#if it was going to be like traditional pokemon then the protags would be the conquest tr-

[gastlyarts]

i need to make, like, a modern AU of pokemon conquest haaha

[maspers]

A little something inspired by @canyourfavesurvivecastledracula , since doing a search on their blog for either of these pulled up nothing. Admittedly my tumblr search is... odd... at times, so if I'm retreading previously treaded ground then oh well.

Could ASH and/or RED from Pokemon survive Castle Dracula?

Yes. Both of them could. But for very different reasons.

In the case of Ash Ketchum: Nobody should be surprised by his survival. This boy has plot armor nearly as strong as Makoto Naegi's.

Ash would, of course, take the crucifix. He's an unfailingly polite young man (at least by the end of the series) and so of course he would take such a nice gift from such a nice lady. In fact there's a decent chance that he'll inspire enough sympathy from the townsfolk that they'll be particularly invested in keeping this kid from dying. Pikachu will pick up on the ominous vibes. Ash will not.

Ash will not think anything is a problem in the slightest upon arriving in the Castle. Sure, Dracula is a bit weird, but this Castle is so cool! How nice of him to let Ash stay here. If Ash does end up wandering around and meeting the girls (which, let's be honest, is happening whether Ash means it to or not) he's probably falling for their mental manipulation hook line and sinker. Sure, Ash is pretty much a doofus shonen protag who does not understand love, but this ain't love, this is mind control, and Ash has been susceptible to that before (then again, mind control is a bit hit or miss with Ash. In the words of the Beeheeyem, "It's hard to hypnotise stupid people"). Regardless, Ash will still completely fail to realize that Something Is Up.

But by this point Pikachu (and likely some of the other Pokemon) will have already figured the whole thing out, and be desperately trying to drag Ash out of the place. Shenanigans will ensue, Ash will somehow have Dracula's true nature revealed to him, cue escape sequence. If Drac tries to pursue after Ash has registered him as a threat, he will be surprised to discover that this kid is very good at what he does, and what he does is train monsters that go toe-to-toe with gods. That's enough of an incentive to leave Ash be. Additionally, Ash is practically indestructible, the rock wall and the wolves are barely an inconvenience to him.

The story ends with Ash reuniting with his friends, then the end credits roll. This has basically been a regular day for him.

In the case of Red: Compared to Ash's plot armor turning causality into knots to justify his escape, Red's survival is delightfully straightforward.

Red would accept the crucifix. It's obviously a Key Item. Into the bag it goes. The townsfolk are extremely weirded out by this silent kid. They don't give him further info. Heck, they might not even give him the crucifix if they can't figure out why he's in town to begin with.

In contrast to the overly-trusting Ash, Red pins Drac as extremely sus from the get-go. Red knows a villain when he sees one. He also knows a haunted mansion when he sees one (even though Castle Dracula isn't really a Haunted Mansion in the traditional sense) and is already pulling out his Silph Scope to keep an eye on things. In the traditional RPG Protagonist manner he wanders around looking for loot. He unfortunately doesn't find anything useful. He will of course run across the girls during his investigation of every nook and cranny, but since his Silph Scope has immediately identified them as some form of undead he'll just be like "not Pokemon, not my business" and leave before they even think to turn on the charm.

While Dracula would probably view Ash as a harmless doofus, Red is the kind of guy who immediately seems threatening so Drac would probably be a bit more proactive in trying to bring about Red's doom. This would be a mistake. Red's silence has a tendency to invoke monologues even in those less inclined to monologue, and Dracula would inevitably confirm Red's suspicions about him before the kid can be properly dealt with. Two seconds later and Red has Gigantamaxed his Snorlax and destroyed the building.

From that point onward it's just a matter of escaping for Red. The wolves certainly won't be a problem. Neither is the cliff face, Red's just leaving through the (demolished) front door. If Drac and the girlies try to pursue then Red will just view them as equivalent to enemy Pokemon and deal with them accordingly. If Red can take down Mewtwo, then he can at LEAST put up enough of a fight to convince Dracula that pursuing him isn't worth it.

So yes. Ash and Red could BOTH survive Castle Dracula.

"Oh but they shouldn't have their Pokemon with them, part of the Castle Dracula experience is being isolated". Bullcrap. Neither Ash nor Red go anywhere without at least one Pokemon on hand, and that one Pokemon is usually enough to handle extreme circumstances. If their Pokemon weren't permitted to accompany them on this trip to Transylvania, then said trip AINT HAPPENING.

But sure, let's consider this. Ash's plot armor is just as thick regardless of his Pokemon's presence. He's making it out of this alive no matter what. His escape would probably be much the same as described above, except instead of Pikachu helping him he'd spontaneously snap out of the hypnosis at a critical moment or whatever. Red obviously would have to have a very different plan, but he has the smarts, genre savviness, equipment, and athleticism to recognize the sus things about the castle and make an escape with little to no issue.

Gary and Blue Oak, on the other hand, are definitely dying within 24 hours. Possibly even within 12.

[chandiegeist]

Got any plans for the galaxy team in the areceues got done. I know Rei/Akari (Aka, not the protag) would be a pichu, Cylenne an Abra but everyone else is kinda a wild shot. Also is the player character in this or nah?

Why yes I do have plans! Like I said in the last ask, here I’ll go over the entirety of Jubilife Village that I have including the Galaxy Team. I’ve actually found that dividing the village/settlements and limiting their choices helps with my creativity as well as keeps them on “theme” so to say.

Everyone in Jubilife Village was turned into a pokemon found in the Obsidian Fieldlands. That includes Galaxy Team, the Ginkgo Guild, and the villagers. The generic NPCs are generic pokemon found there: Bidoof, Starly, Wurmple, Kricketot, etc. They're either scared or chill.

(Yep you guessed it) Rei is a Pichu. He’s the main one running around helping the village. He and Pikachu get along better now, but he has a lot to learn about being a pokemon. Cyllene is an Abra. She’s so thankful she’s able to use a pen. Laventon is a Drifloon. Mostly because it looks like his hat :3 He’s scared of floating away.

Kamado is a Heracross. He’s distinctly less baby than the others which shows he’s stepping up to be a better leader for his people, but also that he’s a harder shell to crack on truly convincing him to live alongside pokemon (badum-tsss). After everything with Akari, he’s trying to take responsibility and control his paranoia but he’s still got trauma. Beni is a Ralts. Kamado relies on him to help him notice and point out when his paranoia is getting the better of him as he not only personally understands his trauma and has a more level head but now can sense emotions.

Pesselle is a Happiny. I know she’s not a traditional Nurse Joy, but she’ll learn about the healing powers of pokemon soon enough. Zisu is a Buneary. Because her hair looks like a Lopunny. Colza (Agriculture Corps) is a Shellos. It evolves into Gastrodon which has all the requirements to solve the farm expansion quests. The real pokemon actually working the farms are undecided. Tao Hua (Supply Corps) is a Cherubi. Something about his grudge with Choy and his job foraging makes me think of the grumpiest Cherubi with its berry stolen. Sanqua (Construction Corps) is a Magikarp. How is she supposed to work now? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ If she works really hard she can become her own model for the Gyarados statues she wanted to make.

Beauregard (Galaxy Hall guard) is a Wurmple. Unsure which way his evolution route could go but he's probably the most determined to evolve. The only thing keeping Cyllene from transferring him to the South Gate is the shut front door. Ress (Front Gate guard) is a Mime Jr. Dorian (South Gate guard) is a Buizel. He's smaller than the guard Buizel. Bagin (Galaxy Hall conman guard) is a Munchlax. If they're not careful, he might evolve and have unending space in his stomach.

