#Chronicles of Galar

[pokemoninspiredfashion]

༻ 𝚃𝚆𝙾 𝙷𝙰𝙻𝚅𝙴𝚂 : 𝙾𝙽𝙴 𝚃𝙰𝙻𝙴 ༺

ₜₕₑ bᵤₜₜₑᵣfₗy ₐₙd ₜₕₑ fₗₒwₑᵣ

[the-great-british-blorbo-off]

Welcome to The Great British Blorbo Off!!!

Rules:

-Characters have to canonically be from the UK.

-If the UK doesn't exist in their world or it isn't explicitly mentioned, but they are clearly meant to be British or have some kind of British accent, I will likely include them too (e.g characters from the Xenoblade Chronicles series).

-Characters from Britain-adjacent places are likely to be accepted too (e.g places like Galar in Pokémon Sword and Shield).

-I don't want to write out a long list of banned media, as I think we all know the usual suspects by now. Feel free to ask if you're not entirely sure about your submission.

-No real people, and no fictional characters based on real people.

-Submit as many characters as you like! However, please don't spam the same one over and over again.

-This is all meant to be a bit of fun, so please don't send any hate or nasty jokes to anyone for their submissions or propaganda.

Submissions will be open until I get as many as I think I'll be able to work with. They could be open for days, weeks or months, so don't miss out and get submitting! Have fun, and if you have any questions, don't be afraid to send an ask :)

Some of my favourite tournaments that inspired me to make this:

(Let me know if you want to be untagged)

@swordswomanshowdown @top-fictional-unhinged-women @bizarre-blorbo-bracket @best-female-villain-tournament @animalcrossingshowdown

[snowlilly]

Top five games you would like to live in!

Rune Factory 4: Although the games are all in the same world 4 is my favorite. Adventuring AND chilling on a farm. Make three dragon gods water your crops and bribe another with pancakes. The Horse. Life is good

Pokémon: Once again I'm getting baited by "you can pet god". If I had to pick a region I'd say Alola because I LOVE Ultrabeasts even though I would probably have sunburns for life. Wouldn't wanna go to Galar because the gyms are noisy

Dragalia Lost: There's a lot of cool creatures and magic. If I saw Marishiten nobody would be able to stop me

Arknights: I don't care if there's a rock cancer pandemic and a race war going on Oni and lizard people are real

Xenoblade Chronicles X: gorgeous environment and your own personal Gundam but there's so much shit that will instantly murder you if you take two steps in the wrong direction on your daily walk

Honorable mentions:

CrossCode: I really love the setting but I know I hate MMOs in real life.

Punishing: Gray Raven: I don't care if there's a machine rabies pandemic and a class war going on androids are real- wait a second

Etrian Odyssey: the FUTUREEE isn't that much different actually. Magic is real but Oni and lizard people are not, so that's an L. But more importantly I don't wanna be near the superbosses or the dragons because it's on sight for them

[poke-historian]

The Aron-Lairon-Aggron evolutionary line had a long and extensive history on the battlefield long before and after the middle ages, being naturally very strong and tough fighters, while being fiercely loyal to their trainers. Lairon were by far the most common on the battlefield; many medieval trainers were not able to fully evolve their Lairon into Aggron for a multitude of reasons; they may not have had the resources to properly care for an Aggron, may not have skilled enough or their Lairon may not have survived in battle long enough to build the necessary experience. Nevertheless, Lairon were dependable heavy troops, proving to be excellent in defending valuable positions or holding key parts of a battle line. We also have a lot of evidence from the old Galarian Chronicle as well as a Kalosian tapestry that the old Housecarls of southern Galar made extensive use of Lairon; they would be used to charge weaker parts of an enemy shield wall using their weight and armour to essentially become a walking battering ram. Once the enemy formation was broken up, their trainers would be able to cut down the enemy with their large axes.

Aggron, though rarer as previously mentioned still definitely made a big impression on the battlefield. Essentially being just as well armoured as Lairon as well as being taller and most importantly more capable of dealing out attacks, Aggron were highly desired by lords and other noblemen as a strong part of any bodyguard; as well as being a status symbol thanks to the difficulty of raising one. Several martial arts manuscripts of the time detail ways to avoid Aggron attacks and if unable to fight them with one's own pokémon to attempt to neutralise them by jamming a spearhead or sword blade in its shoulder joints to lock them up and attempt to pierce the head armour with an anti armour dagger -we don't know how effective these techniques were but they would have been difficult to pull off. Some sources even make reference to Aggron being armed with human-made weapons, mainly polearms though we cannot be sure if this was something that was actually done.

So, Lairon and Aggron were both formidable foes on the battlefield, but they were also semi prevalent outside of battle... I'll make a follow up to this post tomorrow!

[daxthetrainer]

Hello!

Hi Pokeblr! I'm Andrew! I go by Andrew, Drew, Andy, and I'm trying out Dax after naming my main character that in Legends: Arceus. A bit about me... Well, I'm just about to turn 24 (next week y'all!) and I'm in two other fandoms: Soul Eater and Warriors. I work as a customer service specialist (cashier and self checkout right now, but customer service booth soon!) at a local grocery store. I'm in the EST and I love to write, but I'm bad at finishing things. Speaking of writing, I do a lot of it! I try and write fanfiction, I roleplay on discord (PM me for a bit and you can have my discord info!), and I play Dungeons and Dragons (also through discord because most of my friends are online lol). I have a few projects going on right now and here's some info on them.

Herald of the Moon: A fantasy world for Roleplaying, DnD, and a potential original work. The story revolves around a Kitsune and a Dragon falling in love.

The Dax Chronicles: Basically me playing through one game from each region, of my choice.

Warriors - The Sixverse: A fanclan work with six clans. Currently has two stories planned, Melting Point and Seer of Shadow. Dax's games will be as follows.

Kanto: Let's Go! Eevee

Johto: HeartGold

Hoenn: Omega Ruby

Sinnoh/Hisui: Platinum/Legends: Arceus

Unova: White & Black 2

Kalos: Y

Alola: Ultra Sun

Galar: Sword

Paldea: Scarlet

Anything by me, Drew, will be in normal text. I will try to remember to use the chat font whenever Dax is speaking. So that's me, now here's Dax, as this is also an ask blog for him! ---

Yo, my name is Dax. I like to explore the world and train my Pokemon. I'm a fifteen year old from Kanto who just got to start his journey with my Eevee, Finnie, and I can't wait to continue on to the other regions!!

[wanderingpkmn]

Well, I guess this is the start.

Hi, I’m a Pokémon trainer, and I just kind of wander the world. I like ghost-types, but I also have some dark-, psychic-, and fairy-types.

