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Endless questions on PokeBase (documentation & suggestions)

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This page records all the endless questions on PokeBase, and can be used to suggest new ones.

Endless questions (or "endless threads") have a broad scope and a potentially-infinite number of solutions. They do have some focus on strategy or optimisation, but they don't truly have a "best answer", which means they receive new answers often. We need to organise this carefully.

Under normal circumstances, users cannot post endless questions, or variations of existing ones. However, they can suggest new questions to the community. If others agree a suggested endless question is useful and suits our platform, then staff will approve it, and the question can be asked.

See the pinned answer below for all the approved endless questions! The "best answer" should remain unselected for these.

Suggestions

Post an answer here if you have a suggestion for an endless question, or an endless question series. Explain why you think it's a good idea, e.g. what content it covers that PokeBase doesn't currently, and why it fits in with the platform. Also, outline the rules/guidelines that would go in the question description. Others can "workshop" the idea in the comments (or turn it down).

Some things to bear in mind:

  • If the subject matter of the question is changing, then the answers will become outdated. For example, the OU tier changes very often, so a question asking for OU teams would eventually be filled with outdated answers. This issue can be forgiven if the changes are infrequent, or if outdated answers can still be used in the right context, like with the moveset questions.
  • There should be some ‘objectivity’ in the question, causing some answers to be better than others. Often, this means the question has a strategic focus (as you can argue why a strategy is effective or why it isn’t).
  • Though endless questions are broad by definition, they also need to be focused. For example, we don’t allow in-game team movesets on our msq threads, because that would populate the post with answers that have totally different purposes to the others. It would be hard to browse.
  • The question should be interesting to other people or serve a functional purpose. For example, our igtq questions help other people complete the game.
  • Don't make suggestions that just try to dodge the rules, e.g. "What is a good team for Black with Eelektross in it?"

Remember that variations of existing endless questions are not allowed, and will not be approved. (For example, 'What is a good moveset for Relaxed Flygon?' is not allowed.) This helps us keep the questions organised and relevant to as many people as possible.

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Show 5 previous comments
hello mello looks like Pokemaster visits DB more often, so is this gonna be implemented anytime soon cause I'm pretty excited for this
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I was going to wait until he adds the new rules, but he's not replying anymore so I think I'll just do what I want with this thread.
We can start working on this now. We should make a draft of the "description" for the threads (e.g. the rules/ directions for people who answer), and make a plan for which questions we'll ask first (and how often). After that, we can post them :)
Also, I'm planning to make a new account with which to post endless questions, to help people such as myself who don't want their updates list clogged by the threads. If you want the "team dump" threads to be posted on that account instead of on your own, let me know.
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!!! That's cool!! And if possible, I'd like to post the team dump questions >.< hehe (childish reason but I have an attachment to them? Idk lol if it's possible I can do it). Only one question, will the draft be finalised in the PDB Discord server or somewhere else?
Was waiting for this!!
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Edit the draft into your answer here, so it's organised. I'll do the same for mine soon. And yep you can post the team dump questions, that's completely fine.
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Oh okay I'll do it when I get time, thanks!!
E: I've edited the answer with what I came up with. Let me know about it, thanks!
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edited by

6 Answers

2 votes
 
Best answer

Current endless questions

Updated Sep 2022

msq (moveset question series): For sharing competitive movesets for their Pokemon, with a focus on fully-evolved Pokemon for organisation. Must follow guidelines. Handled by Pokemaster via MovesetBot.

igtq (in-game team question series): For sharing full in-game teams for playthroughs of each main series game. Focus on hassle-free and efficient teams.

bftq (battle facility team question series): For sharing teams intended to beat post-game battle facilities in main series games. Grouped by game, not per facility, for ease of browsing.

lcmsq (Little Cup moveset question series): For sharing competitive movesets for Pokemon allowed in the Little Cup battle format. Must follow guidelines. Separated from main threads due to the drastic difference between Little Cup and all other formats. Can be asked freely by Experts+.

pgtq (Past-generation team question series): For sharing competitive teams for battle formats of non-current generations. (Currently being rolled out.)

