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ghostmartyr · 6 years

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Pokémon White Randomized Nuzlocke Run [Part 9]

Eight badges have been earned! All that’s left is the plot, the Elite Four, and possibly some other stuff I haven’t decided on that gets us through the rest of the map!

Our starting roster, in its current order:

Batman, Lv. 48 (Escavalier)

Palm, Lv. 51 (Breloom)

Ptera, Lv. 46 (Archeops)

Frogger, Lv. 47 (Seismitoad)

Fido, Lv. 49 (Entei)

Gelding, Lv. 47 (Tornadus)

Possibly the end of this wild adventure awaits, so awaaaaay we go!

First up is, as tradition dictates, someone immediately bothering me the second I walk out of the Gym.

Yay!

Only if you actually described how to do that, I completely missed it. I caught something about directions to Victory Road, which I already sort of knew about thanks to trying to avoid the plot earlier, but nothing about bringing back dead things. ...Wait, are the dragons dead? Or just rocks?

Well luckily, I don’t really care either way.

Professor Juniper walks us over to the edge of town, and asks if we regret going on this journey.

...I wanted to say no just so I could see what the dialogue would be like, but that... no. That would be too mean. I couldn’t possibly. Professor Juniper is a kind lady who gives us sweet stuff.

SPEAKING OF.

This is intended for Zekrom.

I think I might go ahead and use it as intended, honestly. Fighting Zekrom could result in one of my team dying, and I believe the fight is mandatory. Since Zekrom is not touched by the Randomizer, I will not give it a nickname, rendering it ineligible, but catching it is safest, and it is my belief that Zekrom will be the first catchable pokemon in the area it appears. So if I wanted, it could be eligible. But I really think I want to stick with randoms only.

...By the way. Is the roadwork on the right side of town done?

Curses.

I guess the plot truly is calling us now.

Then on my way to the Victory Road area, the attendant who keeps the... hell, I don’t know what they’re called. I went with liminal space last time. They aren’t bridges. Waypoints? Anyway, the attendant says that there’s some sort of storm going on at Route 7.

-looks at Gelding-

Gee.

I wonder.

What could it be.

Let’s go avoid the plot and investigate!

It was a dark and stormy night.

Which pokemon could you possibly be speaking of, mysterious old lady.

She invites me inside for soup and gives me another mythology lesson. This time about the Legendary Thundurus. It creates thunderstorms. She also gives me a note on where to find it when, but that’s really not a concern of this run.

But thanks for the soup.

Hey.

Gelding.

Can you guess. Which cloud pokemon legendary of this gen. Is my favorite?

Aw no, the thing I’m not allowed to catch flew away. Darn.

Okay, back to plot and Victory Road.

Dang it, Cheren. I was not meaning to refer to you with that remark.

Bianca’s here to watch, but I couldn’t get a proper screencap of it.

...Batman is setting a record for flinching against Cheren’s Unfezant. Meanwhile, Unfezant spams Detect interspersed with flinching moves and my sanity goes down the drain. But eventually, the evil is defeated.

Liepard goes down without a fuss, but Batman’s complete lack of Speed means her HP is lower than I’d like, so for Meganium we’re giving Ptera a chance to stretch his wings. That goes well, and Simisage is up next with similar results.

Battle over.

See Cheren, this is why you’re one of my best friends.

Ha ha ha ha Bianca gave me Max Revives.

Ha.

-sobs silently-

Your attempts at help are appreciated, Bianca. Stay wonderful.

They both see me off with words of kindness, because the people who make these games realized at some point that the people who play them could really use some friends.

Or so I like to think. ...That sounds sort of mean, I guess, but it truly is nice to have rival characters who are your actual friends. X & Y are even more blatant about it, and I really, really liked that part of them. Go team friendship.

Now then.

It’s time...

d-d-d-d-duel!

Or something. Onward!

This gen is committed to the power of Aesthetic, and I respect that.

It’s just so pretty.

Wait, crap, this pretty place has grass.

Uh.

...Rules for doubles?

...Oh to heck with it, the pretty badge gardens do not count as places. I’m just. Gonna faint you guys. Because I’m too lazy to think through the trouble of catching one of you.

Still pretty.

Admittedly, this one is sort of weird.

...And the music has gone major, major Wind Waker. I own that soundtrack. It is one of the most expensive ones I ever bought myself, and this music is giving me feels, man.

This gen is focused on all the right things and its wonderful.

The guy standing in front of this gate mentions that each gate is like its own world, so, if we do happen upon another pokemon in another gate that is easier to acquire, I’m going to count it as a different space.

...Maybe.

Where does the map say I’m at?

Oh, actually, I’m still in Route 10, so the Ariados and Sentret were out anyway.

