Frequently Asked Questions
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).
Once your server is working for sure, post in this topic to register it with more permanence.
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.