Misc.: Other endless questions which don't belong to a series. (Soon, we'll be cleaning these up with proper rules in the question description, and we might turn some into series.)

(Please link any that are missing!)

Non-allowed suggestions

The following ideas should not be suggested, as they will be rejected.

  • msq threads for Pokemon that are not yet available in a competitive format (will be handled by staff once the Pokemon are available in such a format)
  • pgtq threads for current-generation formats (which change too often for responses to have lasting value)
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edited by
6 votes

What are the most efficient Pokemon for [game] playthroughs?

(aka "What is a good Pokemon for [game] playthroughs?")

An idea I had while writing up possible rules for in-game team posts on PokeBase. You could use these threads to go into detail on a particular Pokemon and its usefulness for in-game playthroughs. This is different from igtq because it doesn't focus on whole teams -- just one Pokemon (or, more precisely: one evolution line) per answer.

This would be useful for people who want suggestions for Pokemon to complete their team, or somewhere to start building a team. The focus of these threads would be on efficient Pokemon, and strategies to make the Pokemon most useful. You'd expect to see the following on the answers:

  • timeline of the Pokemon's moveset throughout the playthrough
  • assessment of the Pokemon's positive and negative traits overall
  • good and bad matchups for the Pokemon throughout the playthrough
  • explanations of how to handle certain battles with the Pokemon
  • different advice for evolved v. unevolved forms of the Pokemon
  • good teammates for the Pokemon
  • what items and moves are useful for the Pokemon, and why
  • TMs you can use on the Pokemon to make it more useful
  • tips and tricks, e.g. how to catch it easily, how to farm evolution requirements

...all of which is few and far between on the igtq threads -- and even if it's there, it's going to be annoying to find because the answers have whole teams. The questions would add this sort of content to PokeBase, which I think would be really good (especially with the voting system here). It would also satisfy the people asking for in-game moveset questions.

The rules would be something like this:

  • One evolution line per answer. If somebody has already covered the evolution line you'd like to write for, you can make the post anyway, as long as it's different or adds new details (similar to moveset threads).
  • The moveset timeline could be required, so that the answers have some consistent structure.
  • There should be a detailed analysis of the Pokemon's strengths and weaknesses, what sorts of teams it fits into, and what its teammates should be.

I think ppq (playthrough Pokemon question) would be a nice tag. Tell me if you think it would be good and if you'd change anything.

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I personally feel that this'll be nice. The good strategies for in-game don't change frequently right? And I guess that we should make explanations totally mandatory as understanding some answers is a real pain in the ass. And items, are they required in-game? I mean yeah they would be nice but I know nothing about playthroughs so ahem.
What about explaining how the Pokémon would fare in the next few gyms? Idk I legit know nothing about in-game, lol.
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Yeah you've understood it. Unless there's DLC released that actively changes the structure of the game, the answers are unlikely to change ever. And yep the analysis/ explanation would definitely be mandatory.
Items aren't required for in-game, but they can help you win easily so it's nice to mention them. If there are no recommended items, you can say "item: none" or something. Gyms would come under "good/bad matchups" (some others include boss fights, rival fights, E4/champion, etc).
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4 votes

Team-Dump Threads for Old Gens Metagames?

The old gens are, in most cases, old. The metagame of any old gens tier is not subject to change usually, and the biggest changes are in the viability rankings, which don't have a hugely significant impact on teambuilding. This means that most teams won't get outdated.
Let's take ORAS OU as an example. Metagross-M + Excadrill + Breloom is a premier offensive core, and Garchomp + Rotom-Wash + Tornadus-T is a great defensive core. Having these six on one team would make an above-average team. This style has been around since 2017 (extremely late 2016 on the whole). (But with a few perks, like Kyurem-Black than Breloom to slaughter BOs, Clefable than Breloom for more consistency etc.) This team still has viability now as the metagame didn't change much since 2017, and so the team still works fine when juxtaposed with the current meta teams.
I'm quite sure I got my point across with the help of these. So, I'll like to suggest a thread for old-gens metagames which are fairly popular in the DB userbase, and different threads for different metagames. I'm ready to help with these if they're implemented I'm gonna have immense fun.