Anthe is a Burmy (fabric cloak). She's covered in spare fabric as its the closest thing she has access to. Radisa (pickling lady) is a Geodude. I just like her a lot. Choy is a Starly. Something about him having the player run around as an in-between for him and Tao Hua makes me think he's a scaredy cat even though he and his wife allegedly eloped. Marie (Pastures lady) is a Ponyta. I just like her a lot too.

Ginter is a Shinx. Tuli (the ginkgo lady next to him) is a Paras. There’s quite a bit of tension between the Village and Ginkgo Guild because the guild members are such infamously aggressive pokemon. Volo (not present but I'm grouping him here) is a Togepi. He's in the wilds of Hisui when all this happens. He'll be going through his own character arc.

[the-spam-specialist]

Final ask for now and keeping up the food theme :)

Yet another challenge for you Protag! Ryder is out on a quest and can't take his only Pokemon due to laws and tradition. He's been gone for a while now and he "left" Tublades and his brother in your care and totally didn't just spring these two in your care. He did leave plenty of food for you to cook for them (along with a note on how to handle them and their warning signs).

And its dinner time... these two are too tall to go inside the house and it looks like heavy rain soon.

(Gonna spoil this about Tublades's brother. He'd be nice to Notch).

Skylertheminish.

Protag sweated as they looked at the two giants who couldn't quite fit into the house. Uh oh. Why did these two have to be so tall???

Worst of all, there was a storm coming. They couldn't leave Fire-Types outside in the rain. They paced and hummed in thought as Notch was chatting with Tublades.

An idea eventually came.

Grabbing some supplies, you went out to the back porch and set up some polls with the help of the tall knights. You then secured a tarp with ropes over the polls, making a big sturdy tent. One that was tall enough for the knights to fit under. If the storm got bad, Protag knew they would have to get them inside, but if it was just rain, then this tent would do just fine.

Protag left Notch with Tublades and his brother, heading inside to make dinner. The shorter knight was plenty happy chatting with Tublades, but his gaze kept nervously shifting to the tall Armarouge whom he hadn't met.

[sylkhi]

SYLK

SYLKKK

I MUST KNOW

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SHIPS IN POKEMON

ALSO PLEASE FEED ME MORE TOXICBOLT HEADCANONS

I can’t believe I didn’t see this when it came but I’m HERE NOW OKAY. Toxic Bolt.

- Koga was a gym leader first and when Surge came to Kanto and got a post as a gym leader; Koga [and Sabrina] did his orientation and whatnot

- Koga gets embarrassed by Anzu cause she starts calling Surge ‘dad’ when it’s clear they’re into each other and not doing anything about it

- They finally get together in Unova (PWT) cause the Indigo League has them room together (Lance denies any involvement but he was a shipper)

- Surge spends the whole week leading up to Koga’s retirement/promotion party wearing shades cause yes, he was very much crying about it

- Koga has a thing for Surge’s boots. Surge has a thing for Koga’s mask.

- There was a betting pool amongst the gym leaders about how long it would take for Koga and Surge to get together. Sabrina was disqualified because of multiple factors; Erika won all the monies.

- They talk to each other about their traumatic pasts and go on the greatest revenge quest Kanto and Unova’s underbellies have ever seen. Sabrina and Anzu are involved of course.

- They retire early and relocate to Two Island (/Knot Island) cause it’s a place with no ties to their past (unlike Johto, Kanto, Unova)

- Koga starts a traditional medicine store, same thing as whatever’s going on in Cianwood, except he also teaches. Surge starts a small gym cause why not. They’re right next to each other.

- they decide to get married and it’s the sweetest thing ever (in terms of timeline, Red and Green get married way before them, and so do Lance and Bruno)

- honeymoon in Alola; they get invited to the battle tree; Koga meets and loves-hates Grimmsley, Surge meets and is incredibly amused by Ryuki.

- the end? I wish I threw in a bit more Sabrina but I can always do that another time

MY FAVOURITE SHIPS + ONE THING I LIKE/HEADCANON ABOUT THEM:

- Red x Green: I really like that all their canon interactions set them up for major pining and slowburn

- Lance x Bruno: headcanon that everyone knows Lance and Bruno are a thing except Lance himself. They even live together

- Morty x Falkner: Headcanon that Morty and Walker’s ghost (Walker is Falkner’s dad) are doing their best to help Falkner past his feelings of inadequacy compared to his dad’s legacy

- Gold x Silver: I think I’ve talked about this before: I think their dynamic is Gold chasing Silver and when they both realise why (love), it’s Silver who chases Gold

- Archie x Maxie: they really really like the protagonist; they’re basically the protag’s second set of parents (game canon specifically)

- Ruby x Sapphire: idk where to start, but if you’ve read PokeSpe you definitely understand

- Flint x Volkner: I headcanon that they break up for about two years and Palmer (whom I believe is Volkner’s dad) constantly calls Flint ‘Volkner’s boyfriend’ even though they… aren’t

- Diamond/Pearl/Platinum: I really like their dynamic in PokeSpe. Whether you read it as platonic or romantic or something else, they’re just… great for each other

- Marlon/Brawly: they only ever get to see each other in summer. Headcanon that one of them moves, but I’m not sure who.

- Drayden/Alder: this is a bara thing. That’s all I’ve got to say.

- Black/N: wherever N goes, Black will always find him and N will always let him. They only ever really get to stay together when they’re much older.

- Sycamore/Lysandre: I like it cause in my mind it’s a doomed, enjoy it when it lasts kind of romance. They’re ignoring a lot about each other to be together, and it’s sad to to watch. Also Bara.

- Shauna/Yvonne or Xavier: I just think it’s funny how Shauna drops the most ‘I’m smitten’ lines on the balcony at the Parfum Palace and then it just… never goes anywhere

- Gladion/Hau: I feel like they really bring out the best in each other, noticeably more than any other ship I’ve listed. Also, the fact that THEY are the sun and moon parallel amongst the human characters is really really neat.

- Kukui/Guzma: they have a very special understanding of each other. No matter where they are in life, I think they’ll always have a special place in each other’s hearts. This is accounting for Kukui being married, btw.

Haven’t played Gen 8 or 9 or interacted with much media from there, so I have nothing to say in that regard.

Thanks for this ask, and sorry again for seeing it super late.

[strooples]

Random non Halloween-related Halloween night cartoon rambles:

My sister recently recommended me All Saints Street and looking at the thumbnail on YouTube, the art style seems super cute! I watched the trailer and may give it a go soon :D. It’s up on my tabs, and I’m honestly curious how it is!! She said I might’ve liked it bc it’s slice-of-life. But I haven’t even gotten around to a close friend’s recommendation of Ousama Ranking, bc I am terrible with recommendations… I also forgot most of the anime movies I wanted to wanted T~T. Short attention spans are a curse :((

I have absolutely so so SO much to say about JoJo’s Bizarre Adventures, as I’m basically nearing the end of Season 3. But part 2 where Joseph is the hilarious protagonist has got to be my favorite??? It is just such a good mix of action and hilarity lololol. I really gotta thank the mix of BoBoBo, Bakuten Shoot, and pt. 2 JoJo for getting me back the feel of excitement from being a young kid who enjoyed cartoons mainly marketed towards boys and shonen anime.

The more I draw Bakuten Stuff thing, the more I wonder how Metal Fusion is. It’s the Beyblade series my SO, sister, and people around me generally refer to/remember. But all IK so far is that Gingka is the protag, the dub voice was a bit iffy for him, and little else?? Has anyone watched Metal Fusion — dub or sub?