I guess you guys can call me Wandering, lots of other people do. I’m male, about 5′4″... I know I’m underweight, I don’t eat a lot on the road, I don’t know how bad it is, though. I’m initially from this really small town named Postwick in Galar, but since leaving my home region, I don’t really... count it as home anymore.

Right now, I’m in Unova. I’d really like to catch a Litwick or a Gothita while I’m here.

I started this blog to chronicle what I do, but if you have any questions for me, I’d be glad to answer them. I don’t get to talk to a lot of people. It’d be a nice change in pace.

[champion-leon-imagines]

Chronicles of Galar - Chapter 3: A loss & Gain of trust

This chapter is kinda sad at first. As a warning, a minor (and non-canon) character death that hit you hard and you don’t know what to do.. then you meet Leon and everything changes. Your level of friendship increases and he gives you comfort in a way, no other person would ever be able to give you. Comfort!Fluff.

"[Y/n]..", Cynthia's voice was sad and battered and that alerted you directly. Cynthia rarely called, and only when it was important or bad news. Her pitched voice suggested the worst. "I hate to have to say something like that over the phone .. ... Grandmother died .."

Your eyes widened and tears began to run down your cheeks. You had expected all sorts of things, but this news threw you completely off the mark.

"W-what ..? W-How ..? She was very healthy and not yet that old .. ", you mumbled sadly and clutched your smartphone tightly while more tears ran down your face. Professor Carolina, the village elder of Celestic Town and grandmother of Cynthia, was like a mother to you. Carolina had cared for you since the beginning of your trainer career. Since you lived in Sinnoh for several years and lived with her, the two of you cultivated such an intimate and harmonious relationship. Her death news had torn the ground from under your feet.

"She had a heart attack .. Caused by an allergic reaction after she had been exposed to the poison of an aggressive Roserade .. Roserades release a special toxin that has so far remained undiscovered by researchers, as they only eliminate it when they are really feel cornered and have to protect their offspring .. Grandmother had found a nest and wanted to study it from a safe distance, but one of the Roserades has lost its nerve. She fought for survival in the hospital for days, but .. ", Cynthia said and could no longer speak through her own tears .

"For days ...? And you call me NOW ..? Cynthia, I would have left everything and gone to Sinnoh .. "

"I didn't wanted to ruin your adventure in Galar. None of us expected that Grandmother ... would not survive .. The doctors also said at first that she was recovering nicely, but then her condition deteriorated so rapidly .... And then I was just too occupied and sad that I forgot to call you earlier. I am so sorry.."

You felt terrible. Not only because of the loss, but also because you screamed at Cynthia like this for not letting you know sooner. "Don't apologize .. I'm sorry if I sounded harsh .. I .. can't believe it .." you mumbled sadly and wiped your face.

"We all feel that way in Celestia Town.. Believe me .. The .. funeral is next week .. on Wednesday ... Are .. are you coming ..? "

"Of course I'll come .. Cynthia, thanks for everything you've done for me. I'll never forget Carolina .. I'll see you on Wednesday .. I love you, big sister, okay ..? "

"I love you too, little sister .. take good care of yourself."

With these words, Cynthia hung up and you dropped to your knees to completely give in to your emotions. You were crying so loud that your brother and his fiancée ran from the study straight to your room and wanted to know what was going on.

It wasn't long before you felt overwhelmed by the comforting hugs and words of your real family. You gently pushed the two of them away and stood up. "Sorry .. But I would like to be alone for a moment .. I'll go for a walk ..", you said and walked to the door.

"Now..? Do you took a look outside? It's raining cats and dogs. Take an umbrella with you at least. ", Aki said , worried and crossed her arms.

"I don't mind .. It's just water .. I'll .. I'll come back later, okay ..?", You smiled sadly and raised your hand to say goodbye before you just stormed out into the rain. Aki shook her head and collapsed onto the hotel couch. You and them currently stayed in Motostoke.

“I never realized how close the relationship was between her and Professor Carolina. Her death hits her as hard as if a family member had died. ", Aki said quietly.

"She was a family member for her." Mamoru began sadly. “When [Y/n] lived in Sinnoh after our parents started to argue daily, the professor behaved like a mother to her. She raised [Y/n] without hesitation, and became more or less like a little sister to Cynthia. Professor Carolina was the caring mother, our mother couldn't be at that time. So I understand that her death takes [Y/n] with it ... ", he explained.

"Shouldn't we then follow her and be there for her?", Aki insisted. Mamoru shook his head slightly.

"No. She said she wants to be alone. My sister is strong. She won't do anything stupid. Let's give her some time. And when she has recovered, she will come back and then we can still be there for her. ", he smiled confidently.

"If she hasn't caught pneumonia by then.", Aki sighed slightly. Mamoru smiled sadly.

“Then we mustn't blame her. This is what she needs least of all at the moment. "

You ran around aimlessly in the rain for a few minutes until you lost your strength and sat down on a wet bench. Your clothes were soaked and your hair was stuck to your face so that you could barely see anything. But you didn't really care about that at the moment. You pulled back your knees and put your arms around them as you leaned your head on your drawn knees and sobbed softly into them. You couldn't even say goodbye to Carolina .. You wanted to tell her so much, show her so much .. So many things were unsaid .. For example, how grateful you were that she welcomed you so warmly .. How much you appreciated you had learned and how much you  loved to bake Christmas cookies with her one last time .. that was all over now. That thought just didn't go into your head.

Minutes passed. The minutes turned into hours and the rain just wouldn't stop. It was like the heaven cried for her too. Not that it helped in any way, because your own tears just wouldn't stop. At some point you could only hear the rain, but the droplets didn't seem to hit you anymore.

'Have my senses become so numb that I can no longer feel the rain on me ..?' You thought bitterly and then looked up. You blinked perplexed when a red cape was stretched over you. You saw Leon, who was holding his big cape over him and you and protecting both of you from the rain.

"You didn't choose a good day to sit out here." Leon laughed slightly until he saw that it wasn't just rainwater that had moistened your face. Your gloomy eyes made his smile fade and he held the cape over you more generously. "Did you .. cry ..?" He asked quietly. Normally you would have been happy to meet him here, but under the current circumstances, you couldn't utter a single word. Instead, you bit your lip to hold back more tears. Unsuccessful as it seemed, because more tears ran down your cheeks again and made you sob softly in response.

Leon seemed a little overwhelmed. How should he behave now? Nobody has ever cried in front of them, especially not a woman. The purple-haired man looked around for help until he noticed that his hotel was not far from here. "You don't have to speak right now, but we should get dry first, don't you think so?" He smiled and you nodded slightly when you got up. Then, under the protection of his cape, you ran to the hotel. As he entered, Leon called the receptionist to bring fresh clothes and a towel to his room. And a hot tea. You two went to an elevator and drove to the floor where his room was.