Finally, this is a thing! Fizz asked me to edit the answer and post a draft of the description here, so I got something for Gen 7 (USUM) OU, the latest OU Gen outside SS. Most of it is copied from the AG and OU team bazaar but that's cause I'm building different;w; (hilarious joke). Anyways let's get to it.

Welcome to the USUM OverUsed Team Bazaar! This thread is for showcasing your teams which have fared well on the ladder or in tournaments. In short, it's a thread where you can show off teams without having to go through the trouble of writing up a full RMT. As long as the team is viable enough for the USUM OverUsed metagame, you're free to post your team in this thread (no gimmicks allowed!!). Now with that being said, here are a few guidelines which you're expected to read before posting:

  • Please no unfinished teams! Considering this as a smaller sibling of RMT, we would like if you to put some effort into polishing your team before presenting them here. Try to test your teams before posting them here, too. If you want feedback for your team, post it in the RMT section.
  • Commenting on teams is appreciated only when you have some constructive feedback. Random comments are frowned upon, as it causes clutter. And if someone does give feedback on your team, try to take it in the best way possible even if you don't necessarily agree.
  • Try to avoid meaningless discussions arguing about a team. Don't beat the horse to death; further discussions can be taken to wall posts.
  • Including the EVs, nature and the sort is a must. All the sets should be posted in the Showdown! importable format too (example here).
  • Please include a description and importable (through PokePaste) when posting teams! Mentioning the archetype (i.e., Balance, Hyper Offense, Stall etc.) of the team when posting is appreciated too. Try to include at least three lines of description for each Pokémon. Make sure your description addresses specific teambuilding choices and general strategy, as well as any unique sets that might be on your team. Sprites are also appreciated, but not necessary.

More information about posting can be found here.

That's all, post away!

Edited the former draft. Included the things that were asked. Hope it's better now.

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edited by
I can't think of a reason this wouldn't work, so I think we could go through with it. Would "past generation competitive team question"/ "pgctq" as a tag be good?
A poll is one idea, though I think we could bring up some stats and see which formats would come out on top anyway. I think Ubers, OU and UU would be good (plus others if demand exists), then we can add AG, NDOU, NDAG, BSS, etc on top. I'd like to add VGC though I don't know if people play old VGC formats. I also know next to nothing about Hackmons, but we can probably make it work.
This is quite a few questions, so we'd have to roll it out slowly. Start with Gen 7 then go backwards?
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Yeah pgctq would be epic. I agree with the stats thing, and we should def do Ubers and OU at least, they're like the most played tier of a lot of gens. The National Dex metagame is subject to change quite frequently, like how Stall picked up after AGPL, and how Diancie-Mega fell from usage even though it had a niche, in NDAG. I have played three matched of NDOU and a little more of NDM (Monotype), so idk about them. But yeah the NDM meta also changes frequently, stability is yet to come in the Nat Dex metas.
We *can* do VGC and BSS, for the older editions, I'll be liking what others think of this.
Yeah Hackmons is, well, not that popular, same here as above, I'll be happy if others post their thoughts on this.
I love the idea of USUM and backwards as that's the most recent Generation, and I'm quite sure that the ORAS userbase is smaller in PDB as comapred to the USUM userbase, as a lot of older users have, sadly, left the site :(.
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I should've mentioned, we'd start doing ND formats once Gen 8 is over -- hopefully at that point the meta will be stable enough that these threads would be useful. If not we can wait longer.
Maybe we can also prioritise popular formats, e.g. Gen 7 OU, then Gen 6 OU, ..., Gen 1 OU. Then, do the next most popular format (say, UU): Gen 7 UU, ..., Gen 1 UU.
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Yeah I agree. OU first, and then moving towards either Ubers or UU (idk which ones are more popular ;;). And yeah we need to wait for ND formats, a lot of change is yet to come ig.
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Alright nice. A few things:
* In general we should do our own content instead of copy off Smogon. (Example: Do you have permission to use that artwork?)
* Since this is a Q&A the title should be a question (the site adds a question mark to the end if you don't use one yourself). Maybe "What is a good team for USUM OU?" etc. is fine.
* I think the threads should be specifically for sharing *good* teams that don't need much discussion. If somebody their team is suboptimal and needs feedback, they should put it on RMT.
* I think the rules should be pretty tight, instead of lax. At least, we'll need to directly specify things like EVs and natures (and https://pokemondb.net/pokebase/meta/76386#a76464 ), because lots of casuals lurk the main section.

