Finchinator
Favorite Pokémon: Garchomp
Most used Pokémon: Rotom-Mow / Slowbro
Most known for: Being a member of ou and nu council, longtime tournament player and tryhard, frequent forum poster, and general Smogon presence that's fairly active
Finchinator: I'm alright. It has been a relatively hectic week due to college starting back up again, but I am all moved in and have had all of my classes for the week, so I am relieved and a bit more relaxed at the moment.
Earth: Where did your username come from?
Finchinator: Well, my last name in real life happens to start with Finch and when I played baseball when I was younger, my coaches and teammates used to call me Finchinator when I did well or just as a general nickname. It then stuck with me through other things and when I was trying to figure out what to name myself when I first downloaded PO in 2011, I elected to go with it. It stuck and I never really looked back although I have had some recent thoughts of changing my official Smogon forum name to Finch.
Earth: You’re the most recent addition to the NU council team; what are your thoughts on the Meloetta ban? What would you like to see being tested soon?
Finchinator: I believe the Meloetta ban was for the best. I think it was a very cool Pokemon to play around with, but it did not have sufficient counterplay and the two variants it had made actually checking it a challenge in itself. I was pretty verbal about this in the suspect thread, to say the least, but I will leave that there seeing as the vote is over with. As for the future of the tier, I do not necessarily want to test anything, but I do think that Aurora Veil should be dealt with in the immediate future. I am not sure if this is an issue that the community as a whole can properly understand, gauge, and vote upon, so I would prefer if the council itself handled it, but we shall see how realistic that is in the future. I do, however, think there are a few things that are borderline test worthy and could emerge as even moreso in the future -- these being Rotom-Mow, Emboar, and Slowbro. I would not necessarily vote ban on any of them right now, but this can very easily change, so we shall wait and see what comes up!
Earth: Speaking of the Meloetta ban, do you think any Pokemon are a lot better now? If so, which ones?
Finchinator: I think that Mismagius and Togedemaru are two Pokemon that clearly improved with the banning of Meloetta. Mismagius seems fairly obvious and straightforward seeing as Meloetta hard walled it with any set just because of the Normal typing and decent natural Special bulk. With one less common offensive check to Mismagius and there being less need for the metagame to speed up in pace to keep up with Meloetta, Mismagius has more room to function as a win conditon that does well against balanced teams and something that can claim a kill most games. Togedemaru is a bit less of a direct improvement, but I still think there is a clear correlation to it improving and Meloetta going. Togedemaru is now much more splashable as a Specially Defensive pivot as it previously feared Focus Blast, Calm Mind, and even strong STAB Specs attacks from Meloetta despite being a Steel type, which resists both STABs, meaning that building with it and still covering Meloetta meant you had to use Slowking when you really want Xatu on Togedemaru teams due to how often it invites in Steelix, Rhydon, and Piloswine. Now, Togedemaru is able to wall things it normally did such as Rotom-Mow, Vikavolt, and Scarf Vanilluxe while also not being as much of a strain on team structures and the ability to be consistent.
Earth: What are some underrated and/or unexplored Pokemon you have been liking lately?
Finchinator: I suppose we can keep going from where we just left off -- Togedemaru. I think that slapping this bad boy onto balance teams is really neat right now and offers you quite the unique blend of defneisve presence, utility, and momentum with the defensive typing it has, Wish, and U-turn. As for some other Pokemon, I find Stealth Rock Mold Breaker Swords Dance Z-Earthquake Pinsir to be insanely underrated -- I posted this set and explained it a bit more in the NUPL sets thread, but I must say that this thing gives you an edge early on in so many matches and Pinsir is just generally a Pokemon that has so much overlooked utility. Specs Typhlosion and Specs Guzzlord are two of the better hard hitters on the special side that do not see nearly enough usage, even with Guzzlord starting to slightly trend upwards -- both of these are really solid and hard to check, so people should try integrating them into teams moreso than they currently are. Finally, Specially Defensive Rotom-Mow, Z-Fire Blast Slowking, and Imprison Uxie are three sets that have not been used nearly enough given their effectiveness in the metagame -- these Pokemon individually see a ton of usage and I think that more people should give these sets a chance and see how much it opens teambuilding and positively impacts their battles.
Earth: You’ve experienced quite a few generations of NU. What is your favorite one and why?
Finchinator: I think that I am at least competent in every generation of NU from DPP onwards and my favorite is either BW or SM. BW is most definitely not a popular pick, often finding its way to the bottom of most people's lists. However, I think that it takes much more skill to navigate through the hazard metagame and teambuild accordingly than a tier like ORAS and I find that the things a tier like BW rewards in the teambuilder and game itself often draw me to the tier, increasing my personal appeal to participate in tours with BW NU. SM is partially new toy syndrome, but even that has slowly dwindled away and in place of it is a fairly solid, balanced metagame that does lean offensive, but it is ok because that can align with my playstyle sometimes and I think that with a few small changes, this tier can surely top my list due to all of the viable Pokemon, the emerging playerbase, and the fact that it is the modern, in thing to play for the NU community after all haha.