Once there, Leon took the towel and rubbed your hair dry. Then there was a knock on the door and the room service had brought a sleeping gown that you could slip into for the time being. Leon gratefully accepted the  gown and handed it to you.

“I'm going to have a look after the tea. So you can change in peace. ", He smiled and patted your head lightly before he got up and left the room. You looked after him slightly. The tears finally stopped, but you still felt miserable. Although another emotion was budded in your heart. A warm, pleasant feeling.. You were glad that someone was looking after you at the moment .. and he was so thoughtful.

A few minutes passed before there was a knock on the door. "It's me," Leon called. "Can I come in?" He asked, not wanting to burst in while you were changing. You thanked him very much for his courteous manner.

"Y-yes. I've already finished dressing. ", You said a little broken. The door opened and Leon held a small tray with the tea on it. He saw you on the hotel bed. The towel around your shoulders and in the hotel's white night gown. He smiled a little, because you didn't seem so exhausted anymore. After placing the tray on the bedside table, he sat down next to you.

"How are you?" He asked.

"Terrible .." you replied quietly. "But better than before," you added after seeing Leon a little worried.

"Would you like to talk now about what happened?" He asked further, looking at you.

"... The woman who practically raised me ... and was like a mother to me ... died." You wiped away the new tears and sobbed softly. "She was such a wonderful person .. Why did she have to die so early .."

Leon was silent for a moment and then looked sadly at the floor. His hands clenched into a fist and he didn't even know how to react.

"Professor Carolina ..?" Leon didn't even had to guess, since he already knew a lot about your past. You nodded sadly and Leon's face grew sadder. "I'm really sorry about that .. My deepest condolences .." he said sadly.

"Thanks ..", you mumbled and hugged yourself, trying to find some warmth.

"If I can do anything for you .. Tell me.", He offered you and you looked next to you. You swallowed lightly and sighed.

"Can you .. just hug me ..?" You asked softly. Leon blinked slightly. Although you had met a few times, both of you hardly had any physical contact so far. Except for a short, half-hearted hug as a greeting. This time it was different.

"Of course," he replied immediately and put his arms around your trembling body to pull you close. You buried your face right in his jersey and wrapped your arms around his stomach.

"Thank you ..", you whispered softly and muffled when you felt how he caressed your back soothingly.

"Don't mention it." he said and hugged you to give you the greatest possible comfort. You and Leon lingered in that embrace in silence. Your sobs grew quieter and your breathing became calmer. At some point the purple-haired man noticed that your eyes were closed. You must have fallen asleep. Leon smiled a little and laid you on the bed properly before covering you and caressing your cheek. Then he looked at his smartphone, which was about to remind him of an appointment. He got up and wanted to go when he noticed how you grabbed his hand and prevented him from going. "[Y/n] ..?"

"Please don't go now .. I .. don't want to .. be .. alone ..", you stuttered with half-open eyes. Your [e/c] irises shone from all the weeping and Leon looked at you desperately. He thought about his appointment and sighed. Then he put his other hand on top of yours and smiled.

"Alright. I'll stay with you. ", He said and sat down on the bed again. You smiled gratefully and pressed his hand to your cheek.

"Thank you ...", you mumbled softly and then held up your other hand, asking that he lay down next to you. Leon smiled and lay down next to you to pull you into his arms and hug you. You both looked at each other for a while before closing your eyes and falling asleep.

On the next morning, Leon's voice woke you up. He didn't sounded angry, but a little louder than usual. And he seemed to be talking to someone. You opened your eyes and blinked when you saw Leon pacing up and down the room.

“I told you Oleana. I couldn't meet with President Rose on this appointment because there was an emergency. ... a private emergency. No, it didn't concern me personally, but ... ... Now please listen to me. ", Leon sighed and rubbed his face in annoyance. You just couldn't talk sensibly to this woman. “Of course, I am aware of the consequences if I fail to keep important appointments for no good reason. But the reason was important to me. And I don't care if you see it any other way. … Yes, then tell President Rose that we will postpone the appointment until next week. ”He hung up and sighed deeply again. "I wouldn't want to work with this woman .." he mumbled quietly and turned around. He saw that you were awake and looked at him in shock. "Oh..“

"You had an appointment with President Rose yesterday ...?" You asked and Leon averted his gaze guiltily. "Why did not you say anything..? I wouldn't have held you here if I had known that you had an important appointment .. ", You said ashamed and straightened up.

"You needed someone.", Was his only answer when he looked at you again. His words only made you more shocked.

"You had put my well-being over your appointments ..?", You asked incredulously and put your hand over your mouth. Leon smiled and walked towards you when he put his big hand over your head.

"Of course. I can always make up or postpone appointments. But you cannot control your feelings. That's why .. it was more important to me to be there for you than to give Rose another stupid interview about why I'm the unbeatable champion. ", He said with a charming smile.

You felt like you were about to start crying again. This time, however, not from grief. The warmth of this man simply took in every fiber of your body and you literally threw yourself into his arms after these words. Leon blinked in astonishment before putting his arms around you and hugging you again as you buried your nose in his neck.

"I-I'm sorry, only because of me...Because of me your schedule got messed up .. I'll make it up to you, I promise," You said quietly. Leon laughed softly before pulling away a little and caressing your cheek.

“If you want to make it up, then .. I know of a small, cozy ice cream parlor. That serves the BEST Alcremie sundae in Galar. How does that sound? ”He asked and winked. You smiled and your grief was almost forgotten for that moment.

"Sounds good."

Since that day the friendship of you had reached a new, more intimate level.

[eternalstargazer]

Pokémon Journeys is coming up on two years in November and some people are (or more like have been since... well, episode two or three) wondering what comes next.

My reaction to that is, "what makes you so sure Pokémon Journeys is ending after three, or even four (if we go back to the Johto years, or the AG/DP/BW days) years?"

If I was actually having this conversation with someone that believes Journeys will end in a year or two, they might say, "of course you don't want to accept Journeys is gonna end because you like Goh and ship him with Ash. To think Journeys is just gonna go on forever is delusional! 🙄"

Well... I mean, part of that is true. 😅 Not the delusional part (I assure you, I'm really not! 😆), but I've already said I don't know if I'll continue to watch the anime if Goh leaves and it's obvious to anyone that spends thirty seconds skimming my blog that I'm a tad obsessed with journeyshipping (just an itsy bit, though! 😉). So yeah, it's true I'm not exactly entirely impartial here with how I feel about the potential future of Journeys and the anime.

But...

Think about it for a sec.

