Board 8 > Remember the Vyse fodder line?

(+) Yeah! (+)

After Vyse finished at 19.05% in 2003 and then managed a nearly identical 19.21% value in 2004, the Vyse Fodder Line (or VFL) was established, saying that anyone who finished ahead of him in the standings would not be considered fodder. "

"Fodder is any character, game, or series who would be unable to earn more than 20% of the vote against Base Link, aka finishes under 20% on the X-stats for that season."

It used to Vyse.

Who is the fodder line for the 2018 character battle?

Maybe... Spyro?
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Pac-Man has been popping up in this debate, because he's someone who has been in almost every contest, and everyone knows who he is, but no one feels strongly about him. If you can beat Pac-Man, you belong in the field. If you can't, you're probably better off one and done.
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it's actually the only thing I know about Vyse
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From what I've been reading it's either Pac-Man or Isaac.

@LeonhartFour and I settled on Pac-Man I think

it's less about your stat strength and more about "if you can't beat Pac-Man then who gives a fuck about you"
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ZenOfThunder posted...

@LeonhartFour and I settled on Pac-Man I think

it's less about your stat strength and more about "if you can't beat Pac-Man then who gives a fuck about you"

how can this be fodder!!!
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SuperNiceDog posted...

ZenOfThunder posted...

@LeonhartFour and I settled on Pac-Man I think

it's less about your stat strength and more about "if you can't beat Pac-Man then who gives a fuck about you"

how can this be fodder!!!

It's Gamefaqs. This site never makes any sense during a contest.
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Isaac
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Pac-Man might be stronger now due to Smash.
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ZenOfThunder posted...

@LeonhartFour and I settled on Pac-Man I think

it's less about your stat strength and more about "if you can't beat Pac-Man then who gives a fuck about you"

A lot of people seems to like Ocelot.
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KOS-MOS
Mr. Game & Watch
Tails
Ness maybe?

PrestonStarry2 posted...

Ness maybe?

Oh yea Ness is a good pick. He used to be right there.
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Actually Ness might be the best so far.
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Ness is a bit too strong for a fodder line, honestly.

also stop overrating Spyro he's not worthy to be the fodder line

like if you want to use a PS platforming character Ratchet is a much better choice

Pac-Man is a good fodder line because everyone knows him but nobody really likes him that much. If you can't beat Pac-Man, you suck.
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Pac-Man is probably stronger than the fodder line. Isaac too based on his stats and utter demolition of Layton (who is pure fodder, but still, 69%).

I think Bomberman is a good example, he fits the "everybody knows him but nobody cares". Simon Belmont is a good one too. He has been almost exactly on 20% historically, though Smash may have boosted him past it.
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Is Ness really stronger than Pac-Man by enough that it matters much? Even if we ignore their 2008 match, I don't see any matches from Ness that point to him being a lock to beat Pac-Man.
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Yeah, I'd probably be okay with Bomberman as a fodder line, although he's actually usually been stronger than Pac-Man in the past. Still, he's right above Vyse in 2003, when we established the VFL, so yeah, I can get on board with that.
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like the point of the fodder line is to be a "if you can beat this guy, you're not fodder but if you can't, you are"

Nathan Drake beat Pac-Man in 2013 so we don't think he's fodder now. If you want it to be a cult RPG character to keep with tradition, then Isaac fits.

actually I'll tell you what

whoever loses Ness vs. Shadow is the new fodder line
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LeonhartFour posted...

like the point of the fodder line is to be a "if you can beat this guy, you're not fodder but if you can't, you are"

Nathan Drake beat Pac-Man in 2013 so we don't think he's fodder now. If you want it to be a cult RPG character to keep with tradition, then Isaac fits.

actually I'll tell you what

whoever loses Ness vs. Shadow is the new fodder line

Imagine the guy who got 45% on Mario being called the new fodder line.

But I was actually thinking something similar.
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in 2003 we were still edgy teenagers so Shadow was cool
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LeonhartFour posted...

like the point of the fodder line is to be a "if you can beat this guy, you're not fodder but if you can't, you are"

Nathan Drake beat Pac-Man in 2013 so we don't think he's fodder now. If you want it to be a cult RPG character to keep with tradition, then Isaac fits.

actually I'll tell you what

whoever loses Ness vs. Shadow is the new fodder line

Hurray its shadow
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LeonhartFour posted...

If you want it to be a cult RPG character to keep with tradition, then Isaac fits.

This is a big part of the reason why I say Isaac. Like Vyse, he is a cult RPG lead who continues to get the nomination support to make the bracket despite no new games, except Isaac is now the one maintaining some respectability in the polls, while Vyse has fallen off the face of the earth.
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LeonhartFour posted...

in 2003 we were still edgy teenagers so Shadow was cool

I can truthfully say that I never thought Shadow was cool.