The release of Wiglett makes me so happy!! Gosh, I would DIE for Wiglett (figuratively of course!). It’s such a cute pokemon aaaaa. And all the Wiglett and Diglett drawings I keep seeing on my feed give me such joy lololol.

And speaking of art, another thing I have to add is that I really really want to draw Kamisama Kiss art. I had a passing thought of it the other day, and though it’s a relatively old shoujo, I only found out about it last year! And watched + rewatched it a 2nd time within a single year. I may do a 3rd watch-through. It’s an oddly comforting anime?? And the traditional Japanese aesthetic and clothing of characters is so pretty!! I don’t know though if I can do much RN bc my anatomy skills are still a bit lacking (so I guess we will see?).

Lastly, I dropped a TON of Webtoons (reader’s burnout, slow/bad pacing, stories going in weird directions etc.) and I’ve been looking for new ones to read. But I haven’t quite felt much of a push towards the medium, and nothing seems to catch my eye or focus for long. It’s sorta sad seeing the direction the platform is going in tho. And tropes are not bad necessarily — not if you do them up well with the right amount of creativity. But since I was primarily drawn to the platform for romance stories, I realized some of the same tropes that sell to an audience have been rehashed so many times. And it’s not really fun anymore when you consider that romance is an already-oversaturated genre in any platform. Guess my desire for a good romance-oriented story may have to go to shoujo instead!!

Edit bc I forgot:

Also wtf is going on with the Miraculous Ladybug fandom??? I dropped the show maybe 2 years ago (burnout, toxic writing, the fandom getting a bit crazy). But since it’s been trending, I keep seeing *SPOILERS* stuff about the love square reversing in Season 5??? Is there actually progression?!?!! Yooooo…. I really wanna see what’s going on. Like skipping the more irrelevant bits and jumping to plot. But I may not because I just feel so conflicted on the story, which has so so much potential, but is done kinda on iffy grounds.

[yellowocaballero]

Hiiii i super enjoyed your fic! I love how subtly manipulative your protag was in the beginning lol. Also that part where she pondered about diamond/pearl oral traditions and how galaxy would likely record them with their own slanted perception was very sad to me :( and when she screamed at ingo abt how she'd never even Heard of the clans in the future that was super intriguing. I love how the protag has this slanted view of herself too, and how she'd like to be forgotten which probably stems from her home life, but she still wants to save her parent(s?)from the potential pain of losing her. I think that part where she wanted all her pokemon and closest friends together with no one abandoned was super telling. And when she thought she'd only ever get to have a pokemon as a helper :( her inner pov is very no nonsense and funny to me at times like when she apparently very sanely described how she would annihilate jubilife. It was also cute when she wrote that her mortality rate flying Graham was still 0 lol. How do you come up with these stories? And when you structure/map them out do you do it in bullet points or some other way? I always love your writing <3

YES HELLO THANK YOU.

I'm not much of a history person, I'm more soft STEM. But I recently wrote a book chapter summarizing the history of a civil rights movement, and it involved a loooot of oral history and taking down oral histories from people who are pretty old and aging. So much of what these really amazing old activists told me just were not written down anywhere! And there were so many amazing people and organizations that are either completely unknown or completely misunderstood, told by other viewpoints or influenced by media. It was a big honor to interview these amazing people, because otherwise what they did just wouldn't be remembered.

So that experienced influenced some of the story, haha. PLA has some really depressing implications :( One event has five different storytellers who will all tell it a different way which will all be a LITTLE wrong...but it's a huge damn shame that some of these voices will be lost. Protag wants to fix that. Kick off plot.

Re: MC: most of her characterization is done through how she interprets the world! I purposefully didn't go too deep into details and left it vague, so I'm seeing a lot of different interpretations of her character, which are all very fun and I won't deny any of them.

I think she has a stringent self-image of herself that is not very complimentary, and it's resilient against a lot of proof otherwise (Teens!). She doesn't like to inconvenience or take up space. She also did just never have an interest in becoming a battler or trainer - she grew up in the family business and expected to work there the rest of her life, and she never really stopped to wonder if she wanted something different. She's very serious and somber, but she is still a character who is written by me, so she is still funny ajlkdsf. I won't go too deep into psychoanalyzing her right now, so ask me again after the story's done!

How I came up with this story was...actually, it developed while I was playing the game, and then it got so big in my head like a rock that I had to write it just so it would go away. It's just a combination of a lot of different thoughts and a vague conviction that my MC would surely fix that terrible Diamond/Pearl situation. It is also a very affectionate homage towards all of the Pokemon fanfic I would read when I was, like, 13 - never naming her is actually a reference to my favorite fanfic when I was 13. (In retrospect, that story was BONKERS - Pedestal by DigitalSkitty? Anybody remember that one? What was UP with it?!)

How I get ideas in general is a different situation and hard to answer haha. There's always a lot of inspiration taken from a lot of different things I've read or watched, there's always a lot of joking with friends about really funny situations, and there is also a third thing that is just ??? brain go brrr I guess ????.

This 60k story was written in a week and it's a little obvious. I didn't plan or plot or anything. Very pantsed. I'm trying to remember if I even made like an outline and I don't think I did. Usually what happens is I get a certain amount in based solely on vibes, like 30 or 40 pages later I'm like 'oh this needs a plot huh', I type up like a '1-2-3' numbered outline of what happens next, I like 60% do that, and then I cut some stuff or add more scenes and then I'm done. If I'm actually "trying" with "effort" the outline is entirely written before the story, which is also '1a.->1b.->1c.->2a.' style.

Most of the outlining happens in my head, sadly. I know none of this is good advice or applicable to anybody. Sorry.

There is a nifty shortcut you can use in terms of story plotting, which is to just make your story structure extremely repetitive, so you don't have to plot a single thing. Life hacks!

Thank you for reading!!!

[galarianrocket]

If James has the traditional values of the series baked into him (love and your bonds with your pokemon overcoming all) and Adam is my protag-gone-wrong with obscene power and drive then Emile is a Smogon-tier min-maxer in-universe. He is terrifyingly good at it. 

Though its difficult to quantify IV and EV’s in a realistic sense, Emile understands how to bring out the utmost potential in his Pokemon through their diet, training and other things. Ares was specifically conditioned for special attacks like sludge wave or earth power. Mia was built for physical offence and defence. Alizeh was trained to be a general all-purpose monster powerhouse.

He’ll use items and berrys on his team, he’ll run rough calculations in his head based on the physical condition of his opponent’s pokemon to set them up to get knocked out, and overall, he’ll just stack the deck. 

He might only have a team of three but those three can take some obscene hits and dish out equally obscene damage in return. They’re built to fight in situations where the average trainer - or even gym leader - would go down. 

[epicspheal]

Be honest which starter would you have gotten if you started your Pokemon journey? What would be your biggest obstacle during your journey? Have a nice day. =)

Hi there @namelessbaron! I hope you're having a good day. Oh that's a tough question. I feel like I wouldn't have been one of the kids who to get one of the traditional starters (like say Mudkip) as a first Pokemon. Maybe when I was older and could go to a breeder or if I got lucky during my journey

I'd imagine my starter would likely be a either a Zigzagoon or Skitty if I couldn't get my Mudkip. Biggest obstacles I'd say is money. Outside of a couple of aunts/uncles who made it big my family as a whole isn't super wealthy. It's a personal headcanon that money is still a big factor on who makes it in the Pokemon trainer world even with the free services like the Pokemon center. I mean when you think about it, I don't think there's been a protag in the main series game who was ever shown to be poor. Maybe not super rich but certainly well off compared to like say the people of Spikemuth of Po Town. And if you're not from a rich family or you're not a talented battler who can win money off of others that's something lack of money would end your journey quicker than anything else. Which is probably what would've happened to me. Now as an adult, I'd be in much better position financially to be a trainer even just part time.