When Generation 8 was revealed and we got our first look at the Galar region:

Didn't all of us just assume that's where Ash and Pikachu would be heading next? That's what always happens in the anime, after all! Especially since the Galar region featured the return of gyms! Gyms! Ash may have taken a break from the regional gym challenge in Alola, but... that was because the Alola region didn't have gyms, so the anime had to change to accommodate that. Now that the new region had gyms, surely Ash would take on Galar's gym leaders and compete in the league! Right!? That's just how the anime worked and had worked since... 1997.

...

Well, we all know that didn't happen. Something pretty much the entire fanbase thought would happen... didn't.

So, when Generation 9 is revealed down the road, and if there's a new region just waiting to be explored, should we really be assuming that Ash and Pikachu are gonna head off there and explore it for three or four years when that didn't happen with Galar?

I mean yeah, it could happen, but after the direction the anime took with Journeys, it could just as easily not, imo. Journeys broke the trend of the anime sending Ash and Pikachu off to the newest region in order to promote the current generation and its games.

Speaking of breaking trends...

Unless I'm not remembering right, Goh is the only one of Ash's companions to get an entire episode focus that takes place during the current run of the anime (meaning, not a "special" episode that airs after the saga is over, like the final two episodes of XYZ or a Chronicles-style special episode). Ash and Pikachu don't appear at all.

Like or dislike Goh, it can't be denied that his character has been treated differently from all of Ash's previous companions. Back in Generation 4 during the DP era, Dawn was labeled co protagonist and she was given more storylines and plot focus than Ash's previous companions. Even still, Ash remained the overall, main focus of the anime. I've not only seen Goh referred to as a co protagonist, but a double protagonist; meaning he and Ash share equal importance in the anime. Ash isn't the overall, main focus for a change.

Critics of Goh often bring up this very point. When both Goh's critics and supporters agree that the amount of focus the character gets compared to previous companions in the anime is different, and those involved with Journeys intended on making him Ash's equal (not in strength, but story focus), I think it's fair to say Goh's role in the anime is unique compared to Ash's former companions.

Not only did Journeys break the mold when it comes to setting (not going to Galar despite Generation 8 being set there), but in terms of a character too, and that character being (again) Goh. Why is Goh so important, in the eyes of Team Kato and the marketing arm of The Pokémon Company?

Well, in my view...

Just as Ash and Pikachu are the mascots for the anime - and by extension the franchise (since, you know, Generation One being the most recognizable/one that started it all), Goh is the mascot for Pokémon Go - a big money maker and something that is, to this day, continuing to be built up alongside the games. They each represent the two largest, most popular sides of the franchise, and Journeys is the anime's attempt to bring those two sides together to create an even bigger, more active fanbase (with the end goal of said fanbase spending more money, obviously. 🤣). In The Pokémon Company's world, it's a match made in heaven just like these two boys are.

Goh, and the whole "world tour" concept of Journeys is the easiest, most profitable way for The Pokémon Company to sell all kinds of merchandise and promote the brand. Ash only catches a handful of Pokémon per generation, but Goh? He literally is doing the thing Pokémon has been about since the very beginning. Remember the marketing slogan? Gotta Catch 'Em All and that is precisely what Pokémon Go is all about, along with the main game series, and all this catching and spotlight of Pokémon (that they can bring back in any episode since Goh owns them) is perfect for marketing all sorts of goodies. The world tour concept opens up marketing opportunities that otherwise wouldn't exist since the anime isn't limited by one region per generation.

Whenever The Pokémon Company wants to market a particular generation or Pokémon, the whole premise of Journeys is ideal for just that. As an example, look at the upcoming Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl remakes and how the anime is bringing back characters and Pokémon associated with Sinnoh to promote the remakes. If Ash is limited to one region per saga, it's a lot harder to do this sort of thing... yet the newest region (in this case, Galar), can still be promoted and given focus with the anime's current format.

So... why would The Pokémon Company want to change that? Why not keep Journeys going for now and until whenever the anime ends? It seems to me far more beneficial, from both a marketing point of view as well as a storytelling one, to keep it where one week Ash and Goh could be in Galar and the next week, Johto, only to be in Alola the week after next.

As for why Goh would stay when he could be swapped out for another research fellow? Goh has already caught a large number of Pokémon. Bring in someone new and even if they have a similar goal (in which case... why swap out Goh to begin with? The reason the girls got swapped out in the past was because each new game featured a new playable girl), the new character wouldn't have as many Pokémon to be marketed and whether we like it or not, the anime exists to market merchandise. Goh is literally the ideal vehicle to do just that. Sure, Goh could go off somewhere and leave his Pokémon at Cerise Lab, but it's easier to write a story centering around Goh's Pokémon or showcase them if he's around (and then of course sell merch based off the Pokémon featured in that episode).

I feel like that's a solid, logical argument as to why Journeys could be the new standard for the anime going forward; one that isn't influenced by how much I enjoy the Goh character or the joy journeyshipping brings me. I could of course be totally off the mark here, but I hope I'm not! 🤞 😄

[punz4lyfe]

Pokemon Journeys Episode 95 Review

Pokemon Journeys Episode 95. Let’s review:

While just barely close to perfect, this was a fantastic episode.

I’ll start off this review by talking about Butch and Cassidy, and omg, do I ADORE their appearances in this episode. I’ve discussed before on how I adore Journeys in showing many other past characters have progressed since Ash last traveled with them, and with the exception of Dawn, I feel every single return has done the characters justice. The same can be said for Butch and Cassidy. It was super awesome seeing them again and being genuinely happy for once, now that they’ve both left Team Rocket. They’re so much better off, that they even treated their old rivals with respect and hospitality. That’s freakin’ awesome!

I do wish a little more could’ve been done with them. Considering Jessie’s longtime rivalry with Cassidy, it would’ve been nice to have the two some final scene together, like before Jessie leaves, she and Cassidy shake hands and declare to put their past tension behind them due to the latter’s friendly hospitality. Also wished James’ flashbacks of bonding with Cassidy and his reasons of leaving her were animated, as it would’ve made things a bit more impactful and believable. Additionally, it would’ve been nice for Butch to ask Jessie and Meowth on James’ whereabouts and how Cassidy’s doing when Jessie states they already learned they left TR from her. He definitely could’ve had more screen time as well, possibly in Meowth’s flashback where he waves goodbye to him. Wish there was at least one mention of Dr. Namba too. I did REALLY enjoy the little detail of Cassidy’s wood carvings all Pokemon she’s had in the past, even the ones only seen on Pokemon Chronicles. Nice touch!