Even though I just said that the gates count as different worlds. I am a hypocrite and an opportunist.

Honestly, I just wanted to check if I’d used up my Victory Road slot or not.

Hey Clay.

Clay.

You know who didn’t skimp on aesthetic values?

The Gym Leader who’s also a model.

Maybe you could learn a thing or two from her section.

(Still, A+ glowy green rocks.)

At this point I’m just really convinced that someone working on this game really loves Wind Waker. This person playing it obviously does.

BRYCEN DO NOT PULL THIS ICE PUZZLE NONSENSE IN THE FINAL QUARTER. UNCOOL BRO. YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE MASTER OF COOL. REINSTATE YOUR CHILL TO BETTER LEVELS.

(Ice pretty.)

I can’t actually complain about dragon sculptures. They are awesome and worthy of love, even if the color value is low. It’s not all about pretty. The feel matters just as much, and by golly, this is the ancient feel of dragon power right here.

So of the eight...

I’m torn between the garden with the pretty bridge and the electric zone.

Think I gotta give it to the butler squad. You mastered the pretty.

Victory Road! Officially!

...Am I going to need Bandit for this?

..Well. If I did have Bandit with me, I would be looking at a new teammate.

Sorry little guy, there’s not enough value in attempting to catch you. Maybe next time. If there is ever a next time.

...Oh come on.

Okay, there’s a Simisear. Something to kill.

Actually, at this point, Ptera might be the best pick for the front. Batman’s in secure shape. Meanwhile, the water has Pansear. Careful, that almost feels like a planned random.

Fingers crossed for getting away with not going back to get Bandit. I think this is the gen that’s extra kind about things like HMs, and the Dragonspiral Tower would seem to support that with its easy route (if you have HM) and the long way round (if you don’t). So I’ll just. Keep walking forward.

Besides, if memory serves (obligatory laugh), that boulder is for the quick way back out from somewhere near the top.

This level has Chinchou.

Oh, and I get to slide down cliffs! I’d fully forgotten that!

Outside has Machamp. Is outside a different route?

...Fine, no.

Back inside, we have Baltoy, Kabutops, Dragonite, Clefable (who. hits. with. Sing. because. of. course.), Sentret, Rattata, and Bronzong.

I always liked Kabutops. I think back when the first gen was the only gen, it was one of my top tier favorites. It’s a rock with scythes. What more could a child ask for?

...Okay, see. This? This is why me playing a Nuzlocke is a bad idea. I do stupid things.

Ptera, buddy, I’m sorry I put you so close to death. Have a Hyper Potion. I won’t make you fight any more Bronzong with Gyro Ball. I am very sorry that happened at all, and have no desire for it to happen again.

I’ve avoided thinking about the Elite Four, but this Ace Trainer has a level 45 Stoutland and a level 45 Scolipede. That starts moving well into the danger zone, and this Victory Road, truth be told, is not the greatest spot for grinding.

Outside again, and there’s an Amoongus that might just be a Randomized find.

PP is running low enough that I’m just going to hit a Pokemon Center. It isn’t like I’ll lose much progress. ...Thanks to me cliff sliding down for an item, but I stopped recording every item I picked up a while ago.

(It was a Taunt TM.)

Hey, the first floor has Rufflet, too. More things to get no exp from. And then Voltorb! I like Voltorb.

...I am, however, having a concern about my future prospects. My best option, if I want to go with grinding, seems to be standing outside and slaughtering Machamp.

...I go into another section of cave and find Castform. Then there is Solosis.

Where were all you pre-evolved forms when I started this venture.

Cool, I found a healing.

Elite Four is... Fighting, Psychic... Ghost. Aaaand. And.

I know Alder has Escavalier, Volcanabugthing, and Accelgor (is that the spelling?). He might have an Archeops, but that could also be my memory skipping out on me.

I’m watching TFS play Nuzlockes, and I think one of them said that the typings for the Elite Four cover things not covered by Gyms.

Hey, a Cradily. Look, opportunity everywhere!

...And as I sarcastically spew comments, a Haxorus appears. Yeah, okay.

The first Gym counters your starter, so it’s basically Fire/Grass/Water. Second is Normal (brb sobbing forever). Third is Bug. Fourth is Electric. Fifth is Ground. Sixth is Flying. Seventh is Ice. Eighth is Dragon.

(Gothita is also outside, apparently. Yay.)

What does that leave... Steel, Rock, Dark.

Wait. Grimsley, right? Hell, is it really Dark? That is one really aesthetically... dark arrangement.

(Hi Shaymin. Nice to see you again.)

I keep having to start all over at the bottom because I go item chasing. Maybe I should save the item chasing for after I’m through. And have Bandit with me to push the boulders into being shortcuts.

