Other OU Player of the Week #22: Blunder

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Welcome to OU's Player of the week, a project
where I interview well known players to gain insight on how they battle, as well as get to know some things about them. The goal of this thread is to have these high level players give insight to other players in this community in hopes of creating a better overall experience in the OU environment. As always, if there's someone you'd like to see interviewed, feel free to shoot me a PM. So without further ado, lets get to it!

blunder ​

Most Known For: Making top 16 of OST, participating in SPL5/6

Favorite Pokemon: Salamence

Most used Pokemon: Keldeo

Where did you get your name from?
In 2011 i was on a site called vgchat, asked what to nickname my thundurus and the answer was thunderblunder. since then i have had it shortened to blunder but both of these names are shit.

How and when did you get into competitive battling?
I started by visiting a site called VGChat in 2011, It was a pretty simple chat site for Pokemon and I would battle other people in BW Triples as I had no idea about competitive Pokemon at the time. A few months later I was introduced to PokeSav and then learned about EVs which got me into Competitive Pokmemon. I played strictly on cartridge for a few months until I learned about Pokemon Online a few months later from a youtube video I saw. I stole Wilechase's DPP OU team and started to play on BW1 Smogon Ladder trying to see how high I could, though I could never break 1300. After around January 2012, I took a break from Pokemon because it became boring to me and then later returned in June 2012 in which I played on PO a lot, building teams and looking through the Smogon dex repeatedly to be able to memorize sets as well as frequenting the aesoft replay viewer and watching matches between good players to further my own play. Around August 2012 I met Rich HOMiE CHRI$ and Rich HOMiE CA$ED and then created skype and ended up meeting a lot of different people such as CTC, Valentine, gr8astard, Edgar etc, also known as the "IDM" group. I became pretty good friends with CTC and he ended up teaching me pretty much everything in BW2 which led me to building more and playing on the ladder a lot. About a year and a half after this I got the opportunity to play for Hugo in SPL and since then I became more involved in Smogon and here I am.

How do you feel about how ORAS plays compared to XY?
I definitely enjoyed XY a lot more. With all the new mega evolutions and move tutors it is definitely harder to check everything unless you run HO. I still enjoy ORAS though, and while it is hard to deal with some of the new mons, such as Altaria and Metagross, the removal of Greninja makes balance much more viable.

What are your thoughts on the outcome of the Metagross suspect test? Is there anything else you feel is suspect worthy?
It definitely ails team building because it doesnt have any real counters, but that being said I don't really have any opinion on whether it should be banned or not. The only other mon I can see getting suspected right now is Landorus-I, as the Rock Polish set is picking up a lot more usage and become increasingly hard to deal with unless you have Tornadus-T or Mega Latias. Diancie and Altaria are also pretty powerful in this meta, but I don't really see them getting suspected any time soon.

What's your favorite playstyle and why?
Offense, because it's probably the most fun to play and requires you to make plays and work around your opponent and usually you can always beat your matchup with HO.

What's your favorite generation of OU and why?
BW, because it's the first metagame I started playing and pretty much all the memories of good times from pokemon come were from this time.

Favorite and least favorite moments of SPL?
Favorite moment has to be testing with Marth for BW. We always had fun games in which we both played extremely aggressive and it's always fun playing friends.

Least favorite moment is probably the fact that we had a pretty unfortunate season with some hax, some chokes, and just some all around bad games that we could have been able to prevent, mine included. Besides this, I guess preparing for hours to play Cased week 2 and getting lucked out.

How do you go about preparing for tournament matches? Does the process differ depending on the tournament?
For SPL, I usually prepare my team early on in the week by working with members of my team, especially New Breed to see what would work well vs my opponents playstyle, and then test the team out several times vs different playstyles to see if it's fine. Testing and preparing in SPL is a lot easier because since you're stuck with a team, you have several other people waiting to help you out which makes preparation simple. For singular tournaments such as OST, I haven't really prepared until now, as I had just been using teams from KratosMana and CTC but now that I am this far I'm starting to test more and use more unique teams.

Favorite to win OST and why?
Besides me, I was gonna root for tsunami, but seeing as he got out, I'm rooting for Floppy as he's been doing pretty well and I like his teams.

If you could change one thing about OU, what would it be and why?
OU is pretty stable right now, even with some annoying pokemon like Altaria, but If I could ban one thing it probably would be shadow tag and maybe scald.