After how poor their comradery has been portrayed in episode 72, it was super relieving to see some proper respect here. While their departure scenes are admittedly kinda rushed, it’s still satisfying to them care for each other, but want the rest in the world for them. They love each other and couldn’t imagine life without any one of them existing. And no matter what, they will always have each other’s backs. THIS is the Team Rocket quad! Not the one shown in ep. 72 where Meowth makes one mistake and omg we all hate each other oh look there’s a girl on the side i oppose please let me join you instead becuz my frens suck. And for Pelipper, it was nice to get more character from them and see how caring it truly is for Team Rocket. (Is it ironic that TR’s Pelipper is a WAY more interesting character than Cerise and Red?) I do wish they caught the Chatot they freed from the Wailord, though. Not only would’ve been a cool generational parallel to Morpeko (TR having mons from Galar and Sinnoh, the two main regions of Generation 8), but it would just make sense since they saved the dude from a fate worse than death.

Anyways, I’d give this episode a 9/10. Great and proper character displays for Team Rocket, good use of Butch and Cassidy, and it’s also not too heavily saturated with comedic moments, with the only things holding it back from a 10 being some minor hiccups. (and Morpeko) And for next time, another return in the form Sophocles! Yeah, not much to say for that yet.

[reversemoon255]

(This is the final of a three-part series chronicling the development and ideas behind “Dungeons ‘n’ Dragonites,” a Pokémon DnD campaign. This last entry will be about the final string of encounters, some of the later ideas for story elements, and a deep dive into the overarching themes of the campaign’s Starters. Speaking of, the fantastic art of them, along with many of the other original Pokémon seen here, was done by @extyrannomon on Twitter, and I highly suggest you check them out.)

Dungeons ‘n’ Dragonites - Phase 3: Fauxchemine

Like the Queen Durant, the Steelix/Glacix fight would have been a transitory battle between phases of the campaign, taking place right before the Starters were about to evolve for the final time. Glacix was an idea I came up with early in development. As Rock, Steel, and Ice have a relationship throughout Pokémon, having Onix evolve into a specially tanky Ice-Type rather than the physically tanky Steelix made sense. This was also a design I put a lot of work into the actual proportions, like stretching its face vertically as Onix is circular, and Steelix is horizontally stretched. Also, as Steelix has two long spikes on every other segment, Glacix has four smaller spikes in the same pattern.

Glacix was also the first of the four penultimate boss encounters before the close of the campaign, each representing one of the four sacred beasts of Chinese mythology. I thought it would be a pattern that players could recognize and possibly plan ahead for. Glacix was always planned as the Phase 2-to-3 transitory boss, but I actually had roughly prototyped the other three before I realized Glacix fit into role of the Azure Dragon (which I was missing).

The second of the bosses, representing both the Black Tortoise and Rare Variants, was a Dire Torterra. The idea was this Torterra was symbiotic, housing a Sudowoodo instead of a tree, and hiding its identity was a shiny Altaria capable of Mega Evolving thanks to the Key Stone that had replaced one of Torterra’s stone spikes. This was a rough concept, and I’m sure it would have changed drastically by the time the players would actually encounter it.

Third, representing both the White Tiger and Ultra Beasts, was Shora (from Shodo and Tora, the Japanese words for calligraphy and tiger). A pure white tiger that paints floating, metal stripes above its body with its brush-like tail. This was an idea I was very happy with, though I lacked the artistic abilities to render it effectively. If I remember correctly, the markings above its shoulder were based on the Kanji for Tiger. I also hadn’t settled on an ability for it, which was key for depicting Ultra Beasts in this campaign.

And the last of the penultimate bosses was Phanic, being a second Ultra Beast and representing the Vermilion Phoenix. Sadly, I had little planned for this guy apart from some concept designs, like the rest of them. I was working on these as the campaign was starting, and didn’t pursue finishing them after its premature conclusion.

Phanic (from Phoenix and Panic) is actually an Ostrich. If you picture a phoenix, you typically imagine great plumes of feathers around the head, wings, and tail, which are all things Ostriches specifically lack, and I wanted to subvert that typical depiction. I liked the idea that when it was startled, it would scatter its feathers resulting in an exclamation point forming using the spot on its face. It was supposed to seem unassuming compared to the many larger and more imposing bosses, though just as dangerous. Also, it was Electric-Type because it is frequently “shocked” *Ba-dum-tish.*

=====

Let’s talk about our players. One of the backstory elements our Grass Trainer, Ethan, had was that his parents’ restaurant was struck by lightning and destroyed some time before he went to school, and saw a Pokémon at that time. This left him with a fear of lightning (ironically picking an Electric-Type Starter). With this knowledge, and as I was using Ultra Beasts, I altered his backstory slightly so that it was caused by a Xurkitree, and would eventually encounter one during the campaign with his victory over it (probably with a lot of Wisdom Saves) curing his phobia.

Johnny, our Fire Trainer, had a goal of becoming an entertainer, but was vague about what kind. I had an idea for a “Streamer” Trainer Class he could run into. Someone who uses their Rotom Phone to live stream battles and get reactions and advice from their chat. (Let’s face it, if Pokémon were real, this would totally be a thing.) There was also DJ Tomomitsu, who runs Stelopy City’s Trainer Radio, and was a Gym Leader. The idea was to present a bunch of different Pokémon-based entertainment ideas and professions and have him decide which ideas he liked and wanted to pursue.

While our other players were aiming for careers, Orion, our Water Trainer, was more interested in exploring his relationship with his family. His father in particular; both he and his wife being high-ranking executives for Silph Co., and raising their children to also be successful. However, Orion had always wanted to be a Trainer, and it was his parents that prevented him from adventuring. I had it that his father was so against the idea was because he, too, was a Trainer in his youth. But not a successful one, failing many more times than he succeeded, and didn’t want his son to suffer the same disappointments as he did. His partner was Rhyperior, btw.

Lastly was our Fairy Trainer, Arthur. He wanted to be a Gym Leader, and cited specific interest in the Galar League. He also mentioned in his back story that his father was belligerent and against the idea. While the Leaders of the Galar League are entertainers by profession, if you look at the list of Gym Leaders and Kahunas in US equivalent regions, almost all of them have a profession and run Gyms on the side:

(Restaurant Owner, Museum Curator, Artist, Model, Business Tycoon, Pilot, Actor, Teacher, Rock Star, Mayor, Shop Owner, Police Officer; 12/15)

It felt like a hobby, rather than a career, and I ran with this idea as it seemed like Arthur and his obsession with the Galar League hadn’t noticed this fact (nor had his player), but his father had and was pushing him into a sports-based career (one that is usually lucrative and has off-seasons) so he could have a well-paying job and time on the side for his interests, similar to Orion’s father.

Though, no DM can control their players, and even by the end of our fist session I could tell I would have to change some things. It’s just good to have some idea of where to lead everyone, and adjust as you go.

