CAP 3 CAP 3 - Part 9 (Main Ability Discussion)

[Bluekikatana]

Battle Armor
It makes its own armor, so it needs this.

Rock Head
It doesn't really have a naturally hard head, like say Aerodactyl, but it does have hard armor on its head and 2 stab moves 120 base that have recoil. So it be a great ability for it regarding those factors.

 

[tennisace]

yes and no for vital spirit.
i can see this getting synthesis/morning sun, which dont affect sleep. it looks kinda lazy however, like "*yawn* immah chargin mah lazers...*yawns and fires*"

flash fire isnt to bad because everyone is careful around heatran nowadays. it doesn't have heatran's SpA to back it up anyways.

 

[Mewfoo]

This pokemon actually looks like a good wall he only has 2 weaknesses which aren't frequently used Poision, Flying. And then of course rock... I personally support battle armor for a tank gives it more durability.

 

[tennisace]

drought should be given more of a chance than some other abilities.

 

[Mewfoo]

Yes and no drought boosts the fire moves solarbeam and weakens water. It might just push this pokemon into uber. A fast sweep and run tactic could devastate a team especially if he can get a nasty plot or something in. Choice specs/band

 

[Tyranitar.armaldo]

I think drought as well. If this guy is gonna by a symbol of CAP then give it something signature. Also we need a non-uber with drought ability, and it fits both grass and fire typeings. He would cause it with the overheating of his cannons and other ports on his body.

 

[oshada]

Rock Head obviously, and Battle Armor for defense. That'd be cool.

 

[flygon493]

I support Drought, because it just fits him perfectly(typing-wise). Battle Armor would be a good second move, it would really help his defencive capabilities.

 

[Mizuno]

I like Battle Armor. Nobody ever notices it, but it's a damn useful ability to have. You never know when a CH would have killed you, and it's just a solid ability to have. Not great, but not bad either.

As for secondary ability I like Heatproof the most, it seems to fit him like X-Act said. I also like Leaf Guard, maybe rename it "Wood Guard" if you like lol, but seems like something that, like Battle Armor, is useful to have around. Rock Head could also work, like stated before. I don't like any of the other abilities mentioned, they just don't seem to fit IMO.

And definitely a big NO to Drought. The Speed boost for the Grass types is just to big, they can easily Sleep Powder something first and proceed to set-up. Other Fire types get a huge boost too, considering most of them can also use Solarbeam now, and I definitely do not want to see a Moltres under the sun with that insane SpAtt and Morning Sun for instant recovery. It could be interesting I guess, but in the end it will end up being too powerful and would "over-centralize" the game.

 

[Mekkah]

If this guy is gonna by a symbol of CAP then give it something signature.

Nah. I've always been opposed to taking Pokemon's signature abilities and moves and giving them to new Pokemon. It takes away something from the grace of the older Pokemon. Air Lock ._.

Battle Armor seems a safe bet. RNG proof tank entering combat baby.

I'd also like to raise a case for Magma Armor, which does the same essential thing: removing luck. Of course, this thing doesn't really have magma anywhere except maybe in one of its cannons, but I like the idea of being able to switch into an Ice Beam knowing it won't get lucky on me.

Don't mind Chlorophyll either. I mean, it was the original idea. The problem is, it doesn't really make sense with his art.

I'm against Drought. Too much of a risk, really. Why do you think you're not allowed to bring L1 Groudon into a standard battle?

Heatproof...eh. I think it's a better idea than Flash Fire for sure (immunity + possible boost is pretty scary), but Heatproof still seems to make it one fort of a Pokemon. Like, to the point where it can carry HP Flying and counter itself, lol.

 

[Lord Gloom]

mekkah stop dashing my dreams of this guy having a viable physical side :(

 

[Mekkah]

Blame the others, I voted this thing to be focused on physical attack and physical defense with lower than 60 Speed.

 

[Time Mage]

Battle Armor, as everyone already mentioned. Fits the stats, by helping tanking, and fits the artwork.

In the other thread, I mentioned a counterpart to Battle Armor that prevented secondary effects... It seems that the ability already exists, and is called Shield Dust. Maybe the name is not very appropriate, but I think the ability is the perfect partner for Battle Armor: What do you want? Avoiding criticals or avoiding paralysis/freeze etc. chance?

White Smoke looks good, too. The holes on the armor could produce smoke as well as flames. And the effects is nice.

Leaf Guard is another interesting option, again helping its durability and giving another reason to use Sunny Day.


Also, Dry Skin, Rough Skin and Flash Fire are a no-no. Dry Skin and Flash Fire give two immunities with extra bonuses. That's the last thing we want on such a defensive pokémon. Rough Skin would work well... TOO well. Sharpedo dies in one hit, and that's why Rough Skin is not only not broken, but wasted on it. But this one can take too many hits, effectively crippling the attackers for a long time. rough Skin would be great in a pokémon with low tankiness, but not to the point of Sharpedo's fraility.

 

[N/A]

I really like the idea of Rock Head, Wood Hammer without recoil would be sweet :)

Otherwise Solarpower, Magma Armor and Mold Breaker are worth a mention?

