What's a Channel? Is It Something You Surf? (UNITE)
This page uses the term "channel" when referring to the time between activating and using a move. But... I'm not sure "channel" is official nor is the definition obvious. And even if it is, Dragon Rush's meter determining when you can add Dragon Claw is completely different from things like Water Gun, which is also described as "channeling". What's one to do? My opinion is using the more generic term "charge" and saying "while creating distance at the beginning of this move" for Dragon Rush as per its in-game description, but I'm open to suggestions. (There is a non-zero chance "channel" is a MOBA term. If so, it can totally stay, but it's still weird to say Dragon Rush is the same thing.) Salmancer (talk) 14:50, 29 January 2024 (UTC)
Cursory google check says yes, "channel" is a MOBA term, drawing from League of Legends and DOTA 2. (You can check their Fandom wikis.) It has since been applied to other games such as Overwatch, but more vaguely than their roots as specific game terms with specific in-game mechanical relevance. It's times like these where I wish there was a policy. Since it's kinda vague, you could say Dragon Rush requires Garchomp to "channel" and that is correct... but I would liken it more to a move with a long animation rather than having a "channeling" state. Is the difference between Dragon Rush being a move that "channels" and Brave Bird being a move that doesn't "channel" just the fact Dragon Rush has a progression bar? (Brave Bird is currently not described as "channeling".) I don't have a good answer, and I'm kind of stuck. (Also comedically, this shows up as a second page result on Google. Sorry people of the future, I don't have a dictionary definition!) Salmancer (talk) 00:19, 3 March 2024 (UTC)