=====

There’s one more Pokémon I want to talk about before we get to the Starters.

This is Necrotiti (Combining Necro with the Egyptian God Nefertiti), an evolution of Cofagrigus, evolving if it’s holding an item called the “Ceremonial Jar” (literally a jar filled with Yamask’s human intestines). It was meant to evolve from the Yamask they could catch during their museum field trip. The reason it exists is... silly. It’s another instances where I wanted to surprise my players, and giving the “Gardevoir Treatment” to what I consider the creepiest Pokémon was funny (which I feel is a reason I cite a lot). And I was really happy with this design, which is why it got commissioned.

A lot of the original ideas I had for this campaign were meant to either surprise or creep out my players. Everyone I was playing with knew Pokémon very well, so I had this fear that if I presented them with a standard adventure they would either become bored or be able to easily predict where things were going. Having a Pokémon adventure within a single city, having it be more a mystery than a collect-a-thon, and using new Pokémon were all ways I came up with to keep interest high and have them guessing as to what would happen next.

Back to Necrotiti, despite having a sarcophagus Pokémon, we didn’t get a mummy. I wanted to make the body effeminate without being overly so, which is why her body is very geometrical in specific areas. For the mask, I went with a typical Egyptian Nubian motif mixed with some of the overall design elements and basic lines from Yamask, and the colors and patterns from Cofagrigus. But despite how much I like it, I don’t know if I would have used it. It didn’t match the Mutant Evolution concept, with its only similarity being that it’s a rare occurrence.

Onto the Starters: Epipesis has evolved into Drachenura (from Dragon, Lichen, and Meganeura). Grass Starters are typically based on extinct animals, and Flymph’s line is based on a Meganeura (an ancient species of giant dragonfly). Apart from some bulking out and additional colors, the lichen sacks in its tail are now yellow, as the plant matter has evolved with it. It supplies it with so much energy that it has to constantly move while the sun’s up to burn it off. Its tail tip is also based on the X-15, the fastest aircraft to date, as it was designed to be the fastest Grass-Type.

Steared has evolved into Auradiat (from Aura, Auroch, and Radiate). Now a Fire/Ice-Type, it’s based on an extinct species of cattle found around the time of the Ice Age. Its ability to absorb energy with its horns has become so powerful that they have frozen over. When I was originally designing it, I was actually trying to base it on the phrase “Irish Bull” (meaning a paradoxical statement), but as I kept working on it, it became more and more Minotaur-like, so I kept the Fire/Ice-Typing and dropped the more abstract elements. As I did, I actually made it more bull and less Minotaur since all Fire Starters are bipedal, and I wanted to try and avoid that.

Knaval has evolved into Chivalazuli (from Chivalier, the French word for knight, and Lapis Lazuli). This was probably my favorite example of features naturally changing as it evolves, with the antenna growing longer and the shield and lance growing harder (going from carapace, to stone, to crystal). Some of the things you might not have noticed at first glace were his forelegs becoming sub-arms on his chest, him gaining the lobster nose and it becoming a face guard, and how his eyes recess into his head. Also, almost every Starter is symmetrical (apart from patterns), with the only exception being Torterra, so I designed it to be asymmetrical throughout.

And Uteteo has evolved into Makutah (from the Aztec naming scheme used for their Gods of wealth and abundance and Utahraptor). He’s Fairy/Flying, with the gold adornments that first appeared on Uteteo now on his head and arms, giving him a more bird-like appearance. The idea was to have him naturally evolve from a Dinosaur into a bird, with the leg bands making them look more like talons, and the face mask giving him a beak. Also, he starts out with the singular sickle toe raptors are known for, and gets a new one every evolution, ending with a full set.

The thing that sets these Starters apart from ones you’d find in the games is that these are designed to be a team. As such, there are a few themes they all share to help reinforce that. (This ignores Utaw, but) All the Starters, throughout their evolutions, have a distinct yellow detail on their heads (eyes, nose ring, and antenna). Furthermore, once they reach their final stages, they share colors between them, with Drachenura having red on its extremities, Auradiat having blue neck fur, and Chivalazuli having flecks of green in its gemstone. And on top of that, they also all have two overarching themes. First is they all represent different time periods, with Drachenura being pre-humans (Precambrian), Auradiat being prehistoric humans (Ice Age), and Chivalazuli being more modern (Medieval Period). Secondly they all represent DnD, with a Dragon(fly), Auradiat filling the role of a minotaur and its connection to a labyrinth/dungeon, and the adventurous knight who traverses them.

There’s also reasoning behind their types, as all three’s secondary Types are also strong against their usual counterpart (Grass and Electric are both strong against Water, Fire and Ice against Grass, and Water and Rock against Fire). Furthermore, Electric, Ice, and Rock are all strong against Flying, which is the reason behind Makutah’s Type (a joke against the player who joined late).

Makutah does fit into these themes, but more loosely as it was created later. Utaw and Uteteo lack the yellow facial details (though they do have yellow eyes), only really achieving this during their final evolution. He also doesn’t share any colors, as Fairy is outside the usual threesome. It does somewhat fit into the themes of the others, but not as cleanly. Utaw, being a Dinosaur, is still pre-humans, but closer to them than Flymph is, and having Aztec themes puts him past Medieval and closer to the Renaissance in terms of human history, but is very close compared to the other time gaps. Also, the gold was partly to fit him into the DnD theme, representing treasure.

=====

One of the first things the players were told at the beginning of the campaign, and was reinforced throughout, was that Pokémon from outside the Wellou Region were mysteriously popping up all over the place, with the Ultra Beasts being the most extreme example. As to the cause, there were a number of red herrings. Silph Co. employees could occasionally be seen in areas where UBs were with strange equipment, Tomomitsu could occasionally be found before something would show up, and there were a few other strange characters like the Regional Champion or Silph Co.’s president. The only definite thing they would know was that there was a strange, creepy, grey Charizard that would occasionally appear when they took something down.

However, it would eventually be revealed that the above were only trying to understand what was going on, and prevent the appearances of such dangerous Pokémon, like our heroes. And as a massive Ultra Wormhole appears above the city, they come face-to-face with the true mastermind. Not an evil team, or a lone conqueror. Merely a single, twisted Pokémon. And our heroes have interfered with its fun long enough.

“You stare up at the now familiar form of the grey Charizard, which stares back with unblinking, dead eyes... Its mouth stretches wide, wide enough to swallow you whole, and a hand appears. And another. And another. Four skeletal hands pry its maw open from the inside, stretching it until its skin falls down to settle on its hips. What looks down on you now, with a single, glowing eye, is a monstrous form made of bone and rotting flesh. And witnessing the four of you before it, it lets out a high-pitched, chilling laugh...