Would you look at that.

All hidden away on the first floor.

A wild Huntail appears. We’re vaguely getting somewhere. Then we’re back to Sentret and I am back to fretting.

Oooh, a Ninetales.

Now the thing to remember is that I am not going to go cliff sliding. Exploration once Bandit is with us. Now is the time for progress. Not detours.

HA, Ptera has learned Rock Slide! Happy days.

I have no idea which is the right way.

;-;

HEY GUESS WHAT RIGHT WAS WRONG.

Aw, there’s Axew in this section. Best Dragon boy. Though the one I first murdered is a girl. Best Dragon girl.

This Veteran has a level 45 Gigalith. My comfort level with this is low, and Sturdy in the hands of others continues to be an abomination.

Frogger learns Hydro Pump because I have not actually been using Aqua Ring. If I need extra health I’ll just throw an item at him. If I need extra health, I will be in the kind of trouble Aqua Ring isn’t going to solve, anyway.

Fido drops Leer for Fire Fang thanks to the same fight.

Veterans are scary, but great exp.

I HAVE ARRIVED.

Okay, yes, important battles.

But.

Bandit, it’s time for your walk.

Fido, I think you’re in the box for a while. It would be Gelding, because Ptera covers his specialties, but Gelding knows Fly, and we’re going to be doing a lot of that as we skid down the mountain.

Before I walk right back out, I just need to say that this is one hell of a venue.

This gen’s aesthetic game is so on point.

Vullaby has been found on the giant mountain of maze. Maze of mountain? Horrorfest? Place. Also Pupitar.

Batman gets to be in front for a while. The spawns seem to be favoring her a little more at the moment.

This is the... Ground/Fighting beast’s chamber? I think? Can’t access at the moment, and will never need for any reason in this run.

...

Sigh.

Anyway, cliff sliding has produced a Nugget so far.

A wild Taillow appears. Followed by Remoraid.

Batman has to leave the front so I can actually run from all of this. Gelding, it’s your turn on the disappointment.

Cool, a Dragon Claw TM.

Whoa, a Seadra.

...Okay, yes, I’m past caring. There’s a limit to how much I’m okay with being delayed. Usually wild pokemon every five steps can at least be useful, but that’s not exactly the case of late.

...

I. will stick with that as my statement.

Look, an Electrode!

...I was going to attack it, then it occurred to me that it might know Explosion. Quietly walking away it is!

I’m finding that a key problem with this exploration is that I find it very easy to end up lost when I’m basically walking in circles. I remember all the various pieces, but don’t remember how they fit together.

In other news, a Bulbasaur is here.

I am. Relatively sure that the original Victory Road has nowhere near this level of variety. I think the Randomizer has some interesting rules regarding cave levels. Most caves change what they have by level, but keep the basic cave set. Victory Road has a lot of separate rooms in this version (and I just met a Rampardos on the water). Not bound by the laws of what is usually found in caves, I think it just assigns every single room (Ferrothorn encountered) a different everything. Because there are [x] number of things meant to be there!

I adore the Randomizer, but this is actually getting to be a little dizzying.

Possibly because I am lost.

And now there is a Flygon.

...Yeah, Flying back to the top for some perspective.

(It’s at this point I start to wonder if I’ve actually covered everything, but I haven’t done the swoopy grey floor sliding, but that might be connected to the room I can’t go in yet.)

Gelding has learned Crunch!

...Look, all that text gets boring without pictures. Let there be meaningless color.

Suddenly, Leavanny.

Here’s a wild thought.

Maybe I don’t care if I miss an item.

-slides down cliff side-

-sees item I don’t have-

...

It’s that Doctor Who gif all over again.

So I slide down from somewhere higher on the right side to get there.

...I have a horrifying thought.

I find those are often right.

...Also Frogger is level 54, pal, you are now off the Exp. Share.

Yeah.

Yeah. That’s.

Don’t ask.

The trick was sliding more to the left of the Ranger hanging out above than I initially did. More to the right, and you get the Nugget I mentioned picking up. More to the left, and you get this.

It’s a TM. Wild Charge.

-waves tiny, battered flag-

How about this. How about we go back to things that are fun!

Like death and dying and being dead!

Okay.

It’s going to be fine.

And I guess I have my answer about whether dealing with Team Plasma comes before or after. Castle nonsense post-this. Okay. Right.

I spent a bunch of money on Full Restores.

I also spent a bunch of money on the quirky poke balls they sell up here. Operating under the theory that I’m going to continue this run until I have had the option of catching a thing from every route.

I don’t know. It’s a nice dream.

Look, someone working on this game loves Zelda.

I’m pretty sure my above guesses about who’s got what are correct. I am less clear on who is where. I can’t remember if this begins a trend, or is just a quirk of the gen, but I have the option of picking the order I take them all on in.