I like the idea of a BA'd answer. I think we should make it so *all* the teams are good, and instead the BA answer can recommend some teams based on structure e.g. list of HO teams, list of balance teams, etc.
We can start with USUM OU like you mentioned and see how active the thread is. If it gets bumped a lot, we'll roll the other questions out slowly. But if it's not too active, we can probably post a new thread every few days.
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Ah yeah I see. I was thinking of the first point but I let it go (bad idea). I'll edit it with tighter rules & better wording. Thanks!
Oh yeah that's cool, different archetype having a different section in the BA'd answer. And sure whatever you want with the new threads :].
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Yep, that's good. You can post these now -- if any problems come up, we can edit the pages to change the rules. Have fun :)
(Also, to save yourself getting "is this allowed" comments, write in the threads you have permission from me to post these.)
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Okay, thanks!!!!! Sure will do that :].
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Alrighty looks like first thread rolled out pretty successfully!! Now I had some things in mind:

1. Do we make a new tag for the competitive team questions?
2. What/when do we roll next (when will be decided by you)? I'm thinking either ORAS OU (lets finish OU first?) or USUM UU (lets finish a Gen first?).
3. Will the threads be bumped by the people who answer or can I bump them xd.

That's all, thanks! :]
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Yep, looks good!
1. We agreed on "pgctq" before? You can add it (didn't realise it wasn't there already).
2. You can choose which one (generation first v. format first). But if you want me to decide, I'd say finish formats first. We can pick the next most popular one after OU.
3. Don't go out of your way to bump it, but if you're just adding things to the BA etc. then it's fine. These posts should still be closer to a PokeBase question than a forum thread.
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Oh god I forgot about the tag sorryyy. Alrighty formats first! And yeah bumping it wouldn't be nice lol, thanks so much!!
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Alright so next thread is USUM UU, when can I ask the question? It's been >a week since the first question (idr), so lmk if it's fine to roll it out now.
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Yep, roll it out now. (Though I thought you said you're doing formats first? You do what you like, just double-checking.)
One week is probably a good time period, maybe go faster if we get to less popular formats.
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Yeah if we do formats first, USUM UU is next (I thought of Ubers but ig it's gonna come after ZU).
Sure got it.
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Okay, UU is out, and looks like it's not very popular, so do I roll RU now?
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Yep, sounds good. Though you might choose a different/ more popular format before RU, if you wanted.
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oh!
I'm doing AG then lol.
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Do you think there should be a minimum ladder peak requirement for these threads?
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It'd be nice, in my opinion, for the tiers which have a ladder. Like I'd hate another replica of the G7 AG answer to come up. A proof of peak would also be nice, it would give a nice touch to the whole answer as a whole.
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I agree with that, how about a bit higher requirements for AG formats than the rest? The ladder is very bad; however the Ubers and OU ladder has better skilled players even at less than 1400 ELO.
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I'd personally prefer if it were common, the USM AG ladder is very very bad but I've not seen many bad players on this site (of the said format, comparatively a lot less people play older gens), and 1450/1400+ would be nice enough for almost every ladder.
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Gen 8 is officially retro. Can I go ahead with Gen 8 OU?
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Yep, go ahead.
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can I roll other popular ss formats gradually? (people's choice™)
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Yes. You can post threads as you see fit, I think you can handle it responsibly.
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okay
I’ll do Mono > AG > Ubers > LC probably
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Can I post Gen 9 threads? (OU and Ubers, probably Monotype later.)
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Do you think that's worth it before DLC 2 releases and settles?
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2 votes

In-Game Advice Threads
A thread for each game where users can post (spoiler-free) advice for that game which will help anyone playing it for the first time. Advice may be about EXP, money, or just general suggestions to make the game easier (for eg. In HGSS, an NPC spawns at different locations each day of the week and gives items that can't be obtained elsewhere).