“‘Fofofofofo...’“

Fauxchemine. A sadistic Ultra Beast capable of warping time and space to its will. All the disturbances throughout the town, all the strange creatures that have appeared, all the monsters sent to terrorize our heroes; all the result of its twisted sense of fun, and the consequences of getting in the way of it.

So there’s a running joke among my friends that we all “hate” Charizard. Not actually, but it’s always pushed in marketing with new forms and such, even though its popularity has been dropping steadily over the years. As such, I thought it would be somewhat cathartic to have the big bad they have to beat up at the end be related to Charizard. ‘Chemine’s skeletal nature comes from trying to cinematicly picture the encounter in my mind, with the eerie image of the mouth stretching open from the dialogue earlier. With bone white and rotten greens, the skin wasn’t meant to reflect Charizard as a shiny, but rather with all its color drained from it, as it’s more a puppeted skin than an actual part of the Pokémon. And as many Pokémon draw inspiration from Kaiju, ‘Chemine does, too, specifically calling back to an Ultra-Kaiju named Greeza with space warping abilities.

It’s Steel/Dragon with Thick Fat. When planning encounters, especially this late into the game, Auradiat made things tough since its offensive Typing is insane, and that combination made it resistant to all of the Starter Types except Fairy. This was supposed to be the toughest fight in the campaign, so I wanted to build a Pokémon that would be difficult to deal damage to. A swift Pokémon able to warp around the field, summoning Ultra Beasts or other versions of Charizard as adds or for specific attacks, I wanted this to be memorably difficult.

Oh, and the name? It’s meant to rhythmically sound like “Pokémon,” with the ‘faux’ symbolizing its disguise, and the ‘mine’ representing its personality. Everything in this world is its to play with.

But that giant Ultra Wormhole wasn’t just for show. Part-way through Phase 2 our players were sucked through a Wormhole themselves, both they and Fauxchemine bearing witness to a titanic creature as they did, and upon its defeat, it is let loose upon the city:

Standing over 100ft tall is Wreknarogg (from wreck, to destroy, Níðhöggr, a massive world-ending creature from Norse mythology, and Ragnarok, the end of the world). A massive symbiotic group of four Pokémon from a dead world, the whale-squid Bayleige, the parasitic Serrasite, and the barnacle Rhizocano. This was actually the first symbiotic Pokémon I designed, and its creation sparked the others like Shiinotic and Torterra so this wouldn’t be the first time our players encountered one.

Whales are the largest creatures on Earth, so using one as the base for a kaiju-sized Pokémon fit. It also helped that the prototype designs for the Cloverfield monster were based on a whale, so I had something to go on. Secondly, I really like a lot of the eldritch design philosophy, and a lot of those are based on sea creatures, which is where the combined squid elements came from. Also, when I was prototyping the design and trying to make it creepier, a friend suggested having a parasite coming out of its blowhole, which is what sparked the creation of Serrasite and Rhizocano (as whale’s are known to have such parasites in real life).

This was a design very inspired by the world it was supposed to inhabit. Coming from a desert world where they are the only living things remaining, they symbiotically support each other to stave off their own inevitable death, with Bayleige able to create rain with its ability and Rhizocano able to make artificial sunlight to feed Serrasite. Serrasite then gives energy to Bayleige to allow it to keep moving, and Rhizocano takes energy from Bayleige. It’s an incomplete system where energy is slowly lost over time.

Stage 2 of the final boss wasn’t supposed to be as intense as the last one. A gimmick for this fight was, at the start of every round, I was going to roll a D100, and an event would happen. They would be things like their friends showing up with healing items, trainers they knew joining the battle, wild Pokémon they’d befriended getting in pot shots, etc. It was meant to be a fun, celebratory, “you’re at the end of the campaign” fight rather than an intense one off the back of another. I was even considering having everyone use their full parties.

But after it’s defeated, a thick, dark haze enshrouds everyone. With their allies gone, and left with just their Starters, our players are alone in a dark void. I did say there were four Pokémon earlier...

And the final encounter is Wreknarogg (Core). The Pokémon who brought the three titans together, and controls them while siphoning off some of their energy to survive. Similar to Phanic, this was another unassuming Pokémon. Designed to resemble a virus while calling back to aspects from mythical Pokémon like Jirachi or Manaphy. I understand it might not feel as climactic as there wasn’t any set-up compared to ‘Chemine, who was shown throughout, or the previous Wreknarogg, who was foreshadowed, but I wanted a 3-stage boss fight, and this felt like a good way of concluding it.

While stage 1 was supposed to be difficult, and stage 2 was meant to be fun and call back to the long journey, stage 3 was an un-losable, cinematic fight with a somewhat somber tone to it. It was the final fight, the end of it all, and there’s a certain level of sadness that comes with that in accordance with the jubilation of completion. It was also meant to see how much everyone had grown; how would they handle this encounter? Fight it? Catch it? Persuade it? Maybe I haven’t listened to enough DnD finalés, but in how many can you beat the final boss by being nice to it and calming it down?

=====

And that’s the end. There would be some sort of epilogue, picking up with our characters some months or years later, but that’s not something I could write without witnessing the actions of the players. I was debating having everything that came from an Ultra Wormhole be sucked back in after Fauxchemine’s defeat, including the Starters (pull a Digimon Tamers), but as Wreknarogg came from a dead world I thought that a little cruel.

And to end things how I usually do; Overall, despite not getting off the ground, I was very happy with this project. I’m the type to pick up and drop projects frequently, and the fact that I stuck with and continued to work on it for months was something I was really proud of. It was also a great learning experience on many levels. And who knows; maybe I might do something like this again in the future...?

[pokemoninspiredfashion]

˚ ✩ ⌞ 𝙲𝚁𝙾𝚆𝙽 ⌝ ✩ ｡

══════════════════⊹₊♚₊⊹══════════════════ ＪＡＣＫＰＯＴ！ ͙͘͡★ 　✦　　　.　　. 　 ˚　.　　　　　 . ✦　　　 　˚　　　　 . ★⋆.

[the-great-british-blorbo-off]

Bracket 1: Round 2, Match 4

Propaganda under the cut! Please be aware that some may contain spoilers.

Matthew Vandham:

peak blorbo material. Peak Guy. filled with beans to unprecedented levels. also, successfully spoke about his balls in an age 12-rated nintendo game—

Raihan:

He's a cool and chill guy, the strongest gym leader in Galar and uses weather effects in battle a lot. He also likes history and taking selfies :)

Feel free to add your own in the tags!

[dysphoriaposting]

Speculating Scarlet/Violet Fossilmons!