[poke-entomology]

Okay, so I decided to bring up my old au idea. It just seems too fun to let sit and waste, you know?

Alright, so it’s based on the old ‘hollow Earth’ theory. The one about prehistoric creatures existing in a utopia just beneath the earth’s crust. So people and pokemon have been living down there mostly untouched by modern civilization, meaning lots of fossil and extinct pokemon exist down there in their natural state. For whatever reason, the natural conditions down there replicate the conditions which would have been found above ground almost perfectly to allow these extinct pokemon to thrive! This of course extends to the human populations who have adapted in kind to live alongside, and even battle against, the native poke-populations.

That’s not to say it’s completely untouched. As seen in the electric, poison, and ice areas of the map, modern devices turn up every so often. Either they’ve been dumped somewhere and wash up down here (kinda like undertale) or they’re getting in through... mysterious circumstances. Strange individuals have been seen using weird items to capture pokemon, all of which speak an unknown language! Will our protagonist discover the truth?

Speaking of protags, the story!

It starts in a village at the base of the draconic valley, a place where evolution stones appear often. The humans settled here have a unique tradition of going out to find one such stone upon their 16th birthday. After bringing it to their town shaman (a Xatu possessing great wisdom) the stones are ground up and applied to the body in the form of paints. This gives the humans powers similar to pokemon and allows them to compete as equals!

The protag gets a rare stone (probably a mega stone or something) and is sent out with a group of youths from their tribe to explore the region, mingle with the other tribes, and return as powerful adults. Along the way they may encounter pokemon who wish to journey with them. Lacking pokeballs, you have to find other means of befriending your partners (like doing quests or pokemon conquest style recruiting/leveling up).

Aaand aside from a few small things and a general map structure, that’s about all I’ve got for now. Thoughts?

[pkmnomegaverse]

🍄 for Juri, 🌼 for Roan, 🌻 for Bailey? (Optional 💫 for either Casimir or Corin)

Juri - 🍄 What are your OCs favourite snacks? Their favourite comfort food which always cheers them up when they’re down? Favourite meal to make? Do they enjoy baking and cooking and are they any good in the kitchen?

She really likes junk food in general, but cookies are a fav, particularly the cheap bite sized one you can buy in packs.  Traditional Sinnoh dishes are a common comfort food for her, especially anything that reminds her of Lucas' cooking (bonus points if it just is his cooking).  Juri is the worst cook of her traveling group, so while she can maybe get by if she has to, she avoids cooking if she can.  Lots of instant ramen and other premade meals if things are left up to her.  She has a bit of a sweet tooth, so while she loves baking in theory, again, she typically won’t do it herself.  Although she will sometimes bake up a pack of premade cookie dough and (attempt to) eat the whole thing herself.

Roan - 🌼 Who are this characters friends and found family? How did they meet, how long have they been friends for, could they ever be something more than just friends? What do they look for in a friend or a romantic partner?

He’s honestly very close with his actual family (Bede’s side anyway), to the point he doesn’t really have a found family that can trump them.  The protective big bro to his younger siblings.  As for friends, he gets along with some of the older Galar kids (Cassia and Hadley, the former of which he’s childhood friends with) and ends up friends and primary traveling companions with Rhea and Axel.  They meet by chance when Roan decides he wants to try venturing out to a far away region, and chooses Sinnoh for it’s rich history and folklore.  I’m honestly not sure about a potential romantic partner for Roan, but as for what he looks for in friends/partners, he ends up getting along best with people who contrast with him, complementing his more serious nature.  Extroverted people like Rhea and Cassia are the types he ends up getting along best with.

Bailey - 🌻 What little things do they notice about people or the world around them that make them happy? What tiny little treasures do they find in the normal every day that makes the world seem a little brighter for them?

While he may not be particularly into the visual arts, he has an eye for beauty he inherited from his parents (or perhaps just picked up from being immersed in the world of art/acting from a young age). He’s sometimes prone to getting a bit theatric in waxing poetry about the things he’s sees. “Oh how the low hanging sun peaks from the red stained mountain tops,” that kind of poetry.  Which he’s embarrassed about people overhearing so he mostly writes it down.  But he enjoys looking for those details in the world and trying to put into words his thoughts on what he’s seeing.  He mostly looks for scenery related things, but will observe people and Pokemon as well, since there’s beauty in the little domestic interactions people engage in without thinking about it.  Beauty in the mundane, so to speak.

Casimir - 💫What is your favorite fact about this character and why?

He’s the only reason this verse even exists.  While Juri may be the first official fankid, Casimir was the first fankid who had a plotline to go with him (which was an apocalypse AU of sorts).  It was this that got me thinking about actually making a legit next gen AU, since while I did discard the original plotline that went with him, it planted the seeds.  It’s because of this that he’s always been the true protag in my heart.

Corin - 💫What is your favorite fact about this character and why?

His dad was a mystery for the first month of his creation, since I really don’t ship Calem with anyone, but always knew I wanted Casimir to have a younger brother he had issues with.  I created basically two versions of him, Tierno!Corin and Sycamore!Corin after narrowing down his father choices to those two.  I went with Tierno!Corin mostly since it seemed like Tierno/Calem would be the happier endgame for Calem.  Mostly I just find this bit of trivia amusing, since I always like what-could-have-been prototype trivia, even for my own stuff.

[shadowphoenixrider]

(A self-indulgent little self-insert fic I wrote up so I could maybe stop thirsting over Kabu for five minutes. Hopefully this doesn’t awaken anything in me. Protag is 26.)

“Not on your way to Hammerlocke, Gym Challenger?”

Katla jumped at the sudden voice behind her, her eyes widening when the young woman saw who it was.

“Kabu!” Heat rushed into her face for reasons she didn’t really want to consider as she turned to address Motostoke’s gym leader. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t expect to see you out here.” She grinned weakly, inwardly cursing how she fumbled over her words. He’s just a man, calm down.

If Kabu was offended, he didn’t show it, his silver eyes seeming to twinkle.

“Likewise...Katla, was it?” He nodded as she did. “I expected you would be well on your way to your next challenge. Your friend seemed very eager to be away.”

She chuckled weakly, shoving her hands in her black trouser pockets.

“Yeah, that’s Hop for you. Running through everywhere at break-neck speed.” She looked over her shoulder at the place she’d set up camp, and the Pokemon that frolicked around it. “I prefer to take my time training and catching new Pokemon. We’ll get to the next gym in time, no matter how many times Hop calls me a Slowpoke.”

“Understandable.” Kabu replied. “It was clear from our battle that you spent as much time as possible training before it.”

A smile pulled at Katla’s lips.

“Figured it was only polite, seeing that you were doing the same in Galar’s Number 2 mine.”

The older man chuckled, a soft, warm sound that made her heart skip a beat.

“That’s very considerate of you,” he said.

There was a loud thrill from their feet, revealed to be a Sizzlipede, peering inquisitively up at the two trainers. Forgetting her company, Katla immediately crouched down to greet the creature.

“Hello sweetheart!” She cooed, stroking the little bug under her ‘chin’. “How’s the baby doing?”

The Sizzlipede replied in a very happy thrill, closing her eyes and starting to curl herself warmly around her trainer’s hand.

“I see you chose to catch a Sizzlipede during the Gym Mission.” Kabu commented, and despite his calm voice, she could hear a smile in it.