I still have difficulty believing that the Shadow of Hedgehog game wasn't made ironically. The scene where the President of the United States nostalgically looks at his framed desk photo of Sonic and Shadow back during the good old days made me burst out laughing.
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Anagram posted...

I can truthfully say that I never thought Shadow was cool.

wow look at the edgy 30-year-old
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LeonhartFour posted...

wow look at the edgy 30-year-old

My edgy phase was making custom WC3 maps with playable characters named things like "Demon Ninja."
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In that case I would suggest Neku or Laharl over Isaac. Laharl I like because he famously lost to Vyse, but would now win easily.
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Pac-Man's a bit too strong unless we want to move the fodder line to ~25% against the strongest character.

Isaac is a decent choice. So would Lloyd Irving
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charmander6000 posted...

Pac-Man's a bit too strong unless we want to move the fodder line to ~25% against the strongest character.

Well, 25% against current Link is probably closeish around 20% on peak strength Link. Well, maybe not current Link because of BotW, but 2013 Link, for sure.
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charmander6000 posted...

Isaac is a decent choice. So would Lloyd Irving

Lloyd is pretty weak. I would pick Isaac to crush him.

Which is what I say to Estelle > Isaac people - you'd have to think Estelle is a lot stronger than Lloyd to win, and there's no way that's the case.

That being said, Lloyd consistantly draws powerhouses or solid midcarders in round 1, when much weaker characters have been given more favorable matches, so who knows.
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Eh, Lloyd's a decent fodder line, but he's probably below where Vyse was at his peak now. It'd be a little lower of fodder line than in the past.
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Also, I think Neku is definitely too weak to be the fodder line. I'd be okay with Laharl, but he's not in the bracket this year, so yeah.
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The fodder line probably should be a bit lower these days, though. It's easier to win a match now that the field is twice as large.
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Who's the line for elite status?
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Anagram posted...

Who's the line for elite status?

Dante.

Maybe Leon Kennedy.
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Dante is a good choice for the elite line.
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actually I think Yu Narukami could be a good fodder line based on how he does this year
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I'd be a little wary of assuming Ness is as weak as he's been in the past. Earthbound had gotten a serious boost in 2015. I don't think his past couple contest results tell us much either - and for 2010 they're suspicious in part because they make him look too good!

Snake/Lloyd:

2010 Snake > Fox > Lloyd projected Snake beating Lloyd with 21.6%
2013 Snake > Isaac had Isaac getting 22.2% directly.

You'd figure 2013 Snake was better so Isaac probably wins but that one could be close!

I'd also be skeptical that Leon hasn't dropped.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/poll/2095-20xx-division-round-1-gordon-freeman-vs-leon-kennedy
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/poll/5239-character-battle-ix-division-5-round-2-shadow-vs-leon-vs

Letting Gordon Freeman make up 4% on you (when you were at best pretty much the weakest near-elite in the first place) as well as letting Alleged Near-Fodder Line Shadow the Hedgehog get 40% on both look kinda bad.
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charmander6000 posted...

Dante is a good choice for the elite line.

I think he's too low. Devil May Cry is still relevant????

For me, I would go with Auron, Squall, or Zelda right now.
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SuperNiceDog posted...

I think he's too low. Devil May Cry is still relevant????

uh yeah that DMC5 trailer they released recently was pretty hyped

also Auron and Squall are at the top end of the elite level, not the bottom

you could include Ganondorf up near the top based on past performances, but Zelda not so much
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SuperNiceDog posted...

charmander6000 posted...

Dante is a good choice for the elite line.

I think he's too low. Devil May Cry is still relevant????

For me, I would go with Auron, Squall, or Zelda right now.

DMC5 got a trailer and people were hyped about it so...
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SuperNiceDog posted...

I think he's too low. Devil May Cry is still relevant????

Devil May Cry is more relevant now than it's been in the last decade. People are oozing hype over DMC5.
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Hey guys you know what's pretty hype

The Devil May Cry 5 trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMSGj9Y2T9Q" data-time="

I can't wait until Dante looks amazing or has a close match so I can start posting the lyrics to Devil Trigger in the stats threads. Yes I know it's Nero's theme and the trailer is 90% Nero, it's still hype.
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How about loser of Vivi/Leon becomes the new bottom line for elites?
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Eh, that'd be too low. You'd be better off giving it to the winner, not the loser.

I still think Dante's as good as any though. It's called "elite" for a reason, so you've got to be careful about setting the bar too low.
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