The Joys and Sorrows of "Stealing the Lords"

Pokémon Unite is a MOBA game, and it's obvious that one part of that is "multiplayer". It's a characteristic that allows for interactions unlike those in single- or two-player games to occur. One of those kinds of interactions is the one that occurs with the "lords" of the game, and what happens when certain Pokémon are able to "steal" them. It becomes both a source of joy when it affects the opponent's team and sorrow when it affects one's team.

Before going any further, it helps to explain the associated terminologies. In MOBA parlance, the "lord" is a super enemy that is representative of the battle arenas, which when defeated grants the team that defeated it special bonuses. In Pokémon Unite, this is manifested as Zapdos in Remoat and Mer Stadiums, as well as Avalugg and Regigigas in Shivre City and Auroma Park. In some ways, Rotom and Drednaw in Remoat Stadium can also be considered to be minor "lords". "Stealing" any of these means to defeat them by making the final hit when it's the opposing team that actually did everything else. This can happen, certainly, because MOBA battles are more freeform and fought on multiple fronts, which allows for the possibility of hits coming from different parties, including the opposition, who might just be successful in landing the crucial final hit.

The joy, of course, is in securing the final hit for something that is desperately needed, like a Zapdos to open up scoring opportunities or a Drednaw for extra protection. The sorrow is conceding the same things to the opposing team by way of their well-timed steal. Another form of joy is being able to make the maneuver that makes the final hit possible, which also implies that another sorrow is in not being able to commit such a maneuver regardless of results. Further, it may be possible that after a steal, the earned bonus cannot be fully utilized, which is definitely a sorrow, but is a joy when it can be fully utilized. Thus, the joys and sorrows can and do manifest themselves in different ways.

A few Pokémon actors can be responsible for a steal, but some common ones presently are Cinderace and the recently introduced Decidueye. A commonality that these two have is that they can attack at certain extended distances, which is helpful for sneak attacks that make steal maneuvers possible. It also implies that the Trainers behind the Pokémon ought to get to know the ones they use, especially if they have capabilities that might be used to steal lords and gain an upper hand for their team.

In doing so, they can muster up the capabilities to create joy and hopefully avoid sorrow for their team through a steal. On the other hand, the other team might not find that to be such a joy unless the results can be suppressed somehow. Yet that's the way it is in the multiplayer world of Pokémon Unite and even MOBA games in general - something has to give (or be given) somehow, and the joys and sorrows parade out from those happenings.

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