Do you have any advice for newer players, and for Smogon in general?
Just like everyone says, the best thing to do is keep quiet until you become known for being a good player. Living so Zambian went over it pretty well by saying that it is pretty annoying to see users who haven't really made a name for themselves talking shit in tournament threads or cluttering up the forums trying to be funny. The best thing to do is to not have yourself labeled as a forum shitposter early on and try to become more known through tournaments or through the different metagame subforums. For improving, I think playing with friends is definitely the best way to get more experience as well as watching tournament games, with SPL playoffs and Smogon Tour running there are definitely a lot of good games to watch as well as a lot of SPL 6 OU replays. Teambuilding can definitely be a challenge and it definitely takes a while to get a team to be solid, but using different frameworks helps a lot as well as looking at how other people build to get a sense of what mons work well together.

If you could change one thing about Smogon as a whole to make it better, what would it be and why?
I'd remove likes on the tiering sub-forums so people don't use the justification that because they got a ton of support for a post, that it is supposed to mean that something like a ranking change is going to happen. Other than that, as others have said, maybe small cash prizes that would encourage more people sign up.

What players do you look up to / are good friends with?
In terms of players I look up to, probably CTC and gr8astard as when I first started pokemon b/c ctc taught me how to build skill-less offense and hugo taught me how to become the amazing player i am today. I really enjoy watching aim play because of his aggressive playstyle that makes most of his games pretty enjoyable as well as Mrjamvad as he plays very patiently, but still makes plays to get momentum where needed making him a very solid player. Special shoutouts go out to CrashinBoomBang who is another interesting player to watch, making high level plays such as switching Heatran into rotom several times when having a venusaur, latios, and many other hard counters on his team. Definitely one of my favorite players. Gotta mention FAJI as well as I can't name too many players that handicap themselves to 4-6 in the first 2 turns and then somehow still manage to win, absolutely remarkable.

Finally, can you provide us a team that’s a good fit for this metagame and reflects your playstyle, with a brief explanation of how it works?

Hide

(Bisharp) (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Defiant
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
- Iron Head

(Landorus) (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 SAtk / 4 SDef / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Earth Power
- Focus Blast
- Psychic

Lopunny (F) @ Lopunnite
Trait: Cute Charm
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- High Jump Kick
- Fake Out
- Return
- Healing Wish

Clefable (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Guard
EVs: 248 HP / 248 Def / 12 SDef
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Stealth Rock
- Soft-Boiled
- Moonblast
- Healing Wish

Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
IVs: 30 HP / 30 Def
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Scald
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Starmie @ Life Orb
Trait: Analytic
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 SAtk / 30 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Psyshock
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Hydro Pump
- Grass Knot / Ice Beam

Credit where credit is due, this is team from CTC that I used to use a lot back when ninja was legal, but now it has starmie > ninja due to the ban. Very solid offense team that works around lopunny/clefable healing wish core that allows you to bring back either specs keldeo or landorus to really pressure the other team. It allows you to play recklessly too as clefable is pretty much there just to get up rocks and then save to switch into the latis maybe once and sacrifice itself. Lopunny is amazing vs offense and Landorus crushes stall, meaning the team covers most archetypes well.

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There it is. If you have any questions for Blunder, leave 'em down below. I'd like to thank him once again for doing this. See you next week!

 

[Luckstard.]

You said you like BW metagame :

1. Is there anything you would like to ban/unban?
2. What do you think when you see all these guys saying BW is the shittiest ST tiers?

 

[michaeloche]

What's the mon you least enjoy facing?

Bloo or the field in STour?

Dumbest thing you've faced?

 

[rural]

Around August 2012 I met Rich HOMiE CHRI$ and Rich HOMiE CA$ED and then created skype

why is the new skype update so garbage

 

[Aurious]

Hey blunder I really enjoy it to watch ur Youtube vids :)
Whats ur favorite Mega in ORAS?
Whats the most underrated 'mon in ORAS?
Who do u think will win Stour season 19?
Who do u think has the best chances to win the Smogon Classic?

 

[Leftiez]

Your favourite to win Smogon Classic (top 3)
Your favourite to win Smogon Tour 19
Do you think Volca is worth a ban in bw
Do you like based lord savage ? :D

 

[Clone]

Your favourite to win OST

Favorite to win OST and why?
Besides me, I was gonna root for tsunami, but seeing as he got out, I'm rooting for Floppy as he's been doing pretty well and I like his teams.