▪︎Games don't change after release so no worries about getting outdated.
▪︎The answers would naturally be very different but I don't think that's a problem because they are all answered with the same goal in mind.
▪︎It would be very helpful for people who have just started the game.
▪︎People can also give link to useful resources.

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Cool idea. I think we can do that.
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If no one has anything to add, feel free to start posting some of these. You can pick a unique tag like the ones in the pinned answer so they're all in one place.
If you didn't have a title in mind already, maybe do "What are some tips for x playthroughs?"
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I think we should define "spoiler-free". For example, is saying "Giovanni" instead of "Kanto's 8th Gym Leader" a spoiler? What about "Ice types are great against Cynthia's Garchomp"?
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In my opinion, a spoiler is something related to the plot. For example, Sara/Turo being an AI is a spoiler because it is related to the plot of S/V. However, something like Geeta using a Glimmora is not, nor would anyone really be upset about learning it.
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1 vote

What are the most effective methods/Pokemon to beat [Trainer] in [Game]?

I think a thread where people can share effective strategies or easily accessible Pokemon that can handle a gym leader, rival battle, team leader, or any other main-story fight with little to no issues would serve as not only a helpful thread, but also one that could lead to plenty of variation. Advice can range from things like specific Pokemon that can practically solo the battle (e.g. Using a repel trick in Diglett Cave can net you a Dugtrio that can solo Lt. Surge in FrLg), opportunities to setup (e.g. Wallace/Juan's Luvdisc can't do much against Female Pokemon, leaving you free to spam setup moves), or actions by the AI that can be used to your advantage (e.g. Crasher Wake will switch out his Gyarados for Quagsire when against Electric Pokemon).

I'm not entirely sure on rules, but I think something along the lines of this could be considered:

  • The main premise should be that any strategy shared should serve as more effective than simply leveling up your team to a higher level (so dedicating time to training all new Pokemon or piecing together a new team of Pokemon is ineffective)
  • General advice that could apply to any other battle (i.e. using the box art legendary or spamming healing items) should be avoided, although a separate thread could be included for it.
  • Full on teams for a single trainer battle shouldn't be shared, as not only should they be on lgtq instead, but as stated earlier, are largely ineffective.
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Going to leave https://pokemondb.net/pokebase/405193/what-are-the-best-pokemon-strategies-to-defeat-cynthia-bdsp as a possible guideline. I meant to get around to writing more guide questions... oops. I'd like to see this on the DB for sure.

We also have many of these floating around already, so an effort could be made to standaridse their formatting.
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That question may or may not have lead to me subconsciously suggesting this idea, but I do recall a lot of questions akin to this suggestion. Although, would it make more sense to group the E4 and Champion battles together in the same thread, or should they be separated, as they're fought one after the other?
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0 votes

Past Gen Sample Teams for Weather, Trick Room, etc.

While a bunch of similar questions have been posted, eg - What are things to consider when making a Trick Room-Team?, What are some good physical Pokemon for rain teams? and others; there aren't any threads for sample teams. As @Cristal Maybach has already said, past gen metagames do not change much and most teams don't get outdated; so weather/trick room/other teams for older gen don't change either and can be helpful for inexperienced people making those types of teams.

-I'll need a bit of time to flesh out the rules and format the question. I'll finish and edit it in.

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My main issue with this is that a thread just for Trick Room or rain isn't particular to any battle format, so you'll get varying answers for all sorts of battle formats.
In other words, I think the best place to store a rain team for Gen 7 OU (for example) is in the Gen 7 OU team thread, instead of a thread that asks generally for rain teams.
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