The Joy of Theme Teams
We're going to start breaking up these reviews with other little pokemon features, and the first one I felt like talking about is something of a pokemon micro-hobby I've enjoyed since the series first began. Playing with themes is something I love doing in any context, and perhaps most of all in the context of putting monsters next to other monsters. What six pokemon, for instance, best communicate a swamp environment while looking as cool and varied as possible?
Maybe it's these. I don't know. There are certainly other possibilities to consider here, like Feraligatr over Krookodile, or Carnivine for your predatory plant representation. Swampert is another obvious option - it's even in the name! - and a Trevenant might look pretty nice as well. The agony of only six slots!
It's one more way Pokemon's competitive scene pains me so; how am I supposed to enjoy the true, intended appeal of pokemon - to build teams that look good and express your tastes - if all these damn monsters have to be scattered across a dozen different banlists just to have a fleeting chance against other monsters? Can't we just "fix" that? Aren't any of these battle simulation communities interested in the idea of just modding pokemon stats and movesets until the "viability" gap is significantly smaller? We wouldn't have to eliminate diversity, just reel it in enough that maybe the "worst" possible team can still win a solid 10% of the time with enough effort and care. Come on, we could call it "No More Tiers" mode! Catchy, right??
I got off track a little there, I guess. Here's a "witchcraft" team. I think it covers all the bases that entails, with 4/5 of these pokemon still being witches themselves! It's like a weird-ass coven of magical monsters, who probably draw extra power from their freaky meteorite friend and practice their little spells on their toad familiar.
What I'm trying to say is that no aspect of pokemon is more fun for me than the aesthetics of team building. Pokemon that mesh well artistically and conceptually, sp here's what we're gonna do: you can have fun trying to guess what "themes" of the remaining teams below, and suggest themes of your own in the comments. Tell me what pokemon you think would suit your concept, and why. Don't worry about strategies or even elemental advantages, this is all about style.
In another week, I'll go over a few favorites among your team ideas and review them!
It's one more way Pokemon's competitive scene pains me so; how am I supposed to enjoy the true, intended appeal of pokemon - to build teams that look good and express your tastes - if all these damn monsters have to be scattered across a dozen different banlists just to have a fleeting chance against other monsters? Can't we just "fix" that? Aren't any of these battle simulation communities interested in the idea of just modding pokemon stats and movesets until the "viability" gap is significantly smaller? We wouldn't have to eliminate diversity, just reel it in enough that maybe the "worst" possible team can still win a solid 10% of the time with enough effort and care. Come on, we could call it "No More Tiers" mode! Catchy, right??
What I'm trying to say is that no aspect of pokemon is more fun for me than the aesthetics of team building. Pokemon that mesh well artistically and conceptually, sp here's what we're gonna do: you can have fun trying to guess what "themes" of the remaining teams below, and suggest themes of your own in the comments. Tell me what pokemon you think would suit your concept, and why. Don't worry about strategies or even elemental advantages, this is all about style.
In another week, I'll go over a few favorites among your team ideas and review them!
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