@ Thorhammer
Thanks for responding.So the cutoff would be if more than 50% were broken.OK.That sounds reasonable.
I'm going to use an outside example.I play the YuGiOh trading card game.That game has a Forbidden/Restricted list to keep the game in check.On this list, there are several cards that are Forbidden because they are just way overpowered by themselves.A good example would be the Envoys.These could be like Mewtwo or Arceus in this game.
Then there is a second group that is Forbidden due to the interaction with other cards.These cards might not have been broken by themselves but they led to so many broken combos that eventually they were axed from competetive play.I'm going to use Mass Driver as the example here since its the most recent.On its own, it wasn't good at all.Matter of fact, it was complete garbage.However, certain loop combos allowed it to defeat an opponent in one turn without much resistance.Now over the years, several loop combos were banned and Mass Driver was never touched.Finally it was realized that although Mass Driver itself wasn't broken, it had broken at least a half dozen strategies in the past and it had resurfaced again with the Frog Loop.It is now Forbidden from play.
I guess I'm comparing Mass Driver to Drizzle.If that one factor (Drizzle) breaks many otherwise balanced Pokemon, which is the real culprit?Did the half dozen or more broken Pokemon break Drizzle, or did Drizzle break them?I say if it is just a couple who become truly broken (The Trio) then it is the Pokemon's fault and it deserves the boot.If a bunch of bans are needed to keep it OU however,I think Drizzle should be the one to go.
Thanks for responding.So the cutoff would be if more than 50% were broken.OK.That sounds reasonable.
I do kinda disagree with this however.Swift Swim by itself is not broken.Swift Swim in combination with Rain Dance, is not broken.Only when combined with Drizzle does it become broken (even though that applies more to a select few than everything).However, permanent Rain has so many abusers that it is quite possible that in the future some could be considered broken.If for example, testing showed 5 broken swift swimmers (not hard to imagine since 3 are already there) and then say 3 other Pokemon are broke because of the rain (ie Thundurus/Tornadus spamming Thunder/Hurricane) what would that say about Drizzle?If the Swift Swim users push rain over the edge, then they aren't balanced.
There is no evidence that 10+ Pokemon will be made broken by Drizzle. The most that seems plausible right now is 7 or 8, as an absolute maximum. More likely, it will be around 5 Pokemon, all of which are broken not simply because of Drizzle, but because of their own characteristics which are brought out by Drizzle.
I'm going to use an outside example.I play the YuGiOh trading card game.That game has a Forbidden/Restricted list to keep the game in check.On this list, there are several cards that are Forbidden because they are just way overpowered by themselves.A good example would be the Envoys.These could be like Mewtwo or Arceus in this game.
Then there is a second group that is Forbidden due to the interaction with other cards.These cards might not have been broken by themselves but they led to so many broken combos that eventually they were axed from competetive play.I'm going to use Mass Driver as the example here since its the most recent.On its own, it wasn't good at all.Matter of fact, it was complete garbage.However, certain loop combos allowed it to defeat an opponent in one turn without much resistance.Now over the years, several loop combos were banned and Mass Driver was never touched.Finally it was realized that although Mass Driver itself wasn't broken, it had broken at least a half dozen strategies in the past and it had resurfaced again with the Frog Loop.It is now Forbidden from play.
I guess I'm comparing Mass Driver to Drizzle.If that one factor (Drizzle) breaks many otherwise balanced Pokemon, which is the real culprit?Did the half dozen or more broken Pokemon break Drizzle, or did Drizzle break them?I say if it is just a couple who become truly broken (The Trio) then it is the Pokemon's fault and it deserves the boot.If a bunch of bans are needed to keep it OU however,I think Drizzle should be the one to go.