 

[Leftiez]

Eh im dumb thx i wanted to say smogon classic

 

[Laurel]

how old are you
ass or tits
favorite football team
who will kentucky play in finals of march madness
do you slay women, you know what i mean
where would you bring a girl on ur first date
who is the girl in the bkc casedvictory relationship

 

[cyberpunkbanana]

favorite fat mons?
thoughts on chansey?
have you ever uploaded a po live without keldeo?

Love the videos btw

 

[I AM THE JAMAICAN BOBSLED TEAM]

crunchy or chewy cookies?
have you ever experienced pokemon mystery dungeon?
what was your biggest blunder?

 

[DAVIDpwns]

PO or PS?
Is ladder a good way to test teams?

 

[col49]

hahahaha

 

[leremyju]

How is PO even the superior server?
do you think we should ban geopass?
best indian on smogon?
Do you think we should free masterclass?

 

[MattyBrollic]

Are you as sarcastic with everything as you are with Pokemon?

Did Hugo actually make you an amazing player or were you just born a Pokemon lord?

Thoughts on team matchup? Obviously it exists, especially more so in ORAS more than past metas; but do you think it is plaguing the metagame to the extent that a lot of other players do?

 

[aim]

Why are your hands so white when you claim you are black?

 

[DarkNostalgia]

Why are you called thunderblunder777 when your favourite pokemon is salamence zzz is thundurus your second favourite or something
thoughts on following mons: starmie and gothitelle
how do you feel about ice beam clefable?

 

[atomicllamas]

Do you even play OU .-.

 

[Creator of Chaos]

How do you feel When you see or are victom of a clefable setting up on and defeating a heatran?
Most hilarious Game you have ever witnessed?
Do you play Warhammer 40k?
Am I better then dark nostalgia or is it just a myth?

 

[blunder]

You said you like BW metagame :

1. Is there anything you would like to ban/unban?
2. What do you think when you see all these guys saying BW is the shittiest ST tiers?

1) Sun and maybe Volcarona
2) I understand why b/c BW is still matchup reliant and it's also really passive, but it will always be my favorite generation because how much I used to play it and I loved gen 5 offense.

What's the mon you least enjoy facing?

Bloo or the field in STour?

Dumbest thing you've faced?

1) Bloo

2) too much stuff from when i used to ladder a lot, but in recent memory scarf energy ball gengar had come up numerous times beating my greninja during the aegislash suspect test.

why is the new skype update so garbage

idk

Hey blunder I really enjoy it to watch ur Youtube vids :)
1)Whats ur favorite Mega in ORAS?
2)Whats the most underrated 'mon in ORAS?
3)Who do u think will win Stour season 19?
4)Who do u think has the best chances to win the Smogon Classic?

Thanks man, appreciate it.
1) Altaria
2) Aerodactyl, it's phenomenal vs offense and balance with its coverage and flying stab coverage is really great in this meta
3) Bloo
4) McM/M Dragon

1)Your favourite to win Smogon Classic (top 3)
2)Your favourite to win Smogon Tour 19
3)Do you think Volca is worth a ban in bw
4)Do you like based lord savage ? :D

1) McM, Bloo, then some darkhorse
2) Bloo
3) I think it's definitely hard to face, espsecially with sun support, but as far as banning goes I don't think it's broken enough to deserve a ban, I can see a suspect but if sun were to be banned then no I think it's fine where it is.
4) Absolutely, he is the most likable person I know

1)favorite fat mons?
2)thoughts on chansey?
3)have you ever uploaded a po live without keldeo?

Love the videos btw

1) Jellicent and Amoonguss come to mind, I love both of these mons on any fat team, also a big fan of Clefable and Mew
2) No one uses this anymore, but it's still the worst pokemon after clefable haha
3) There might be one or two where I have tried to challenge myself by not using it, not sure

1) crunchy or chewy cookies?
2) have you ever experienced pokemon mystery dungeon?
3) what was your biggest blunder?

1) Chewy
2) no, i've never played any of the games
3) picking this shit name

1)PO or PS?
2)Is ladder a good way to test teams?

1) PO
2) Yeah definitely, it allows you to see how it matches up vs most teamstyles as you're going to find people stalling or using HO so you can see what your team struggles with.

1) How is PO even the superior server?
2) do you think we should ban geopass?
3) best indian on smogon?
4) Do you think we should free masterclass?