Earth: How was your NUPL experience this year? Who are you expecting to win the whole thing?
Finchinator: NUPL was a very enjoyable experience for me, but I do wish some things went differently. I think that our draft could have been quite different and we could have had a much more competitive team overall, but that is ok -- I cannot complain about this aspect of the team anyway seeing as I did not elect to manage myself, so yea. I was glad to work with each and every member of my team and I think that everyone was nice and wanted very much to win, so I cannot complain about that even if a few of our slots could have improved. Special shoutouts to Hootie for being a pretty damn dominant performer for most of the tournament and breaking out in the tournament scene in general, too. As for playoffs, I think that the team Rozes drafted and Raseri's team will be the two finalists with the former likely emerging victorious due to them having a much stronger roster, but I think that both teams are worthy and capable winners, so we shall have to wait and see which team executes better -- rooting personally for my friends on both sides!
Earth: How do you cope with balancing important roles in both the OU and NU communities?
Finchinator: Well, OU has not had any suspects in a while and I am used to being an OU Forum Moderator, so I have not had to necessarily deal with much overlap or too much to handle. I do wish that OU could get something like Dugtrio suspected, but a combination of laziness from certain individuals, logistical issues, and a few other things have held that back, so hopefully this can change in the near future. Either way, I just do what I can when I can and prioritize things I enjoy because this whole game and community is for fun after all! I am glad to take on as much as I can if I have the time and it is fun.
Earth: Could you tell us a bit more about yourself IRL?
Finchinator: Sure! I am an eighteen year old college Sophmore at Binghamton University in the School of Management (Business School) majoring in Finance. I am a very active sports follower, most notably when it comes to Baseball, Football, and Basketball. I am also a very competitive person, which you can likely tell by how I behave here, but this is also reflected in my following of sports and occasional playing (used to play Basbeall all the time and Basketball sporadically when I was younger, but not so much anymore). Some other things I enjoy are music, comedy, and chicken wings.
Earth: What do you enjoy doing the most here on Smogon, between C&C, subforum contributions, tournaments, etc?
Finchinator: Being able to compete in tournaments and against other players, especially when I am on a team with friends, is my favorite thing to do. However, I also enjoy the friend groups I make in the OU and NU communities and without these people, I do not know if I still would be around. With this said, being competitive and playing/building at a high level is what I strive to do and what I have the biggest drive to truly do as an individual, so this stands out as the answer for me.
Earth: Finally, can you share a team with us and briefly explain it?
Finchinator:
Samurott @ Buginium Z
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Swords Dance
- Megahorn
- Waterfall
Garbodor @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 248 HP / 160 Def / 100 Spe
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Gunk Shot
- Seed Bomb
- Toxic Spikes
Steelix @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 248 HP / 56 Atk / 204 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Gyro Ball
- Protect
Rotom-Mow @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Leaf Storm
- Trick
- Thunderbolt
Emboar @ Expert Belt
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Flare Blitz
- Superpower
- Wild Charge
Sneasel @ Choice Band
Ability: Pickpocket
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Knock Off
- Icicle Crash
- Pursuit
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Aqua Jet
- Swords Dance
- Megahorn
- Waterfall
Garbodor @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 248 HP / 160 Def / 100 Spe
Impish Nature
- Spikes
- Gunk Shot
- Seed Bomb
- Toxic Spikes
Steelix @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 248 HP / 56 Atk / 204 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Gyro Ball
- Protect
Rotom-Mow @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Leaf Storm
- Trick
- Thunderbolt
Emboar @ Expert Belt
Ability: Reckless
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Flare Blitz
- Superpower
- Wild Charge
Sneasel @ Choice Band
Ability: Pickpocket
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ice Shard
- Knock Off
- Icicle Crash
- Pursuit
This is a team I used throughout open and ladder. I would consider this a fairly standard spikes bulky-offensive build, but it is very solid nevertheless. I happen to forgo a Choice Scarf user as I have three priority moves and a fast Pokemon like Sneasel, but otherwise this has a pretty run-of-the-mill structure with the stereotypical Ground type Stealth Rocker, hard hitters in Specs Rotom-Mow and Expert Belt Emboar, and a win condition in Swords Dance Samurott, which is very good in the current metagame. The only potential change I could see being made would be making Steelix Max Attack as the Special Defense is not really necessary on this team, but either spread works and both have their pros and cons. I viewed this as my goto team for a while, but after using it against White Queen and to get reqs, I think it is time to put this team to rest and move on as the tier has so many cool viable options right now that I wish to explore!
Thanks a ton for your time, Finch! If you guys have any question for him, please ask them below!
Last edited: