NU Player of the Week - Blast [week 11]

Status
Not open for further replies.

Blast
Favorite Pokémon:
Infernape
Most used Pokémon: Xatu
Most known for: being earth's otp
Earth: Hi, Blast! How’s it going?
Blast: I'm feeling rather nostalgic on this particular day of which you have chosen to interview me, earth. Also I've been mad busy. But I'm getting by.

Earth: It's sometimes great to be busy. You’re a long-time NU contributor and player -- what made you want to play NU at first, and what made you stick around?
Blast: I got into NU in late BW because I saw a lot of YouTube vids for the tier, and it seemed like fun, so that's what I ended up maining for the rest of the gen. By the time XY rolled around, I was actually considering switching over to UU because of how balanced that meta was under the koko system, but I ended up staying here mostly because of the community, which ended up paying off as I was able to rise higher and higher on the authority scale. By the end of ORAS I'd made way too many connections in NU to ever turn my back on it.

Earth: What’s your favorite way of contributing (C&C, rating teams etc)? Do you still enjoy reading and checking analyses these days?
Blast: It tends to shift a lot, but C&C is where I started so it'll always hold a certain meaning to me. Other than that, I've never been a super frequent poster in the VR or np threads but I enjoy posting in them when I feel like I have something worth saying.

Earth: How did you feel about this year’s Snake Draft? What about your SPL experience a couple years ago — what was your favorite game out of it?
Blast: I did pretty terribly in snake, a combination of tons of work irl and decreasing motivation scored me a clean 0-3 record, but I'm glad friends like meeps and Hootie are doing better. I was a lot more motivated during the two years I played in SPL, especially the second half of SPL 7, which is evident in my much better performances there. Some highlight games for me from SPL were the ones against rozes and Evan, I did a lot of research for those games and was really confident in my builds. You can see those matches here: http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-nu-118588 http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-nu-133266

Earth: What are your thoughts on the current metagame? If you could bring back any BL3 pokemon, would you do it? If so, which one would it be?
Blast: I think it's settled pretty well, Vanilluxe and Emboar are semi-borderline but even with them I still think the metagame is enjoyable right now. I'm not sure how many people still complain about the current meta in general, but I haven't heard many complaints in a while so it's nice to see the council and community on relatively the same page. I don't think anything really needs to be freed though, most of the stuff we banned was pretty ridiculous lol

Earth: Could you tell us more about yourself outside of Smogon? What are your hobbies and things you enjoy?
Blast: I'm an 18-year old from New York on my first year of college, and I'm still adjusting to things if my activity wasn't an indication. I'm not a very social person irl but if you're patient with me you'll probably get me to open up (kinda similar to here, really). Not many interesting hobbies, I like watching TV, hanging out with friends, and joining calls whenever I can.

Earth: What’s your favorite NU metagame / generation, and why?
Blast: Toss-up between the end of XY NU and the end of ORAS NU. XY was fun because it was still really unexplored before we were thrust into ORAS, and the last stage of ORAS grew on me after I played it during NUPL. Everyone got sick of it after we had to wait so many extra months for SM NU, but after I got to take a break from it I realized how much I liked it. As long as you avoid using fat balance it's nowhere near as boring as everyone says it is.

Earth: What are some underrated Pokemon right now, in your opinion? Any hidden gems that you have been liking?
Blast: I still think Turtonator is quite good, no one's used it since the veil ban but I've primarily used it outside veil and it's done fine. The only other hidden gem I've used a lot since the beginning is Guzzlord, which is standard now.

Earth: What advice would you give to someone who’s trying to get involved / known in the NU community?
Blast: The best thing anyone can do at the beginning is lurk, that's basically the only way you can learn Smogon's culture. Also, make sure you're having fun with what you do on this site. Smogon is a hobby, and if you're constantly stressing out about how to be accepted you're much less likely to be accepted. Also be good at CC1v1.

Earth: Lastly, could you share one of your favorite NU teams (SM or ORAS) with us and explain it?
Blast:

Gorebyss @ White Herb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA / 30 Spe
- Shell Smash
- Surf
- Psychic

Rotom @ Light Clay
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Reflect
- Volt Switch
- Light Screen
- Will-O-Wisp

Garbodor @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Spikes
- Gunk Shot
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt

Piloswine @ Eviolite
Ability: Thick Fat
EVs: 240 HP / 244 Atk / 24 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Icicle Crash
- Earthquake
- Ice Shard

Pawniard @ Eviolite
Ability: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Iron Head
- Sucker Punch

- Hidden Power [Fire]
Skuntank @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 212 SpA / 60 SpD / 236 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA
- Dark Pulse
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power [Grass]
- Memento

I posted this team in the NUPL dump but I'm reposting it because I really like it and most of my SM builds are kinda generic or outdated. I used this against Rapture because his builds (and most bulky offense builds in ORAS) are vulnerable to strong setup sweepers like Gorebyss and Pawniard as long as they get a chance to set up, and the rest of the team either sets hazards or makes it easier for Byss and Pawn to set up with screens and Memento. Byss and Pawn were really underrated in ORAS too.
the gsh drn motherfr*cking END.

Thanks for your time, Blast! I hope you guys enjoyed this interview, and as always: if you have any question for Blast, make sure to ask them right here. Feel free to PM me if you want to see anyone in particular interviewed.
 

Martin

A monoid in the category of endofunctors
is a Smogon Discord Contributoris a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
fuck marry kill: vanilluxe cryogonal froslass; give reasons

What is your favourite dedicated field control playstyle? (I.e. rain, sun, sand, hail, tr, webs, twind, screens, any I've forgot)

Tea or coffee?

Gayest user?
 
how dare u say that spl game against me was a highlight, ive never been lucked harder in my life smh

jk love you and pls stay around
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 0)

Top