 

[Time Mage]

That reminds me: If we decided this pokémon was to be a special attacker, why the insistence on giving it Rock Head so it can use Wood Hammer and Flare Blitz? Those two moves from a base 70 attack will be really good, and with Rock Head they might end up substituting the special skillset as the default one.

Give it Flare Blitz and Wood Hammer, but don't give it ALSO Rock Head. With 120 base HP, it has enough HP to not be crippled when attacking with one of those.

 

[X-Act]

To be honest, I'd like to see a non-uber OU Pokemon with Drought and another one with Drizzle, but it would have to have worse stats than this. Something along Abomasnow's stats, for instance, or even slightly worse. But Drought would be too good on a Fire/Grass Pokemon, of all things.

 

[devoninja]

Are there any pokemon with Rock Head that aren't Rock/Ground/Steel type (besides Shelgon/Bagon which make no sense whatsoever)? I know that it is a good ability for him strategically but his head is not made of Rock or covered in Rock. This guy would be completely out of place on a list of pokemon with Rock Head like this one: http://www.serebii.net/abilitydex/rockhead.shtml

 

[Aldaron]

Uh well...here are a few random thoughts from me.

If we want to diversify the metagame, adding a good Pokemon that is generally stopped by Fires is a good choice. Therefore, Flash Fire is actually against the spirit of diversifying the metagame.

If we want to diversify the metagame...get ready for this...Battle Armor is against the spirit of this. How? Well, this Pokemon is weak to three types: Rock, Flying and Poison, ALL OF WHICH CARRY A VIABLE (NOW MUCH MORE SO) +CH RATE MOVE. Rock has Stone Edge; Flying has Air Cutter; Poison has Cross Poison. By removing CHs against this thing, we are preventing moves such as Air Cutter and Cross Poison from being viable against this thing. IN fact, a Scope Lens Sniper Drapion with Cross Poison (possibly a Swords Dance set?) would instantly lose credibility.

I know Battle Armor seems "perfect" for this guys, I honestly do. But it pains me to realize (and now tell you guys) that adding it to this Pokemon would actually be against the spirit of diversification. All three types SE to it have a move that becomes much more viable against it with CHs...

 

[X-Act]

I agree. Rock Head does not make sense on this Pokemon. Reckless _might_, but Rock Head, no.

I agree with Aldaron as well.

 

[devoninja]

Also I want to chime in with those who are against sniper. Cannons don't snipe, people. They just don't. Also Sniper/Battle Armor = Drapion. Why give this pokemon the same choices as another poke? That's just boring.

 

[Mekkah]

Well, this Pokemon is weak to three types: Rock, Flying and Poison, ALL OF WHICH CARRY A VIABLE (NOW MUCH MORE SO) +CH RATE MOVE. Rock has Stone Edge; Flying has Air Cutter; Poison has Cross Poison.

Hm. Fuck. Though let's be fair, Cross Poison really isn't used much if at all to begin with.

I like the idea of Shield Dust, but...it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense on the artwork. It's something that's only ever been on bugs before. It's also a really really good trait, probably given to horrible Pokemon on purpose.

White Smoke is interesting, but I doubt it will be useful. Nobody uses Fake Tears/Screech and it likely will not care about Intimidate.

Blaze seems to fit him in some way, but it's starter exclusive and I think it should stay that way.

 

[Time Mage]

Aldaron's points against Battle Armor are really valid. However... Can we really say a pokémon is a counter to this one if it has to rely on critical hits (however boosted they are) to defeat it? Criticals, except in very particular cases, range from a random effect (normal rate) to a desired bonus, but a bonus nonetheless (super luck + scope lens + high CH move).

 

[Mekkah]

I don't think it's about being able to counter it as much as being able to win in the long run, for example. With Battle Armor and its immense durability it could probably stall Stone Edge out of PP, while otherwise it always has to fear that CH.

Then again, if that was aldaron's point, it's not really his place to speak, since he is advocating Pressure. *_*"

 

[Time Mage]

That leads me to another question... Are we going to give this a reliable recovery move? Something like Synthesis, Morning Sun or Moonlight could be OK, considering the low PP and the bad recovery under a sandstorm. But I really hope this isn't getting anything remotely superior, like Slack Off or Recover.

Without a recovery move outside of Rest (and Leech Seed), any decently powered Stone Edge should defeat this even without criticals.

 

[Captain]

Vital Spirit would be a nice if it got an instant healing move, because otherwise it makes rest useless. I can't think of many viable OU pokemon with the ability and the artwork kind of looks like it's "full of vitality" and its tough defensive stats also work toward that end too.

I also like Splinter/Rough Skin because it fits the artwork and we'd finally have a Rough Skin pokemon that can actually use its ability. I don't know what Game Freak was thinking when they made Sharpedo so frail.

At least a few people have mentioned Drought. I think I have to say no. I don't think Drought is intrinistically broken, but honestly this pokemon seems too good for it. I'd probably be happy to see Drought on something with crappier stats.