Fighting, Dark, Ghost, Psychic.

...That is a really grim lineup.

If I’ve got it right.

Not for me, just. It’s Fighting + all of the sort of. witchy Types. I have a vaguely funny comment about that for later that I might remember unless I’m about to be traumatized.

I think I always took on Ghost girl first, then maybe Psychic girl last? Or was it Dark first? It might have been Dark first?

Let’s do a fun (sad) game. I’ll go clockwise, starting from the far left. Here’s my guess at who’s where:

Dark

Ghost

Fighting

Psychic

There. The stage is set for laughing at me.

............

I did not need to bother with a stage.

I went to take this screenshot with the intent of showing off my team without throwing more bullet points up before the final battle(s). The very first thing I noticed is that Gelding is missing health.

I think to myself, that’s weird, I was just in the Pokemon Center.

Yes. Yes, I was.

Guess what you forgot to do.

It’s not. terrible. Gelding’s missing 5 PP for Air Slash, but I have spare Super Potions from that time I mentioned buying Super Potions.

Anyway.

With that sterling start.

Let’s go find out what’s behind door number one.

Fuck it is Ghost girl first.

Maybe. That will be my loss for the session?

So. I have choices here. Ptera and Gelding both know Crunch. Fido knows Bite, but since none of these guys have STAB with Dark, Crunch buddies is the way to go. I’m also pretty darn sure she has a Jellicent, and there’s... something about its Ability. I can’t remember what. Same with the Mummy thing. Or maybe they just have moves that make it good to switch.

...It’s just now hitting me how much I played this gen. I have done the coming fights so many times. This is the first gen I really did EV training and IV breeding, and I did what I could to get all my choices up to level 100. I can’t believe I forgot that.

I think she starts with the Mummy thing. Which. That’s not its name. Something with a C? Mummy is its ability, though. I think. That might make Ptera a good start. His ability is used to keep him balanced (Defeatist lowers stats when his HP goes below half), and I don’t want balanced. I want obscene and broken creatures who I don’t have to watch die.

Cursed Body! That’s the Jellicent’s thing.

.I don’t remember what it does.

Okay.

Ptera up front, no item because I don’t want Acrobatics to lose out on its damage. Gelding can have the Lucky Egg, because I’m pretty sure this is a fight that I end up switching a lot over, and Palm will have an Amulet Coin because I like money and know I want him to take out the Jellicent.

Plan?

Sounds like.

Shauntal sends out a level 48 Cofagrigus, aka the mummy thing. So my usual level advantages aren’t going to be as steep, but I think part of getting your pick of who you face first means that there is a stable base for all their leveling. It shouldn’t get worse until Alder.

Or possibly N and the plot posse.

I’m not used to the Elite Four being wrapped up in the Team stuff.

Ptera’s faster, and Crunch does more than half. Cofragigus uses Wil-o-Wisp (which I might be spelling wrong; I’m not allowed guides and passed the text bubble because I figured of course I knew how to spell it), so Ptera is now burned. That’s not great for his damage output, but he still has enough to get the job done with one more Crunch.

Jellicent is up next so I was going to have to switch anyway. I’ll just go over to Gelding instead of Ptera after Palm (hopefully) makes quick work of the Jellicent.

It’s level 48 as well.

Seed Bomb just barely doesn’t get the faint, and Jellicent’s damage does 57 damage. Palm’s at 89/146 after one hit, and we’re in scary town. Palm’s faster, so even if Shauntal heals, the Jellicent should be done before this is a problem, but I do not like seeing massive chunks of health vanish in one hit.

Unless I’m inflicting it. Then it’s okay.

Yeah, she goes with a Full Restore.

The next Seed Bomb succeeds in slaying the beast, which is a nice bonus I wasn’t expecting, and whatever my worries about the Jellicent’s ability, nothing happened, so that’s good.

...Ah. Chandelure’s up next. That one I did forget about.

Want to put all those extra levels to work, pal?

And yeah. That is a level 50 Chandelure. That thing with obscene Special Attack.

Frogger’s Water/Ground. With a massive HP pool. He should be fine.

...

-picks Hydro Pump instead of Surf to try to get it done with quickly-

Chandelure goes first because Chandelure is amazing and Frogger is really more of a tank, and it does 73 damage because this game doesn’t care about my comfort levels, but lucky me, Hydro Pump’s accuracy does not fail, and that’s enough to take the best flaming ghost chandelier down.

Shauntal’s last pokemon is a Golurk. Ghost/Ground, right?

This is uncomfortable. My natural inclination is to spam Water against all things Water is super effective against. That is just a thing I am prone to. I also put a great deal of faith in Palm. I love Breloom, even when it has the wrong Nature.

