Hax! You haxed!!!

How do you feel about hax? Does it put you off battling? Do you tend to get very lucky yourself during battles, or is the luck always against you? Have any of your biggest battles be ruined by a simple case of luck? Do you see a 'hax win' as valid?

I personally love that hax adds a unique element to the game and it's a big factor in battles having a lot of variety. At the end of the day you can just get incredibly lucky (or unlucky) and that'll swing the battle in or out of your favour, but based on certain moves being used simply because they increase or decrease the chance of 'hax' occurring and it's an important part of the actual games too, I don't see hax as anything more than 'lol that was funny'. I still see a 'hax win' as a perfectly valid win because the same circumstance could happen in any other game/spot and as I said it's designed to be part of the games, so it's always funny seeing people get annoyed by it haha.

(For those that don't know, 'hax' is getting very lucky with critical hits/status issues/accuracy/etc in a Pokémon battle)

To me hax is one of the most frustrating parts of competitive battling because it really can decide the outcome of a battle and cause the better player to lose a match that they should have won due to a burn, freeze, crit, etc. That said.. I love hax. Competitive battling wouldn't be the same without it. Sometimes we all need a little luck to win a battle and if there was no hax the more experienced person would win everytime. It adds an amazing element of surprise because you never know what is gonna happen. A last minute crit could win you a tournament. Or a burn from Scald could cripple the opponent and end a sweep. Hax is important no matter how frustrating it can be.

I would say I am haxed more than I actually get lucky and hax the other player, but that is probably just because I notice it more when it happens to me because it frustrates me when it doesn't go my way! However when it does go my way I am very happy and it has won me dozens of matches.

The best part of hax is seeing the other player ragequit.

Random hax can be pretty funny. For example, during a battle yesterday (the current wi-fi gbu competition) my opponent missed a Hi-jump Kick (his Mienshao) and then a Focus Blast (from his Gengar) both aimed at my Ferrothorn. I laughed but I also felt kinda bad. I don't mind random hax at all, unless it happens too much in a single match, 'cause it kinda ruins the excitement of winning (or learning nothing if you lost to it).

I only dislike it when people depend on parahax to win so they use Thunder Wave on everything, even though I still win most of those matches.

I hate being on the receiving end of hax; I tend to lose because of it. On the other hand, hax may be useful for me to turn an otherwise unfavorable situation around.

I have only encountered Hax once in the tourney i was in during the spring. I know it isnt the nicest move but its effective. I look it it this way. A wins a wins a win. Period

It can be pretty annoying, but I love it when it favors me and I hate it when it's against me. I was in this one battle and I was down to my last pokemon. I needed a crit to win, and I got it. The other guy was so pissed. XD

I don't like hax, but it's a necessary evil. It keeps the battle from being predictable and bland.

I love hax especially when the opponent is getting haxed. When I'm getting haxed it can get pretty annoying if I get haxed like 3 times consecutively or something like that. But I think Pokemon Battle won't be complete without hax since it adds a twist to the battle and even if it seems like you're winning the tables can be completely turned.

Hax is my favourite and my least favourite thing in the world at the same time. Don't even ask how that's possible- it just is! Hax plays a lot in battles, people say its gimmicky and really doesn't do much to a match- but it does! It can turn the whole battle right on its feet, whether it'd be getting extremely lucky with Purrloin (jesus christ that thing still gives me nightmares), or missing a crucial Stone Edge. Hax plays a huge part in competitive battling, even if people are skeptical of how it plays such a huge role. You might need that critical hit to win the match, or your paraflinch strategy to work if you want to pull through. Hax is a huge part of competitive to be honest and I haven't met one person who hasn't fallen to it. And to answer the question, I honestly feel really lucky when I play matches. I get haxed a lot but not as much as how many critical hits I've managed to pull off. One match was actually determined by a crit at the end and I almost fell out of my chair in happiness. Is that even possible? I don't know how you can fall out of a chair like that, but whatever!

It sounds like I love hax, so how come I hate it? Well while being able to get the odd hax or so may seem great, you kind of have to remember you're not the only one! I can't even count how many times one of my Pokemon have fallen victim to Scald's extremely annoying 30% burn rate, or have fallen to the mighty warrior known as Dunsparce, with its irritating as hell, paraflinch strategy. Paralysis and confusion are also really irritating and I've had plenty of Focus Blast misses. Five times in a row, smh. So while hax has its goods, its like a double edged sword! It can do you good, but it can do you bad. But really it plays a huge part in competitive- one small piece of luck and you could find yourself winning or losing a match.

Jeez. I guess "hax" is apart of the game. you cannot win every battle. As long as its all legit. Then I'm fine with it.

The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent flinched!
Jellicent restored a little HP using its Leftovers!
The foe's Jirachi used Iron Head!
Jellicent lost 14% of its health!
Jellicent fainted!

and so on...

Yeah, Jirachi defines hax in OU. There is also Togekiss with Air Slash and Roost, and they both have access to paralysis. Paraflinching is frustrating and can sometimes make you press the forfeit button.

Gengar and Alakazam also have to rely on Focus Miss to destroy some of their counters, and if Focus Miss, well, misses, you lose.

Hax is one of the major reasons why Pokemon will most likely never be considered a serious competitive game. Is that a bad thing? You decide. On one hand, it can make battles more tense and interesting, but on the other hand it's a big stain on the competitive metagame by ensuring that players can still lose regardless of skill level. Hax also hinders defensively-minded teams like stall, because they tend to rely more on each individual Pokemon of their team, so just one critical hit can easily mean "gg" for them.

Honestly it doesn't bother me that much, and it shouldn't bother people as much as it does. The way a lot of players react to it is totally over the top imo. Of course it's annoying when you think you're about to win, or you've got an amazing set-up and 'hax' occurs but it's part of the game and nothing can stop it, really, so I don't see the point of complaining about it.

Mainly what bothers me about it is how players react to it.

Hax can always be annoying if you're on the receiving end, notably against Serene Grace abusers like Togekiss and Jirachi. However, if you're on the giving end, if the luck goes your way you'll even be able to destroy a lot of the foe's team, like if you land a lot of flinches, critical hits etc.

I hate confuse hax! The only hax which keeps coming and pissed me off.

Yes it is annoying at times, but it does have a large role in balancing the game. For example, moves like Razer Leaf, Night Slash, and Air Cutter have low base damage but they have high crit ratios to make up for it. Hax is also nice because Pokemon is a game where often you just get completely screwed (especially if you don't have much experience) and you can't really do anything. That's where hax comes in to save you :p