“Yeah, and a Litwick too.” Katla glanced briefly over her shoulder at him, still petting the Pokemon snuggling against her hand. “I’ve been trying to catch a Sizzlipede for ages, actually. I spent so much time on Route 3 hunting for one, but I never got even a glimpse. Eventually I decided I best keep moving, and one day I’d come back or find one somewhere in the Wild Area.”

“So when I saw I could catch one for your Gym Mission, well...Almost a dream come true.” She smiled as the Bug Pokemon glanced at her curiously. “Now I have this lovely little one to join me on my adventure.” Katla tenderly stroked Sizzlipede’s ‘cheek’ with her thumb. “A living memento of our battle.”

There was a pause, just a little bit longer than would be normal, and Katla looked back up at the Gym Leader, brows arched with confusion. Kabu wasn’t really looking at her, yet he wasn’t really looking at the Sizzlipede around her hand either, not really. His gaze was far-away and none of his thoughts reflected on his face.

He seemed to notice her looking, however, and he smiled properly. Damn, he looks handsome.

“It was an invigorating battle, for certain.” He lifted his gaze up and away, towards the body of water Katla’s Gyarados was swimming in. “Whilst I may not have anything physical to remember it by, I will treasure the memory.”

Katla felt her face heat up again, and she tried to ignore it, especially when Sizzlipede seemed to become curious about her blush, reaching up with trembling whiskers.

“You’re welcome. Glad I could provide a challenge,” she said.

“You certainly did.” Another pause. “When are you going to tell Hop your secret?”

The trainer’s heart froze in her chest. He’s bluffing, he can’t know. Keep talking.

“What secret would that be?”

Kabu’s gaze bored into her.

“You’ve had prior experience of other Leagues, Katla. I could tell from our battle that you’ve fought competitively before. Perhaps not in the form it takes in Galar, but the other more...’traditional’ Leagues.” Kabu said. “Can I assume that you’ve not told your friend about this?”

Katla looked away, pressing her lips together into a thin line. She tried to ignore the concerned noise Sizzlipede made as she sensed her trainer’s change of mood. Guess he’s rumbled me.

“You’re right on both accounts.” She admitted, soothing the Bug Pokemon. “I’ve done this sort of thing before. Couple of times, actually.” She sighed. “I didn’t want to tell Hop ‘cos...He can be annoying sometimes, especially with all that bloody ‘Champion’ talk, but he’s a sweet kid. Don’t think he’s got a mean bone in him. Just seemed a bit cruel to tell him ‘yeah no I’ve been doing this for years, kiddo’ - just seemed better to make him think we’re both on equal ground, you know?”

“He will find out eventually.”

“If he or I don’t get knocked out towards the end of the Challenge, then yeah. Probably.” Katla lowered her hand to the ground, letting Sizzlipede scuttle off.

“The longer you leave it, the worse a reaction he will have when you finally tell him.” Kabu warned, and Katla bristled.

“Yeah, I know! But I’m in too deep now and there’s never gonna be a good time to dump it on him.” She sighed, forcing her shoulders to relax to release some of her tension. “Knowing my luck, it’s gonna be when he’s boasting about when he’s gonna be the champion and I finally snap at him.”

“All the more reason to do it soon.” There was another brief pause, where Katla expected him to continue pestering her. But when he spoke again, his tack had changed.

“Which League did you start with?”

“League? Uhh, Hoenn. I came of age to get my first Pokemon there, despite growing up here, mostly.“ She rose up from crouching as he knees began to complain. “My first Pokemon was a Torchic. She became the closest companion I ever had. Still is, I think, despite all the other regions I've been to. Wish I could bring her to Galar, but I think that’d be a bit unfair on the other trainers!”

“Ah, Hoenn!” Kabu smiled properly for the first time. “That is where I’m originally from.”

“Really?” Katla’s eyebrow rose. “Dang, you’re originally from Hoenn, come to lead a Galar gym, and I’m originally from Galar, and I started off in Hoenn.” She chuckled, lifting a shoulder. “Weird how these things turn out.”

“Indeed. Torchic is a very good choice.” He titled his head to the side, eyeing the Drizzile about to pelt Gyarados with a water bomb. “But you chose a Sobble to begin your journey in Galar?”

“I’ve always wobbled between Fire and Water starter Pokemon.” Katla said. “I tend to gravitate to Fire and Flying types, but I like to keep a broad team. That and Scorbunny just...we didn’t jive. But Sobble did. She’s a pretty tough girl too.”

“She is. You have trained her well.” Kabu nodded.

“I know it’s par for the course, with you being a Gym Leader and all, but yours are really well trained too.” Katla said. “Definitely gave me and my team a tough challenge.” She started to smile weakly as she realized she was starting to babble. Shut up shut up shut up.

A brief moment of silence settled between them, watching Katla’s Pokemon amuse themselves. Gyarados and Drizzile played together, whilst a Corvisquire preened himself, throwing wary glances at the Boltund play-bowing at Sizzlipede. Despite their obvious size difference, the little bug Pokemon seemed eager to accept the bigger canine’s offer. The only other Pokemon keeping to itself was Farfetch’d, absorbed with cleaning his leek.

“I notice your Carkol isn’t among your team.” Kabu commented.

“No. I keep a big team, I have to keep rotating them.” A smile pulled at the side of Katla’s lips. “After winning your gym battle, I think she earned a bit of a rest. Need to give the others time to shine.”

“Of course. Training them all to the same high standard takes effort, and a lot of time.”

“Yeah. I dunno who runs the Pokemon storage systems, but I think I’m not much liked by them. I tend to catch a lot of Pokemon I caught before in other regions for other Leagues. I have two Roselias now, for instance - one from Sinnoh and one from here.” She chuckled weakly. “One day I’ll have to go through them and see who I can keep and who would be better off elsewhere.”

Katla winced, and she looked away, face heating up in embarrassment. “Sorry, I don’t mean to talk your ear off. You’re, you probably don’t want to hear about that boring stuff.”

“I don’t mind.” Kabu said, which she assumed was out of politeness. “But I have taken up enough of your time.” He turned to her, a small smile on his features. “I wish you the best of luck in your Gym Challenge, Katla. I will be watching your matches with interest.”

Now she was sure she was blushing, with her face boiling up as it was.

“Oh, well, thanks!” She managed to splutter out. “I’ll, I’ll try to live up to your expectations.”

“I’m sure you will.” Kabu replied. “So long as you are true to yourself, and unleash the potential I witnessed during our battle.” He gave a quick nod, before turning away. “Travel safe, Katla.”

“You too, Kabu. Bye!” He lifted a hand in response, before he jogged away, leaving the trainer alone with her Pokemon and her thoughts.

“Si?” Sizzlipede was at her feet again, peering up at her curiously.

“Hey little girl.” Katla smiled, crouching down to the bug again. Seeing its expression, she gave a lopsided smile. “Ah, it’s nothing. I just...I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

Sizzlipede trilled, reaching up to clamber onto Katla’s leg so she could receive some more pettings. Her trainer smiled, watching the Pokemon relax into her hand.

Kabu’s gonna be watching my next matches? Bloody hell, no pressure.

[imaginesilenthill]

Obligated Pokemon AU occupations/careers and who does battles or contests for all protags?

Harry: He was a trainer when he was younger, but he’s settled down and cut back on his team. He just has a Pokemon or two kicking around the house, probably a Psychic type, like a Ralts that he trained into a Gardevoir. 

James: Has an emotional support Pokemon, probably a Grass type, but not necessarily a cute one. Something a little intimidating, like a Scyther. He’s not really a trainer or a leader or anything. 