Fossils are a really fun addition to Pokemon games, originating all the way from the first games (Red and Blue/Green) with the Kabuto line, the Omanyte line, and Aerodactyl. One of GameFREAK's biggest perks to their fossil mon is that they're mostly based on unpopular or obscure ancient creatures, such as the *anomalocaris* and *dunkleosteus*. Because of that, I thought I'd speculate some Scarlet/Violet fossilmons based on ancient creatures unique to the Iberian Peninsula! Directly according to eurekalert.org, the Iberian Peninsula as of 2020 just recently got an in-depth analysis of the fossils discovered in their area... Sounds like prime fossil Pokemon time! "The Iberian Peninsula has one of the richest paleontological records in Western Europe," they state, but they also mention, ...there were generally only scarce indications of the collection and use of fossils at Iberian sites during Prehistory, and thus the documentation of this behaviour presented an anomalous situation compared to other regions of Europe, where numerous studies have been published on this practice..." which was explained by Miguel Cortés, who is a Professor of Prehistory at the University of Seville. In other words, the Peninsula has tons of fossils and not really anybody studying them. The Internet chronicles a great many interesting fossils unique to this part of Europe, such as the last European Hadrosaurs in the Cretaceous (phys.org), primates from the Eocene (tandfonline.com, lareferencia.info, semanticscholar.org), and the earliest pangolins (uab.cat). The last one is the most exciting, as the fossils are from an extinct genus of pangolin called *necromanis*, which instills images of a grim-reaper/armored black knight pangolin with the Rock-Ghost type! Other fossils have ancient pollen samples, hyena dens, and the *ursus arctos*, or the brown bear! As a lover of conclusion-jumping, I would like to point out that not only did with just have a game taking place in ancient times (with a bear!) but the official Pokemon website already shows that we can have Hisuian Pokemon from Legends: Arceus in Scarlet/Violet! If we can have Hisui Zoroark in S/V... is there a chance we could also have Ursaluna in Gen 9? Or! Even better, is there a way we could have a FOSSIL FORM of Ursaluna in these new games? Speculating on the other fossils I mentioned, here's some ideas: Hadrosaurs are famously compared to ducks due to their wide bills (their names meaning "duck-billed lizard"). This immediately brings to mind a Rock-Water type, but I hope GameFREAK won't be so simple with it. My ideas were either a Rock-Steel Hadro with an axehead crest (another common feature of Hadrosaurs is flat crests on their heads) or a Rock-Dark Hadro with a twist that it's more of a goose than a duck -- y'know, since geese are satanspawn. The primate fossils have less of a creative edge to them, as monkeys are... Monkeys. Rock-Fighting, Rock-Dark, Rock-Fairy, or Rock-Normal are all options, as monkeys can be scrappy, buttheads, little angels, and average animals. They're versatile in their mundanity. Pollen samples could mean a prehistoric flower or flowering prehistoric tree. Rock-Grass, though it would need something to make it unique compared to Lileep and Cradily. Perhaps make it a tank/special attacker? The hyenas are another fun possibility, with any type combinations from Rock-Ground (living in dens evokes images of burrows) to pure Rock (something hardcore, just like a hyena) or even Rock-Ice (since it's a creature of the Ice Age). Hyenas have an interesting hierarchy among themselves, with females ranking high above males and enacting abuse against the males like a girlboss(/s). I could imagine a gender dichotomy between the two, with males being small and pitiful and females being boisterous and large, maybe even with a type difference! This is going into "not a fossil-mon" territory, but after the Galar Oddities, anything can be done to a fossil. My hype train for S/V deepens with every new bit of leaks, fake or not (RIP scorpion) and

makes me want to contribute, so I figured I'd do a three-part series about possibilities for new S/V Pokemon that most people wouldn't consider at first. I'll be out of your hair now, but I hope you can appreciate the ideas I put forth!

[a-tale-of-legends]

Thank you Xenoblade Chronicles for giving me the accents that I need to imagine the Galar characters lol.

[pahrak-the-sinnoh-slizer]

Bass Cross BeaXE

I downloaded a ROM of BN5 so I could input the code to finally play as Bass Cross after all these years.  The save file got messed up unfortunately, but I already put some thought into chronicling the journey with BeaXE like I did with BN6, so...

My justification was that beating Bass early in BN6 unlocked this power in Bea, though I guess that then brings up the question of how we went back in time to BN5...eh, whatever.  She looks cool.

Might try the ROM again.  Even if I don’t, I may have more drawings since I decided to assign roles to the rest of the Galar Gym Leaders as well and I kind of really want to draw that.

[puppyluver256]

Okay, so I’m brainstorming more stuff for my Pokemon region and I have some questions as to the direction I want to take one of the important trainer characters. Specifically a question I would like to ask physically disabled people, particularly those who use wheelchairs.

To not give away too many non-relevant details just yet, my psychic-type specialist is a wheelchair user due to having been in a bad car accident as a kid. Now given that this is the Pokemon world, he’d already been around psychic Pokemon most of his life and had been training in personal use of psychokinesis himself prior to the accident. As such, he can use psychokinesis to self-propel his wheelchair while keeping his hands free, and probably briefly levitate the chair over curbs when the ramp is too far away to be worth the extra few seconds. (stairs are still a no-go, of course, would take too much effort to be worth it)

Now for my region I wanted to make a sort of “gimmick” to battles like Kalos’s Mega Evolutions, Alola’s Z-Moves, and Galar’s Dynamaxing, and this involves Trainer and Pokemon sharing power as one (less like fusion, more like Blades and their Drivers from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 with much less...fanservice). In this Trainer’s case, it would amplify his psychic power greatly. The initial imagery I got for this was his power being so overwhelming that it makes him unconsciously start levitating. My main concern is whether or not it would be appropriate to have him lift himself from the chair in this state. He still would be unable to use his legs either way, that’s a major element that I want to emphasize, his paralysis is not cured in any way during the course of the story. However, I wonder if the imagery would come off as me giving him a temporary magical cure despite him still being paralyzed.

Alternatively I could have the chair levitate as well and maybe the altered state could fancy it up in some way. It would create more design work for myself, but that is absolutely worth it compared to potentially alienating a whole group of people. Hell, I might just go with this option anyway to challenge myself creatively, even if having him levitate out of the chair isn’t disrespectful in and of itself.

So what do you guys think? Is the image of a wheelchair user levitating out of their chair disrespectful even if it’s under their own normal-in-universe power and they still can’t walk? Or would keeping him in the chair and just having it levitate along with him more respectful? I know there’s a precedent for wheelchair-using characters with psychokinesis, but I’m not a m4rvel fan and I would rather ask for the input of irl wheelchair users than do all my research via one fictional character.