FAQ

Client Questions




Will this program run on my computer?


Shoddy
Battle was coded in the Java programming language, which means that it
can be run on any computer running a Java Virtual Machine (JVM). Most
modern operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, Apple OS X, and
GNU/Linux, have implementations of Java and should be able to run this
program.


I have trouble getting the client to run. What should I try?


Try upgrading (or installing) your version of Java from here.


How does the ladder work?


See this page.

Server Questions




I am running a server but it does not appear in the server listing. Why not?


The
program that lists the servers (the metaserver) only lists servers to
which it can connect. If your server does not appear in the listing,
this suggests that your server is not configured properly—nobody else
would be able to connect to it. Generally this points to an improperly
configured firewall (open the port you are running the server on) or
router (forward the port you are running the server on to your
computer).

Common Sense Questions




I
used Hypnosis and it missed twice in a row! My opponent froze me twice
in a row with Ice Beam! My opponent got three critical hits in a row! I
was asleep for the full four turns three times in a row! I was frozen
solid for eight turns! I was fully paralysed five turns in a row! I
used Double Team six times but then my opponent still hit me with Zap
Cannon fifty times in a row! (That last one is a joke.) All of this
nonsense must be a bug, right?


Wrong.
If you think you have found a statistical issue, check the source
before telling us about it, because people are almost always wrong when
they make statistical claims about Shoddy Battle. If you don't know how
to check the source, please at least make sure your claim makes sense. For example, the following is an unaltered message said by one user (original spelling and punctuation intact):


no moves ever miss, focus blast never misses on shoddy, neither does hypnosis


Needless to say, if you say this, you will not be taken seriously.

Mechanics Questions




My opponent used yawn. It hit and next turn I used substitute, but I fell asleep anyway. Is this a bug?


No. The move Yawn causes you to fall asleep even if you have a substitute up.


I used wish, and the next turn my pokemon fainted. The pokemon I sent in did not receive the wish. Is this a bug?


No.
In D/P, all end of turn effects, including leftovers recovery and wish
healing, are executed before fainted pokemon are replaced. If your
pokemon has fainted, wish has no target and simply fades. This is the
same reason why pokemon do not get leftovers recovery on the turn they
are sent in if they are replacing a fainted pokemon.


I
used U-turn to send in a pokemon with a choice item (one of Choice
Band, Choice Specs, or Choice Scarf) who knows U-turn and Shoddy Battle
forced me to use U-turn next turn. Is this a bug?


No.
This is the correct in-game behaviour. If you use U-turn to send in a
pokemon with a choice item who knows U-turn, you are forced to use
U-turn.


I used Explosion or Self-destruct when there was no target and I didn't faint! Is this a bug?


No. Using an enemy-targeting suicide move such as these two or Memento does not cause you to faint if there is no target.


Move X is missing. Has it been forgotten about?


The
number of missing moves, abilities, and items is well below 1% of the
overall total. We are working on completing the remaining ones, but
they are not a priority because they are generally quite bad. It does
not help us at all to state that Move X is missing because we know
exactly what is missing.