But the thing is, we’re basically at the stage where my pokemon can take a hit, but if that hit is followed by a critical, they’re goners. Frogger and Palm have both taken heavy hits. Ptera hasn’t taken a huge hit, but he has no Defense and is BRNed.

Putting in a Flying thing against a Ground thing feels incredibly counterintuitive. Ptera surpasses that by being obscenely powerful. Gelding does not have that faith.

Nonetheless, I think maybe the safest thing to do here is to swap Frogger out instead of hoping he can one-shot the Golurk. I... think Golurk is another tanky type. None of its Ground moves can hit Gelding. Ghost will still pack a wallop, but. Well. I am guessing Gelding can live through one hit, and hopefully that will be enough.

Fido and Batman aren’t even options because they will definitely die, so.

Let’s go for it.

At least we’re back to 48s?

Crunch does over half, so even though Shadow Punch does over 60 damage we should be in the clear.

-collapses in heap-

I feel like I’m not doing enough justice to Shauntal, since my mind is very much not on anything but the battles at the moment. She’s got a cute design, and Ghost trainer novelist is wonderful. I think she quotes different passages from her books at you depending on when you fight her. Or she just switches through the lines at will. She’s a good character, and I really love the way she’s decorated her room.

...So I’m healing my pokemon and realizing another thing I forgot to do. I forgot to buy Full Heals. I used my last Burn Heal on Ptera just now. I think I have a small supply of Full Heals thanks to what I’ve grabbed walking around, but. Heh. Planning fail everywhere.

Okay, healed up and ready to go to door number two.

Yeah, I got Ghost girl and Dark boy swapped. Whoops.

The plan here. Is for Palm to murder them all. Palm gets Lucky Egg and first slot, Batman gets Amulet Coin. I believe Liepard will be coming out first, and I know he has a Bisharp.

...Drawing a complete blank on the others.

HEY HOLD THE FUCK UP WHY DO YOU HAVE THE SCRAFTY.

(He has a level 48 Scrafty.)

It’s Dark/Fighting, but I could’ve sworn that was the Fighting guy’s thing.

...Wait.

Is the Fighting guy even this gen?

Uh oh.

Well. Palm’s not a terrible choice for this. I don’t really want Ptera near a Fighting thing. ...Gelding could have handled this one, but oh well.

Mach Punch or Sky Uppercut is the question. I favor Mach Punch because it doesn’t miss, but Sky Uppercut’s accuracy really is not that bad. I think Sky Uppercut will do enough damage to maybe force healing, so... one then the other? Sky Uppercut gets first dibs in case of crit?

Scrafty’s very securely in the orange, but Palm is at 84/146.

I don’t know why I didn’t grind before this, but it’s a little late to keep finding ways to criticize my choices.

Grimsley uses the Full Restore, Palm uses Mach Punch, and yeah, Scrafty’s still in the green from that. Another Sky Uppercut hits, and Scrafty’s down.

Liepard’s up next.

Liepard is not nearly so heavy on damage, and Palm’s Defense is not bad. I think it’s safe to try, even though I’ll have to eat a Fake Out.

Wait, no, I have Batman. Batman’s swapped in.

Level 48 Liepard. Uses Fake Out, does 6 damage because Batman is the damn Batman.

...Liepard uses Attract.

Did you know. That through sheer happenstance. Batman is the sole female member of my team? And thanks to pokemon mechanics, falling in love as a status problem is purely a male/female dynamic?

“Batman is immobilized by love” oh please.

Thankfully that only takes up one turn. Then Batman remembers that Batman does not have time for love and goes to back to the wars. Thank goodness for emotional stunting.

Ugh. Now things are awkward. Krookodile is up next. That. Is worrying. I can’t remember if it or Bisharp is the level 50, but normally I like sending Palm up against the Dark croc line. But those things pack a major punch. Crits mean death. Batman has a Type disadvantage against Earthquake, which it most likely has.

....Heeeeeeey, Frogger...

Oh, right. That. Yeah, let the Special Attacker handle it.

I think I’ll go with Surf first. I also think Krookodile outSpeeds Frogger. So this. Should be. You know.

Yep, Krookodile uses Earthquake, and 79 HP is gone.

...But Surf can one-shot, so sweet.

I guess something that I have failed to keep in mind is that Frogger is competing with giants. In all fair assessment, my team is stacked. Frogger is one of the few standard team models from this gen. ...Even though a surprising amount of my team is. from this gen.

Good boy, Frogger.

And then there’s the Bisharp. Which is likely to be level 50.

Palm does 4x STAB damage to it.

Bisharp is a prime Attack pokemon.

Bisharp is also 2x weak to Fire.