Heather: Favors Electric types, with her best one being a Jolteon that she raised from childhood. Harry always thought that she would have favored Fire types, but there she is with her Electrics. She doesn’t have a gym, but she’s a famous trainer anyway. 

Henry: Similar to Harry, he doesn’t really have an occupation that deals with Pokemon. The main difference is that Henry was never a trainer. He might photograph for contests, but that’s about it. He feeds the local Meowth population around his apartment. 

Travis: Uses Pokemon in his day-to-day work, mostly in transporting things. He likes Flying types for their vesatility, but he doesn’t have one of his own. He used to, from when he was younger, but he never did a lot of training and stopped gathering badges pretty quickly. 

Alex: Has a Growlithe from back when he was in the war (it’s actually an emotional support Pokemon; see James.) His family owns the gym in Shepard’s Glen, and Josh is due to inherit it, but Alex is the better trainer and taught Joshua everything he knows. 

Murphy: He’s a trainer, and still has his old team, which doesn’t favor any one type over another. He’s always looking for new challenges, new badges. He planned on raising Charlie around Pokemon and keeping the tradition going. 

[eurekq]

so here they are.... my revamped darlings. naohiko, rika, amane, and maya are new! im going to put all their bios under the cut, they’re mostly copypasted from the old ref though except for the new kids :P i really like naohiko, he’s basically an amalgamation of every percussionist i’ve ever known lmfao

basic premise: 16 fresh-out-of-highschool prodigies are invited to star in well-respected and widely-watched big brother-esque reality tv show, which takes place on a cruise ship. what they weren't expecting was for the show's 25th season to be a killing game! the students: CHOUMI YUKIYAMA: exceptional among even her fellow shsls, choumi made her historic mark on ballet by becoming the world's youngest ever prima ballerina at the age of 13 and japan's first ever prima ballerina assoluta at 18. fans flock to her ethereal, angelic grace on stage as well as to the percieved sense of otherworldlyness surrounding her albinism. on the darker side of her popularity, repeated sexual harassment from fans and male dance partners alike has hardened her world view to make her not quite cold, but definitely reserved in her emotions. she adapts fairly easy to stressful situations and pushes through pain with almost no visible outward struggle due to her all too common experience with dancing through foot and ankle injuries. because of this she usually ends up taking initiative in difficult scenarios if no one else steps forward. she is also a quite talented hobbyist figure skater and is fluent in both english and russian. REN KIKUHARA: a fairly odd florist in that instead of ordering flowers to arrange into bouquets, every flower he sells is grown himself. although this means that his selection is seasonally and fairly regionally limited, he has an incredible talent for working with plants and can even sometimes coax out-of-zone flowers to grow. he's fluent in hanakotoba and is surprisingly good at flirting through flowers without it seeming cheesy, although he doesn't do it very often. people often remark that his bouquets often seem to have more love and life in them than store-bought ones. ren is a calm and kind soul and prefers listening to talking, with what he does say always seeming to be just the right words for the situation. MARIKO MIKAMI: mariko was a sickly child, and spent a large part of her elementary school years in hospitals. around the age of seven, she began folding paper cranes as something to do, and wished to live normally after she folded her 1000th. she soon recovered, and feels that she owes her life to origami. she is precise and calculating in everything she does, which shines through in her art: every delicate, artful piece of origami that she makes is creased and folded perfectly. she also dabbles in wet-fold origami. she's most famous for her dry-fold though, and her pieces are well known for their complex, precise, mathematical beauty. she refuses to fold paper cranes anymore, feeling that they are too sacred for her to touch after they saved her life as a child. a calm, slightly disconcerting smile is always on her face, no matter the circumstance; her manner is polite for the most part, if i a little aggressive. MOMOTAROU KOBARA: momotarou, born into a rich family that fufilled his near-every want, made a name for himself in the world of collecting at the age of just eleven by, through luck and love for the series, collecting every pokemon card. from then on he set onto collecting just about anything non-perishable: pins, collectors set bandaids, vinyls, etc. he has exceptional luck in finding deals on ebay and other sites. he cant really be called a hoarder, since he likes to have just one of everything; he resells, gifts, or uses any duplicates. his mood swings between a dreamy, chilled out, flirtatious persona and periods of numb depression when it hits him that his whole life revolves around material possesions and that he has no real human connections. SARA KUROKAWA: a talented young woman from a long line of popular backalley tattoo artists. she combines traditional symbolism and youthful influence in her designs to make something new and more appealing for the younger generation, and is a huge proponent for tattoos being shown off for fashion rather than hidden away in the traditional style. sara does have (illegal) tattoos done by her older siblings on her arms despite the minimum age being 20, although her being homeschooled, looking older than her actual age, and having a tendency to wear long sleeves year round has led her to encounter few problems. she and her family are among the many who simply choose to ignore the statute requiring a medical license to tattoo. sara is a fairly rude person in a backhanded way, acts stereotypically catty and even a little deranged sometimes, and enjoys making herself the center of attention, whether through her appearance (dyed pink hair and white contacts) or the things she says. the only two things that can break her shell and make her excited and genuine are tattooing and piano, which she has played from a young age and loves. NAOHIKO KINZUMI: the son of a concert pianist and a professional jazz drummer, naohiko shortcutted the usual pots-and-pans percussion stage most children go through and spent most of his childhood hitting actual drums. blessed with perfect pitch and a natural feel for rhythm, his parents enrolled him in private music lessons at age five, and he joined onto his first indoor percussion ensemble at age 13. a fast learner, naohiko can play most all percussion instruments at a professional level, including both tuned and auxiliary. he is especially known for his drumset skill, specifically being able to match the speed and complexity of most double kick pedal rhythms with just one foot, and his delicate grace at bowed vibraphone. naohiko is loud, brash, and fun, with an infectious smile and sense of humor that draws people in. despite the flashiness of his drumset playing, his favourite instruments are actually the weird obscure ones, like the waterphone, mahler hammer, and "bucket of loud objects to be dumped on the floor". HARUMI HAMANAKA: harumi is a sweet and bubbly girl, if almost cloyingly so. her good luck is a fairly stable force (nowhere near as chaotic as komaeda, for example), generally acting in the favor of wishes of people around her. her mother intensly wanted for her to be on the show because of the exposure it provides, and this is what harumi attributes to her being selected. despite the way her luck operates, shes no doormat and in fact has an overwhelming force of personality, and her sweet demeanor can become rather passive aggressive if challenged on pretty much anything. SHOU KATSUKI (PROTAG): pushed to succeed in the game from a very young age, shou is japan's reigning chess champion, a FIDE-certified grandmaster, and went to international competition the year before the killing game. he played through to the finals with influenza, which worsened through the matches due to lack of treatment and culminated in debilitating pneumonia that left him in the hospital and unable to play for first. because of this, he's cultivated a sort of inferiority complex that he tries to cover for with self-confidence, which actually comes off as condescending rudeness. he has a natural talent for cause and effect analyzation and is good at planning ahead. he gets flustered easily over trivial things and is a sore loser, but tends not to crack under actual pressure. shou doesn't like to be associated with his family due to the intense pressure they put him under only to steal his winnings the second he began to succeed and thus prefers to be referred to by his given name, even by near-strangers. he does genuinely love chess, but his favourite board game is actually risk. (no one ever wants to play with him, though.) RIKA FUJIMIYA: originally scouted as a young child for her unique eyes and birthmarks, rika's first minor film role at the age of nine left the director stunned at her acting capability. as someone who grew up with a very murky self image and a difficulty interpreting social situations, rika lived most of her early life essentially "acting" the way she believed others would respond well to, which resulted in her easily adapting to doing the same for the cameras. she went on to have a very prolific child acting career without really settling into a niche. As a teenager she took her first steps into stage acting, playing juliet capulet at 16 in a moving and extremely impressive performance, and later at 18 performing a striking and memorable female hamlet. her deep and rich voice has also landed her several voice acting roles. her personality offstage has solidified a lot more since her younger years, although she doesn't go out of her way to talk to anyone, fan or otherwise. when approached, she is polite, gentle, and humble, although she has trouble separating her image as a celebrity from that of her as a person and thus it is extremely difficult to get to know her. KENJI MINAMOTO: an eccentric and a bit airheaded olympic fencer whose strange insistence on not wearing protective gear during practice (he believes it makes him better by giving him a stronger motivation to not get hit) has earned him many a scar over the years, and has left at least half of his joints in braces at any given time. he follows his own bushido-esque moral code (the details of which he will not tell anyone), although he will not put himself above whapping the occasional really annoying person in the ankles. his épée is his best friend and he carries it most everywhere. most of the scars on his face and hands are actually from trying to put in his very sharp industrial piercings while drunk. despite his oddities, his light-footed and elegant ambidextrous fencing has been compared by many to a graceful dance, and although in many respects he comes across as dumb, on the court his mind is laser-focused and unbelievably quick and analytic. AMANE BECKE: a more lowkey type of talented than her fellow contestants, amane hasn't won any major competitions, been on tv, set any records, or anything of that sort. she does, however, run what is widely considered the best bakery in japan. based out of nagano and the daughter of a swiss pastry chef, amane has a natural talent for baking nurtured through over a decade of dedication and love for the craft. she excels at interesting flavor combinations, but her true genius is in her classic, feel-good baked goods. many say that the things she bakes just taste like home and warmth. amane is as warm and sweet as her creations, but with a spark of wit and mad-scientist-y genius that make her an entertaining joy to watch work, if a little overbearing to talk to. EISUKE ITOU: eisuke grew up sewing clothes for his younger sisters barbie dolls, and he particularly loved dressmaking. he gained exposure in his first year of highschool by handmaking gorgeous outfits for his class's booth at the school festival, and, through application to various junior fashion competitions, he was eventually noticed by a big-name designer in paris. however, he found learning french next to impossible and has spent the year prior to the game in relative isolation, unable to have any real human conversation. his psychological state was fairly severely impacted by his long hours spent sewing and designing on internship with no company to get him by, and he is now debilitatingly socially anxious and finds conversation difficult and awkward. MAYA HANABAYASHI: maya spent her early teens with only a passing interest in survival-based media, having enjoyed hunger games and similar media, but not to the point of obsession. however, when traveling on a plane with her father back from visiting family in las vegas, she found herself in a similar situation when their plane went down in a heavily forested area of california, leaving a seventeen year old maya as the only survivor. with only a swiss army knife and a lipstick-shaped stun gun gifted to her by her father to feel safer during their stay in vegas, she survived alone in the woods hatchet-style for six months until late fall, when the fallen leaves made her campfire coincidentally visible to a very observant park ranger on firewatch. after being rescued and returned home to japan, maya found it extremely difficult to readjust to normal life. her thick and warm camo jacket, more a fashion statement when she was wearing it originally, was lifesaver to her during the cold spring, and she she can't bring herself to separate from it even with multiple rips and burns in the fabric. she has refused multiple book deals due to still being heavily traumatized, but after a long period of deliberation decided to go on the show as a way of finally moving forward and acknowledging it. maya isn't exactly socially anxious, but rather closed off and disconnected. JUN TENSEI: born jun harada, many believe that his spiritual connection is the real deal, but a few critics hold that he is most likely just an incredibly talented bluffer. the real truth about him is unknown, but many say that his seances do accurately reflect the personalities of their deceased loved ones and help them feel at peace. he is deeply religious, but not to any one traditional faith (although he does use traditional christian symbols such as crucifixes and items such as holy water on occasion). he believes strongly in the power of the soul and its ability to exist beyond death. his voice is soft and almost hypnotic, and he has a penchant for gentle teasing and riddles. he comes off as pretty shady to most, but he's fairly harmless. TOMOKO KAITA: a peppy and outgoing astrology guru who can read your deepest flaws and strengths with just your date and time of birth. known worldwide for her extremely accurate personal horoscopes. despite this, she strongly believes in the ability of an individual to defy their fate through hard work and self improvement. she dislikes giving negative horoscopes, and does her best to focus on the positives that the stars hold in store. her smile brightens the whole room! she is intensely loyal to her friends, to the point of self-sacrificing emotional labor. YUU IROIKE: yuu iroike isn't even his real name, and it's a mystery as to how show staff even tracked down his mailing address to get him on the show. he's a well-known public figure for painting huge, sprawling, colorful murals in tokyo, yet who he really is remains unknown. he paints faster than his murals can be scrubbed away, and has somehow never been prosecuted for vandalism because his graffiti is generally considered an improvment. he's sly, mysterious, and teasing in person, and gets a bit of an itchy trigger finger when he hasn't painted in a while. His skill with spray paint is so great that it seems as if the paint bends to his very will.

