Let's talk about scientist

@solve4me, at this point of the game there is no reason to compare a class to its apparent twin class on the other side. Every plant has distinct looks, power, abilities, and so-forth that makes them more unique and their proper niches different from their 'rival' zombies and vise-versa.

There's others, such as the Deadbeard vs. Cactus hype, but I will go over quickly the main subject here: Sunflower vs. Scientist

Most Scientists excel greatly in close range. Although there are a couple Scientists, such as the Zoologist, that I feel should be toned down a bit, all Scientists share the same weaknesses.

• Citron - All of his abilities have a way to fend off Scientists efficiently, as well as some other zombie classes. The Peel Shield is constantly being overlooked as a pathetic shield that gets destroyed too fast. Honestly, I hope it gets a buff because it is already good enough that The Shield basically gives an extra 75 hp against most zombie attacks with a mere sacrifice of not being able to shoot for half a second. The Shield and the primary alone is enough to take down a Scientist given that you are accurate with his 'super-accurate' laser beam (Also, do not forget to sample his primary in a fight). He also has the E.M.Peach that can be used which gives more than enough time to cut down a Scientist's hp to around 10%.
• If none of those tactics work, you always have the Citron Ball to use to get out of tight situations. Typically when you see a Scientist, a warp is almost completely predictable, so if you are unable to use the tactics above, roll back to a better position and let the Scientists waste their warp on you. Once you know that they used up both warps, you may retaliate back at a distance away from the Scientist's range.
• Even with all these tactics, a Citron is suppose to be a mid-ranged fighter or someone that helps plant groups immensely and should try to avoid close combat.
• Chomper - The Chomp Cannon is unexpected and can easily kill Scientists and Imps alike, while having a good cooldown time. Has Spikeweed that becomes active the moment you place it down, goop for easy vanquishes or for getaways, and burrow/warp for a most likely sneaky vanquish.
  • Running at someone with burrow is a dead giveaway and will often net you 0-1 vanquishes and most likely get you vanquished by a zombie close by. Only use burrow if: you are trying to get away, knowing that someone is coming after you from around the corner, or you know that the zombie is close by and alone. Also, try not to use burrow in front of a zombie or as a way to get out of a battle as it is risky and will leave you temporary vulnerable to attacks while you are digging a hole.
• Corn - Has a Husk Hop that not only deals great damage when all of it's shots connect, it can be used as a way to get away from Scientists. Getting on a spot that a Scientist cannot get to will basically shut down that Scientist from even killing you. They may throw a sticky grenade, but that is rare as they would probably waste it beforehand anyway and the fact that many Scientists run Mega Heal Bomb.
• Rose - All her support moves can still shut down a Scientist well even after nerf.
• Peashooter - Has hyper to have the edge in battle due to being mobile in the air, a chili-bean bomb to disrupt Scientists that are grouped with other zombies, and a Pea Gatling that gives damage reduction and allows the Peashooter to always out dps the Scientist given that you are able to setup before the Scientist gets in range.

As for the Sunflower, it still does pretty well in mid-ranged combat, even in 1v1 mid-ranged fights. In GW1, you could run many of the Sunflowers as a front line plant, but in GW2, many of the maps hinder the Sunflower from straying too far from the team due to close-range danger. However, the higher dps Sunflowers are still liable in this game due to having dps similar to the stock Foot Soldier and having a self-healing plant.

All I have to say about Sunflower users is to often heal those that are highly susceptible to damage and fight at mid-range. Many Sunflowers are surprisingly strong when it comes down to mid-range encounters. Sunflowers may not be able to dominate their mid-range as good as the Scientist can in their close-range, but Sunflowers can check many of the zombie classes in its mid-range really well, which includes some Foot Soldiers, Engineers, Deadbeards, and Imps if accurate enough. The other zombies not listed are difficult to pin down with a Sunflower and would typically require help.

Sunflowers that can maintain good dps while taking damage include: Metal Petal, Sun Pharaoh, and Mystic Flower. Sunflowers that can do moderate damage mid-range while staying alive is the Shadow Flower and Vampire Flower.

Remember, this game is not a run-n-gun shooter game, this game corporates more strategy and positioning than running in thinking you will get a bunch of vanquishes - that may be true for some Scientists as the way most of the maps are made in this game favor close-range gameplay, but in the end, it all comes down to strategy if you want to win a match, especially a match against a group of Scientists.

I may use the lowest dps plant character in the game against a Scientist, but if I continue to hold down my niche, my favored range and role, I should be able to have a much better time supporting my team and possibly giving my team the victory.

Does this mean Scientists should not be nerfed? No.

I still agree that some Scientists should be nerfed in this game. What the nerf should be is complicated as what other people say, a nerf can utterly destroy a character if the nerf is too strong and at this time, I have no idea on what the nerf should be.

edit: I do apologize for the speech, but this trend of Scientists dominating Sunflowers is something that cannot be resolved easily with short words.