do you own Toy Story 3 on DVD? If so, can I buy it from you?
n, n
If you could be on any reality TV show, which one would it be and why?
kms
MFK: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson | Christian Bale in his Batman costume | Nala from the Lion King
kms
Who is your third favorite NBA player?
Is Draymond Green the scum of the Earth?
n
What feelings come to you when you read the words "VAPE NATION!!"?
kms
AND FINALLY
What is your favorite meal to eat for dinner?
STEAK
[/quote]





Who is your favorite american and why is it MajorBowman
answered your own q. because you have a good beard
 

Yoda2798

Not the user you are looking for
is a Community Leaderis a Community Contributoris a Top Tiering Contributoris a Top Contributor
Doubles Leader
Doing this one since Elise is lazy, next player of the month week will be by them again


Interviewee #40 - miltankmilk
Sup, could you tell us who you are by giving a small introduction about yourself?
Hey I'm Connor. Im a 20 years old and I'm a 3rd year Political Science student at University of Illinois and hopefully headed to law school after this.

Where does your username come from, and why did you stick with it?
I honestly don't remember where I thought of the username, but I just remember thinking it was super clever and I should keep it. For like a year or two I was trying to think of some new Nick to go with but I ended up being persuaded by Pwnemon that the name has character and I should keep it.

When did you start playing competitive Pokémon, when did you start playing competitive Doubles, and why did you stick around?
I started playing competitive Pokemon like two and a half years ago, just messing around on the ladder and playing in PS room tours, but really got involved with Doubles and Smogon right around when this year's Spring Seasonal got going. I stuck around Doubles because I really like how much thought can go into each turn while the games still stay as fast paced as they do. Also found some cool users in the Doubles Room that kept me around.

What is your favourite Pokémon to use competitively and why? What is your favourite Pokémon overall and why?
My favorite pokemon to use competitively is Jirachi because it makes so many pokemon better and is so splashable on teams. My favorite pokemon overall is Latios because its the combo of cute and powerful which is p cool.

What do you think is the strongest playstyle or Pokemon in this metagame right now, and why?
Semiroom and variants of that are probably the strongest thing right now, especially variants with Gardevoir or Charizard. Those two pokemon provide so much pressure immediately and with Trick Room support to take on faster teams it becomes really hard to play around them.

Do you think there's a Pokemon or set that is currently underrated in the meta?
Bisharp is still being slept on and its really good still. With the rise of Cress, Slow Garde, Hoopa, everpresent lando-t, (the list goes on), Bisharp has a lot of really good matchups and can really put a dent in teams with a little support.

Do you think there is anything that should be suspected right now?
Well I voted ban in both the previous suspects but I think Jirachi is the only thing potentially still problematic. That being said I don't think the results will change and I'm kind of content with the meta as is, but AzuRachi is still pretty stupid.

Could you give us a team that resembles your playing and building style and give a little explanation about it?
Waves Dont Die (Latios) @ Life Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 1 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 SpD
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Protect

Let me crash here (Jirachi) @ Safety Goggles
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 92 Def / 164 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Iron Head
- Trick Room
- Follow Me
- Protect

For a moment (Charizard-Mega-Y) @ Charizardite Y
Ability: Drought
EVs: 212 HP / 112 Def / 168 SpA / 16 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Heat Wave
- Overheat
- Solar Beam
- Protect

I dont need to own it (Rhyperior) @ Life Orb
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Brave Nature
- Drill Run
- Ice Punch
- Rock Slide
- Protect

Sun Dont shine (Sylveon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Pixilate
EVs: 248 HP / 164 Def / 88 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hyper Voice
- Substitute
- Calm Mind
- Protect

In the shade (Scrafty) @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP / 212 Atk / 44 Def
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Drain Punch
- Knock Off
- Fake Out
- Quick Guard
This is a team I've been rocking for a while now and its really cool/fun. Basic idea is Zard semiroom paired with Jirachi and Rhyperior which provide a lot of support as well as power under Trick Room. Secondly CM sylveon acts as a neat win con on this team and HP ground Latios/ Zard deals with most of Sylveon's checks.

Who do you think is most likely to win this seasonal?
Stax has made finals twice in a row so I'd like to see him win. Otherwise some really strong players like Majorbowman, SamVGC, Deoxys Speed (who smashed me pretty good with sand), Dad1 has been on a roll and I'd also like to see Kami and Yoda have good runs.

Is there anybody you see as an up and coming player?
Honestly I haven't been seeing many "new players" but more people coming over from VGC who are just new to our meta but are really good players. Obviously Sam and Dawg are really good players and are about as new as I am, Floristthebudew had a good showing last seasonal and has been sticking around which is awesome but I haven't seen many new people coming around. If your new and I'm wrong then prove me wrong and have a good seasonal run!

Is there anybody you look up to as a player?
Yeah definitely. Memoric picked me up in DPL when I was still super new and I've looked up to him as a player since then. Idk if I look up to other people in that sense but other guys whose opinions I value a lot in terms of teams/battling would be SamVGC, Shaian, and Kami

Is there any other metagame you play outside of Doubles?
I play some ORAS OU and BW OU but I really can't build for ORAS. I play a little bit of UU but its gotten pretty cancerous over the last few months so I play less of it than I used to. Doubles has definitely taken over as my main metagame and I've kinda stopped doing anything not tours related for the others.

Are you excited for Pokemon Sun/Moon? What do you want to see next generation?
Yeah I'm super excited for SUMO and I want to see something brand new. I'm talking no Megas, new set of viable pokemon, new moves and abilities that are fun in doubles. Also I want more cool pokemon like those monkeys, those are sick.

What are your hobbies outside of playing Pokemon? What are you interested in?
I'm a huge baseball and hockey fan, (Cubs and Blackhawks respectively), I've been pretty interested in this US elections as I study politics (its a shitshow), and Im a big fan of good movies, tv and music.

Is there anything else you would like to say or speak about?
Yoda is a cute user, Talkingtree is a cute user, shoutouts to the UU community who like all my posts and shoutouts Shiba for bringing Lapras fodder to a tournament.


"dont let your dreams become memes" -miltankmilk
 
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