The NUcast: Q&A thread

[tennisace]

Hi there!

Zeb gave me permission to start hosting a semi-regular Smogcast-style live stream about the NU metagame. The format will be the exact same as the Smogcast, with myself (or another person) hosting and directing discussion, and a few panelists talking about their experiences and opinions. The purpose of this thread is to:

-announce dates of the live streams
-post links to recorded past streams
-get questions from the general NU community that you would like answered

SO:

The first stream is tentatively going to be Tuesday, May 28th, at 12 pm EST. The panelists will include myself, Treecko37, Django, FireMage, and Agent Dell. The first topic will be a general state of the NU metagame.

When posting questions in this thread, please keep in mind we're looking for mostly serious questions about the NU metagame. I will accept a few fun questions for our introduction portion, but it better be funny and not a stupid inside joke or what have you.

Happy posting!

 

[Fusxfaranto]

To each of the individual panelists, what is your favorite stage of the Neverused metagame, and why is it better than the rest?

 

[vyomov]

What is your opinion on the viability of non-automatic weather in NU currently?

 

[Infernis]

Keeping the recent addition of Scolipede to NU in mind, is there much purpose to laying down Toxic Spikes instead of other hazards on an offensive team?

 

[skylight]

Okay hopefully question 2/3 are okay but it's still relevant to the current metagame in a way, so idk.

1. Which April drop do you think has changed the face of the NU metagame the most (I mean, outside of which drop has the highest usage, but which has made the greatest impact to prepare for etc)?
   
   
2. If Mushy was banned (like many people were suggesting should happen) at the start of this stage (Stage 9), and these drops didn't actually drop, what do you think would have changed by now? Would Sawk dominate? Become broken? Would this pave way for other things that haven't had a change to shine before? Like what?
   
   
3. It was mentioned in a higher tier, but if SR was banned, how would this affect the NU metagame as it is? Would this make Charizard too strong? How would the metagame change to accommodate to this with a lack of SR?
   
   
4. Do you think stall still has a place in NU with the current threats in mind?
   
   
5. Which mons are all of the panelists enjoying the most in this metagame? Why?

 

[InsaneDragoniteHD]

If say Klinklang dropped back to NU,how would this affect the metagame?

 

[cb aaron judge]

What do you think are potential suspects this round, and do you find them banworthy or no?

 

[Leafshield]

What do the panelists think are the most underrated sets and Pokémon in the tier? With so much diversity, there must be a mon or two that more people should be using. On the other hand, what Pokémon in the tier are far too used (in the panelist's opinion, of course) for their own good?

And finally, a question about a specific Pokémon: Relicanth has recently been gaining plenty of usage, some say for good reason, some not so much. It has access to many effectives sets (CB and Stealth Rock, in particular) and 3 really great abilities in Swift Swim, Rock Head, and Sturdy. Do the panelists think that Relicanth is effective in this metagame? Can it stand up as a great offensive lead in a metagame where Sawk and Primeape run rampant? If not, why do you feel this way? In turn, should Sawk rise from NU (bear with me :P), would Relicanth become more popular, or would he pretty much stay in the same place?

 

[bobbyvaporeon]

What Pokemon do you feel shouldn't get as much usage with the new drops, and which do you think are underrated?

 

[watashi]

is it possible to create a team that does well against good players and the ladder at the same time?
is it possible to check every threat and playstyle in the nu metagame?

 

[Farobi]

Do you still think that there are untapped potential in certain Pokemon / sets?

 

[WillSO]

There's gotta be a hype-corner for underrated anti-meta sets.

What is the most dominant playstyle in the current meta? Why?

 

[MMF]

Tennis: Does Django juggle your balls? Are they indeed orphans?

 

[Celever]

What do you think about people using pokemon specifically for eviolite? I have seen way too many graveler on the ladder...

Although I myself am guilty of this; Sealeo!!!

 

[Raseri]

best NU mod ever? Worst?
Cutest mon in NU?
how do you beat Liepard without relying on luck?

 

[ryan]

best NU mod ever? Worst?
Cutest mon in NU?

best questions

 

[Cherub Agent]

opinion on users: Keiran and shnen?

 

[Riles]

What do you consider to be the most broken thing in the tier, and what should people do to prepare for such threat.

 

[hyperbeem]

Ban Liepard y/n

 

[Sweep]

Is Primeape the new fighting king of the NU metagame, or is Sawk still #1?

 

[phantom]

UU is thinking on retesting sand, if sand is possibly unbanned, it will likely lead to hippo being legal in NU, just like how snover was at one point. How do you think sand would effect the current state of the NU metagame?

How will bans and suspecting testing be approached come gen 6?

Do any of you think that any of the new drops are broken or suspect worthy?

 

[Honus]

This metagame bans a comparatively little amount of pkmn out of all the tiers, why is this?

How viable is STALLIN in this tier ?_?

 

[tennisace]

hurry, i must know

I'm going to answer this one don't worry.

However: we're probably not going to answer questions regarding either speculation / theorymon, or questions about whether or not we think something is broken. If in the future we decide to do a theorymon cast, then that will be something totally separate from this initial cast. Same goes for banning/brokenness: if/when something is suspected, then we'll probably dedicate an entire cast to it.

 

[WhiteDMist]

In the council's opinion, is it better to adjust your team and/or playstyle to reduce the chances of hax (like using more accurate moves, or playing more cautiously in terms of predicting your opponent) or take the risk?

The 3 major drops (no one seems to care about Munchlax) have been seeing major usage, notably dominating the top 3 usage spots in the 1850 stats. Do they fit well into the NU metagame, and what are your reactions to the current metagame as it is? The previous metagame felt like it had hit a high point in terms of being more balanced and nurturing to many styles of teams.

 

[shnen]

Do you think that the drops have affected the meta positively+why?
What mons/sets/playstyles do you think should be used more and which are used too much?
if you could give one tip to a noob to competitive mons who wants to start with NU what would it be? What about an experienced OU player trying NU?