Fido has yet to take a hit.

Sorry Palm, we’re playing this cautious.

Yep, level 50 Bisharp.

Fido uses Flamethrower and it is down. Awesome.

That’s two down.

Everyone’s healed.

Door number three time.

DAMN IT.

Yeah, fine, I got none of the order right.

Ptera’s out in front, no item in case of Acrobatics. Batman with Lucky Egg, Gelding with Amulet Coin.

Deep breath now.

Throughout all my memories of these fights, I definitely did not remember your name was Caitlin.

Level 48 Reuniclus out first. I think she also has a Gothowhatsit. Her others are... Things I should remember better but don’t.

Ptera uses Crunch, leaving Reuniclus in the red.

WHAT DO YOU MEAN REUNICLUS USED THUNDER.

Um.

UM.

I cannot begin to express how much this is a very bad problem.

...Fuck, that’s bad.

I will get to sad later maybe. For now it’s just. I am in so much trouble.

Gelding’s out on account of Thunder. Batman’s up.

Caitlin uses a Full Restore, naturally.

Batman uses Twineedle (wanted the poison just because/in case), and that actually faints it. Gothitelle’s up next, and honestly, if I’m right about the next guy being Fighting, I have no business risking Gelding. So.

Level 50 Gothitelle.

I’m just going to hope X-Scissor one-shots it.

Oh look, it has Thunderbolt.

...Why?

I get that Special Attack moves are great and all, and Thunderbolt and Thunder are both powerful Special Attack moves. But they don’t cover up a particular weakness. Water and Flying? That’s not stuff Psychic has a hard time with.

......No I’m not upset shut up.

X-Scissor gets it down to the very, very red, so Caitlin uses another Full Restore, giving me a free shot. Twineedle again in hope of poisoning. Success, and Gothitelle’s back in red. Another Thunderbolt, and Batman cleans up.

Next up is Sigilyph.

...I don’t know about Thunderbolt, but I think that thing has Ice Beam, and Bug is good against Psychic, but not Flying.

Fido, you’re my best best here.

STAB or 2x Bite, STAB or 2x Bite...

Wait. That’s math. Math I can actually do. Flamethrower beats Bite.

Fido’s faster, and that gets it down to orange (it’s level 48, by the way). It uses Psychic, and that does 64 damage. One more Flamethrower to finish it.

Oh.

And our final contestant is a Musharna.

Special Defense is too high. Fido’s use isn’t terrible, but. Then there’s Batman, with 82 HP left. That goes a long way when you’re made of Steel, but Fido does have Bite.

...Leave Fido in, if Fido gets slept, spend a turn healing Batman and then swap Batman in. Hopefully Fido does more damage than I expect. By a lot.

Level 48 Musharna incoming.

Bite leaves Musharna in the green, but I think two more will actually finish it, and more importantly, Fido is faster and Musharna flinched. So. Not a bad start.

Another Bite and Musharna is red, which... I hope Caitlin’s used her Full Restore allotment. Musharna uses Psychic, which scares me to death but only leaves Fido in the orange.

Please. Do not. Use a Full Restore.

Oh good.

Fido gets the final Bite, and.

And.

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.

I have no ace for the last Elite Four member. Assuming I’m right about him being Fighting. I have Gelding, and things without bonuses. ...Fuck, that’s uncomfortable. And that’s without taking Alder into consideration. Which... depending on N and plot, and.

This is really bad. Team wiping is a serious concern here.

...Sorry I didn’t remember the Thunder, Ptera. You’ve been amazing.

Great.

I’ll guess... Mienfoo’s evolved form, the pillar behemoth thing, Sawk and Throh.

At least one of those will know a Rock move.

No Lucky Egg. Gelding’s equipped with a Sharp Beak.

-taps keyboard-

Well it’s not like there’s a way out, anyway.

So before I was really overwhelmed by everything I love dying, I had the thought that every member of the Elite Four is some kind of goth, and then this here is their jock boyfriend.

It was more amusing back then.

Ghost goth is cute goth, Dark goth is dramatic goth, Psychic sleeping beauty goth is prep goth, and then there’s Marshal.

Yeah, I don’t know, let’s just. Yeah.

Level 48 Throh.

.Air Slash misses, and Throh knows Stone Edge!

Gelding has 53 HP.

Fido isn’t an option because Rock. Frogger’s a tank, but a squishy one. Palm won’t be able to dish out much damage. Batman’s Bug escapes Fighting being super effective, but. Batman’s greatest strength is damage, and she can’t do that against this team.

...Frankly, I’m shocked Gelding could survive Stone Edge. There’s no way that works against Sawk. But against Sawk, there would be a chance of fainting it in one hit. Throh does less damage, but has more HP. I never had delusions of getting it down in one hit, but I thought I would at least be able to hit it.