[verycharismaticdragon]

1,5,8,20,21 :D

Answered 1 & 8 already!

5. Favorite villain team?

I don’t have a strong attachment to any, but currently it’s a tie between Plasma and Skull.

I mean, Skulls are, y'know. They are just a bunch of teenagers living in one house together? They dance and rap at you? They are, for the lack of better word, adorable? I would adopt every single one? Basically I don’t love them as villains, I love them as a bunch of dumb misguided kids. I was really happy to see them around Alola after main storyline trying to fit in and do better! …Also they have best outfits. Ok maybe tied with team Magma’s hoodies but still!

With team Plasma, I really liked how it was shown to not be a monolith all-for-one thing (like most other teams seem). Like, in BW you could really see that there are all kinds of motivations and opinions inside the team. It was really interesting and made them more realistic, added a layer to the story where you could definitely understand where some of them were coming from and empathize, at the same time knowing that they are being manipulated and hoping they would just… see that. And it’s cool how in BW2 that invisible divide became visible & pronounced. 

And as with Skulls it was good to see the Ex-Plasma working hard on being better. I just love redemption arcs a lot, okay?

20. Best storyline?

BW, no contest. I’ve been thinking about what made it more engaging for me than others, aside from what I already said about Plasma and aside from just plain loving N a whole lot, and I think the answer is pacing. It’s really unlike any other Pokemon game I played (keep in mind that I weren’t to Hoenn, Sinnoh and Kalos yet). The way encounters with team Plasma and N are positioned in relation to the traditional beat-the-gyms plot make for a very concise story - it felt more like a movie than a game. Which didn’t take away any parts that make Pokemon games fun! Exploring, meeting pokemon, meeting other characters - it’s all still there, but now with PLOT. And not to say that other games don’t have plot, but it’s often, how do I put it… there are a lot of times when protag is just left alone for quite some time with no interference from other events. And it’s not bad in general that you have time to just travel, it’s charming in it’s own way, but I think the big part of emotional impact Black made on me is that it grabbed my attention early and didn’t let go of it until the credits rolled.

And that’s even without getting into the whole “this game actually raises a lot of interesting points/questions about identity, relationships, and personal impact” thing.

21. Best Rival?

Silver!

Let me preface this with: I love friendly rivals. They are all good kids! Them being good does not make them boring! Plus since Pokemon games are, in fact, for children, it’s pretty cool of them to model what healthy competativeness looks like.

That said… As I already mentioned, I LOVE redemption arcs. They are my lifeblood, I breathe them, all that. I love character development! And Silver? He’s got the best one.