1) It's not it's awful, It's just what I prefer playing on
2) yeah, it's a stupid strat
3) tie between -Tsunami- and FAJI
4) I don't really know what happened with him or why he was banned, so sure.

1) Are you as sarcastic with everything as you are with Pokemon?

2) Did Hugo actually make you an amazing player or were you just born a Pokemon lord?

3) Thoughts on team matchup? Obviously it exists, especially more so in ORAS more than past metas; but do you think it is plaguing the metagame to the extent that a lot of other players do?

1) yeah i'm pretty sarcastic outside of pokemon too and i'm pretty sure it comes from this game as sarcasm is how I get past feeling annoyed about hax
2) I had already become unstoppable once I left the Pokemon Online server, HUGO just taught me how to channel my skills
3) It's big in ORAS for sure, but I don't think it's as big that you "lose the game turn one." Right now there is a lot that limits building as well that you just can't always deal with like Landorus-I, metagross, etc which I think are the main things that can give people bad matchups in general since you have to run counters or at least some type of soft check to those, and then you are weaker to the other four mons on their team etc.

1) why the 777 after thunderblunder
2) when and why did you get into youtube
3) whats up with that lotad icon

1) i don't know man, fuck these numbers too
2) I got into youtube because i desired to be like shofu
3) Back in October 2013, when XY had first come out, I was in shofu's stream call with him, joey, ctc, and some other friends and shofu was looking around trading for perfect pokemon so he could play on stream. He was offering something and someone accepted his trade and offered lotad. Lotad looks ridiculous on the cartridge so I immediately took a screenshot of the trade and thus lotad has been my avatar for a year and a half.

Why are your hands so white when you claim you are black?

you are the only person that thinks my hands look white man, this is a problem with your vision not with my hands.

1) Why are you called thunderblunder777 when your favourite pokemon is salamence zzz is thundurus your second favourite or something
2) thoughts on following mons: starmie and gothitelle
3) how do you feel about ice beam clefable?

1) at the time thundurus was my favorite pokemon, but as of gen 6, getting full parad twelve times in a row vs opposing thundurus has made my love for that pokemon go down drastically.
2) I love starmie and it's the pokemon I used most in gen 5, I like it a lot now as well since it's fast and strong just like gen 5 and rapid spin supports nice for offense. Gothitelle is in my bottom five favorite pokemon aesthetically and to play against.
3) It's cool to take on gliscor and maybe lure landorus.

Do you even play OU .-.

absolutely

1) How do you feel When you see or are victom of a clefable setting up on and defeating a heatran?
2) Most hilarious Game you have ever witnessed?
3) Do you play Warhammer 40k?
4) Am I better then dark nostalgia or is it just a myth?

1) That's there fault, b/c if heatran is your clefable answer you need to be packing taunt
2) http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/oriserver-ou-47840 some of the best chokes i've seen
3) no, this is the first time I've heard of that game
4) huh

 

[firehusky]

Thoughts on the following Pokemon:
Mega Diancie, Landorus-I

 

[Key]

What kind of lowlife scum brings pain rain vs fun sun?

 

[Random Passerby]

1) How do you feel about the weather nerf in Gen 6?
2) What's your favourite fan-theory in the World of Pokemon?
3) In your opinion, what would the meta be like in DPP / BW / ORAS had the Choice Items not been introduced?

 

[CTC]

"2) I had already become unstoppable once I left the Pokemon Online server, HUGO just taught me how to channel my skills"
thas not how u spell basedlord aka ur father faggit
how does it feel knowing that u will never be able to enjoy a meal at outback steakhouse with ur family
when u witness rape in the alleyway behind ur mud hut, are u tempted to join in or preserve the virgnekkity
was the Holi festival invented to celebrate ur fruitiness?
how do u manage to squeeze po live sessions in between ur busy sweatshop hours making nikes
how does it feel to look like a black man with a toupee?
when it gets hot n heavy in the bedroom, do ur pubes ever get tangled with ur girl's leg hairs?
if u were arrange married to this chick, on average, how many times would u bone her a night?

Hide

how does it feel to be the most successful protege of the ghostfather bluffdon shepherd corleone himself?
i am ur father

 

[GaryTheGengar]

damn I clicked on blunder's player of the weak with a fresh ctc post waiting for me. disappointing af. pretty lame compared to your past work dude 4/10 n im bein nice go hard or go home negro

EDIT:

LOL this is how you do it