This is going to be a switch thing.

Frogger has one point less in Defense than Palm, but 50 more HP. Frogger’s in. Ground typing keeps Stone Edge from doing too much. Unfortunately, I am pretty sure that Throh does the least damage of everything on Marshal’s team. That means that this is where I can take hits and heal, but it’s going to switch to Fighting moves, probably, and those will be worse for Frogger and--

I am going to heal Gelding.

Throh uses something called Storm Throw, and. That’s actually not a move I recognize. I have Frogger use Surf, because in the ludicrous imaginings where I survive this, I want to have Hydro Pump available.

...That’s a dumb reason actually, I have Ether and Elixir.

On the other hand, Surf hits. So.

That puts Throh in the orange, but Throh uses Payback. Oh! But that’s a Dark move! I don’t know why I thought it was Fighting for a second. Yeah, great, so Frogger’s still alive, and is going to get the faint.

Enter the Sawk problem.

Frogger’s at 79 HP. I need to heal him if I want to use him. I think Gelding can get Sawk down in one hit.

...I just remembered that Gelding has Fly.

Wow, okay, that changes things.

So I’m pretty sure Gelding will be faster than Sawk. If I’m wrong, Gelding is dead. If I keep Frogger in, there’s a good chance he can take a few punches, especially since he got Throh down to orange in one blow.

But Sawk does more damage than Throh.

If I’m wrong about Frogger being able to take the hits, I lose Frogger. If I’m wrong about the Speed, I lose Gelding, and then will possibly lose Frogger anyway. ...Then I worry that Stone Edge is one of those moves that can hit Flying opponents, but I don’t... think it is?

...I’ll switch in Gelding.

Gelding is faster, and Stone Edge doesn’t hit in the air. See? It’s all. Fine.

what do you mean Sawk has Sturdy.

oh hey Gelding’s still alive with 37 HP.

Marshal will probably use a Full Restore, which will create the same problem of Sturdy (I... think? I have kind of a dim thought of that being a once-per-fight ability, but that might just be my distant hopes of a fair and just world talking, and I do not trust that). Two Air Slashes in a row is probably my safest move for all involved parties.

Wait, no, scratch that. Gelding has Extrasensory. That does not have Air Slash’s 95 accuracy. So that’s one definite hit, then Fly or another Extrasensory depending on the damage.

Full Restore happens. Extrasensory gets Sawk down to orange, so we’re going to do another of those and hope Sawk doesn’t have a priority move! Which I hadn’t considered until this moment!

I could play it safe and switch to something, but. Really, exposing more of my team to this is not safe.

Oh hey, Marshal went with another Full Restore. By all means man, use them up.

Gelding takes the Sawk down.

And now we have a new problem.

My guess is that everything on this team has Stone Edge. That is a guess born of how everything so far has Stone Edge, as well as the too-late reminder that Stone Edge is really popular for Fighting types to pick up.

Conkeldurr is up next.

In a perfect world, Gelding Flys and it’s all over.

Gelding has 37 HP left, and Conkeldurr is a bit of a beast. All it takes is a sliver of health, and Gelding is gone.

The problem is. Like I said, exposing more of my team to this is not safe. I could switch in Batman and heal up Frogger and Gelding while she takes a few hits, then switch over to Frogger and hope things go like they did with Throh, but. It is not beyond thinking that the two pokemon Marshal has left could just destroy my team at will.

Then there’s the last one. I think. There’s a halfway decent chance it’s faster than Gelding.

-breathes in-

So Extrasensory does 80. 2x that’s 160. Fly does 90, 135 with STAB, then the 2x super effective bonus. That is a lot of damage. 160 got Sawk down to orange, but Sawk’s more of a glass cannon type. Conkeldurr’s. a cannon.

Fido can’t be used to switch in. It’d survive a hit, most likely, but not a crit. Palm could maybe survive a crit, but if I heal, I want to heal Gelding and Frogger. Batman could probably take the hits, but then there’s the problem of what happens to the thing that gets switched in. That lost move could be life or death. By which I mean death.

...I’m going all in on Gelding being a powerhouse.

Level 48 Conkeldurr.

I love how there isn’t a Cry option.

Gelding’s faster, uses Fly, and.

Okay so.

It doesn’t hit.

Because Fly.

But Conkeldurr knows Retaliate.

I hate this game. ;-;

....

-buries head in hands-

...M-miss?

-screams a lot forever-

Palm, you have Mach Punch and Marshal’s used two Full Restores. So. That should work?

Level 50 Mienshao. I switch to Batman to heal Frogger, and also possibly to stay, I don’t even know.

...Jump Kick did nearly 70 damage, guess what Batman, you’re switching out!

