Then we probably misunderstood you. Now that i think about you probably meant tools like a gradient tool or things alike. Of course we know that tools like that aren't part of proper spriting/pixelart, which contains of putting every pixel with the pencil and paintbucket tool.I think what Wyverii is saying is that you should have to lay the pixels down by hand, using the pencil or the paintbucket tool, and not allowed to use a graphics program, because thats graphics, not pixelart.
Now there's something I never expected to hear...Who is antiquity and why is everyone getting in a tizzy over him/her/it?
:/