It does 88 damage to Frogger. Neat. So I’ll just be using Hyper Potions and waiting for Frogger’s Poison Touch to take effect sometime this century. That is my strategy.

.........

I. do not want to talk about how this happened.

Let me tell you how it happened.

I was going through to click yet another Hyper Potion. Because autopilot. Only I did not click the Item menu. I clicked the Fight menu. Still on autopilot, I watch, in horror, as I pick Mud Shot.

Mienshao’s Jump Kick misses and takes half its health.

Mud Shot’s good enough to take the rest.

I’m learning a few things here.

The fact that I’m an idiot is nothing new.

The fact that I routinely underestimate Frogger is my only prayer of surviving what’s next.

Because in case the scoreboard’s somehow been overlooked:

I am in so much trouble.

I don’t even know who I’m fighting next. N? Alder? Ghetsis?

Zekrom?

But you know what I think I remember?

I’m pretty sure that your team gets healed after you face Zekrom. Without you having a say in the matter. That’s... awkward? At best? Ptera and Gelding are not built for doing nothing and dying. I realize they’re both dead, but they did a lot of killing beforehand.

I think I will stick with screaming.

And switching Frogger to the front.

Other things to do: Putting a damn damage boosting item on everyone left instead of trying to pump the Elite Four dry of resources like money and exp.

...Only it turns out I don’t really have many of those kinds of items. Frogger gets Soft Sand, Palm gets Miracle Seed, Fido gets a Shell Bell, and Batman can keep the Lucky Egg.

I don’t foresee this going well.

Team.

Please, please prove me wrong.

I have criminally neglected complimenting aspects of the Elite Four because my head is busy screaming. The dramatics of this many stairs is one such thing that deserve praise. There are others. I might remember them one day.

There are so many stairs, guys.

You know, I’ve realized that if the N and Ghetsis thing is happening now, maybe I don’t have to fight Alder?

That’s a good thing, right?

-grabs popcorn-

Why is this a thing.

“This is Team Plasma’s castle” HOW DOES THAT EXPLAIN ANY OF IT. IS THIS EXPLAINED? I DON’T THINK THE PLOT REALLY CARES BUT I NEED SOMETHING TO FOCUS ON AND THIS IS IT RIGHT NOW. N WHY CAN YOU SPAWN A CASTLE BY ASKING THE SKY FOR IT.

So... Am I maybe going to get a chance to grind before the next big fight?

Dare I hope?

BUT WHY IS THIS HERE.

IT’S TEAM GYM LEADER. KNEEL BEFORE THEIR MIGHT.

Looking at the sets of pairs, I realize that Burgh and Lenora; and Clay and Elesa (please let that be her name) are both established friendship duos between Gym Leaders. It is cool.

Also Bianca asked them to come.

Thank you, friend.

The plot isn’t going to let me leave, is it. This is all just one big stall to make the pain hit that much harder. Geez. Won’t this game think of the people who have self-imposed rules that make everything complicated?

HEY.

Talking to the weird ladies who know N’s tragic backstory healed my pokemon, so now I am walking around with two zombies I need to get rid of kind of right now.

...No disrespect, guys.

...Seriously, where is this PC the Ninja mentioned.

There we go.

A moment of silence for the fallen.

Gelding, I never voice my appreciation of you during these posts, but you always came in handy. Your wonderful Attack stats and diverse movepool was a pleasure to have aboard. When I first caught you, I thought I’d change you out for the next thing I caught. But then I got attached.

You got your comrades this far. I don’t know how long that will last, but thanks.

Ptera... hell, I never really thought you’d go down. You were always this overpowered rockstar. From the second we met. ...You destroyed one of my team prospects. You were always reliable. If I ever wanted to turn my brain off and just expect victory, you were who I put in front.

I really don’t think I can do this without you guys, and I never wanted to.

Goodbye.

Sooo. Access to my PC lets me do away with the problem of zombies. It does not solve the greater problem of the huge trouble I am in. Nothing in my box is a high enough level to assist.

Zekrom is coming up, and I’ll have the option of having him on my team, and he is the first pokemon in this area I’ll have the option of catching.

But the spirit of this run is that everything on my team is randomized. That’s why I ditched my fossil. That’s why I ditched my chimp option.

It’s these four.

I have no idea what happens if I lose and get sent back to a save point inside the castle. Do I just have to keep throwing my box at it until I have no eligible pokemon left and have to declare the Nuzlocke a failure?

This section should have been finished a while ago, since I’m apparently wordy when stressed and there are now a lot of words, but I have kept going because. Well.

I think I know what happens next and I do not like it.

...Wait.

Wait.

YES.

I CAN GRIND.

#Pokemon #Nuzlocke Challenge

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