Let me elaborate. Out of all rivals over the years, only 3 got what counts as a redemption arc: Blue, Silver, and Gladion. I love Gladion a lot, but a big part of the redemption arc is starting at 'bad’ and growing from there, so it doesn’t make quite the same impact if the character is already a decent person, which he is. Blue’s growth from Kanto games to Johto games to SuMo is great and a pleasure to behold, but I don’t feel for him the same way I do for Silver, partially because the person he’s most vehemently competative towards is someone he knew his whole life and I just… well, have trouble wrapping my head around that. 

Now, Silver. Silver does the same thing Blue does, only better and in a span of a single game. And by better I mean ‘he starts out so much worse but gets his shit together faster’.

At the beginning, he’s aggressive, rude, and oh not to mention commits a crime as the start of his storyline. On top of that, he treats his pokemon shittily, blames them for every loss they experience at protag’s hand, claims that he only cares about pokemon that are strong (which btw is an interesting contradiction considering he never actually changes his team, but that’s definitely way off topic), all that jazz. Now, after unwrapping his backstory you can definitely tell where all of those things come from (like, hell, the kid’s been homeless for three years! that alone could be enough to fuck him up, but nah, that actually got piled up on top of other crap), but it’s an explaination, not an excuse.

However.

Through the encounters with protag and Lance, Silver starts to doubt his approach. With each battle, his agressive villain-like shell cracks some more, and you can see him slowly accepting his flaws and resolving to do better. This makes for an extremely satisfying character arc, which also happens to align perfectly with my taste. I honestly kinda rushed through Johto because of him: I literally couldn’t wait for the next encounter to see how he changes next. (flashback to me speedrunning Victory Road because the girl at the entrance mentioned a strong trainer passing by and I was like Oh thats him! Thats my boy!)

Also, end of the game Silver is just… *cluthches heart* *starts crying*

Wait, I’ll get the quotes! “…You won, fair and square. I admit it. But this isn’t the end. I’m going to be the greatest Pokemon Trainer ever. Because these guys are behind me.” GOD. “…No, I won’t battle you now… My Pokemon aren’t ready to beat you. I can’t push them too hard now” UGH! This! From the same guy who used to say shit like "You only won because my Pokemon were weak" and “a Pokemon that can’t battle is worthless”! I know I’m going incoherent but god I love me a redemption arc!!

[kotolocke]

Entry #03: Violet City.

Get ready boys, this is where the serious battling starts. And it starts with a big tower dedicated to a living vine. I love Pokemon. We’re gonna cover Lyra’s adventures in Sprout Tower, Route 32 and Violet Gym. But first—

—apparently Falkner gets some guy to stop people who haven’t beaten the monks at Sprout Tower? Violet City seems hella interconnected so expect a world-building post on that soon. Regardless, on with the show!

Sprout Tower.

   Okay, first off, this place is so interesting? I always forget about it but seeing as this is a place Lyra visits early on in her journey it’s pretty significant in shaping her ideas of what being a trainer is all about.

   She’s taking part in an ancient tradition, and she needs to honour it by making sure she trains her Pokemon in such a way that is respectful to them and the Pokemon handlers of the past. She also kicks these monks asses very hard. Who’s the training master now?

   Of course, we’re in a new area so we’ve got a chance to get a new friend, so meet Plum!

I really need to stop forgetting to take snaps of Pokemon in battle smh. I may have cheated a little and waited until night to go into the tower so I had a shot at getting Lyra something other than a Rattata and as you can see it payed off! Back to Plum though, he’s a pretty dower Pokemon. Ghost-types tend to come in two flavours; extremely silly and playful, messing about with other Pokemon and people for their own amusement or serious and weary of others, sometimes even vengeful—people tend to be scared of them and this sometimes leaves them feeling bitter and lonely. Plum’s a mild version of the second variety, he’s sombre and baleful, preferring to wear opponents down with status moves rather than go on a full out offensive. He’s a little weary of Lyra and her party when he’s first captured but he also appreciates the fact he’s finally in company that’s obliged to be nice to him. Small mercies. 

  I’m not gonna cover the rest of the randos in the tower because they and their dialogue belong in a world-building post, so let’s climb on up to the top...

   ...Where Lyra has her second encounter with Silver. Or half encounter? Can it really be considered an encounter if it’s not clear if they saw each-other? They did in blog canon anyway, Lyra insisted he must have cheated because there’s no way a mean, useless trainer like him could have defeated a great sage, Silver told her to shut up because weak trainers and their puny Pokemon have no business judging others. Which causes the Elder to level this choice criticism @ Silver:

Which, ofc, pisses Silv right off.

   So just to reiterate, early-game Silver’s an asshole, but this whole exchange kinda makes me wonder how uncommon Silver’s attitude towards Pokemon is? I’ll probably write a more in-depth world-building post about it later but as much as the games try to emphasise this ‘you should love your Pokemon!’ attitude, I don’t think many trainers really love their Pokemon with the same intensity I see Lyra loving hers? I mean HGSS in particular have a plot-line about how it’s actually not good to make Pokemon evolve before they’re ready but plenty of Gym Leaders and E4 members have Pokemon that are too low of a level to be at the evolutionary stage they are. I think Silver’s a very extreme trainer and very few people are as callous as he is towards his Pokemon, but. The Elder is absolutely in the minority of people who don’t think of Pokemon as “tools of war”—most treat their Pokemon decently, with respect, but they are primarily seen as living weapons that require a firm hand. Pokemon were once seen as enemies of man in feudal times and most people still don’t feel as friendly towards them as they would other humans.

  Anyway, enough world-building, let’s talk about Lyra’s battle with the Elder.

If you couldn’t tell, this Hoothoot was legitimately the first Pokemon that gave me any trouble and I actually got kinda scared Nutmeg was gonna faint but ultimately it didn’t take too long to defeat him. In blog cannon this fight probably makes Lyra realise that she’s gonna have to get a little more serious about battling if she wants to make it as a trainer. She’s good at training Pokemon to unleash cool little tricks and strategies in battle but I think at this point in her journey she sometimes keeps Pokemon out for longer than she should ‘cause she wants to show off a cool trick she came up with. And, well,

 seems to have worked on the Elder; he clearly likes her stuff!

Route 32.

   Before Lyra goes ahead and does battle Falkner, she’s gotta get a little extra training in. Though the message still hasn’t quite sunk in, the battle with the Elder makes her realise she should probably try to toughen her Pokemon up a little should they get stuck in a tight spot again.

   Now behold our potential new teammate from this area, a Bellsprout!

Unfortunately, Cabbage hit her with a crit Razor Leaf and she fainted in game. In blog canon she just ran off into the treeline and Lyra decided it would just be kinda cruel to pursue her. Hopefully she can just synthesise the damage off.

   Now, it’s time for a t-t-t-t-training montage! A couple of cool things happen whilst Lyra’s training in this area. First up and probably most important—

—Pod evolves! At this point Lyra’s been on the road for around a week and a half so his pupation time is up and he’s finally a beautiful Butterfree! He’s very eager to try out some of the techniques Lyra, Cabbage & Nutmeg have practised; he can fly but he’s not got claws like Meg has so he relies on a combination of spores and powders (like Cabb) and special moves. Lyra earns Pod’s eternal love by basically letting him go ham on a bunch of wild Bellsprouts and scaring them off with a Confusion he lets loose while flying around in high-speed circles. Lyra did feel bad about that later but in the moment she was just happy to see her little man so excited.

Best!! Friends!!

   Another member of the team starts to grow closer to Lyra at this point too; the newly caught Plum!

As previously mentioned, he starts off pretty gloomy and he kinda struggles to keep eye-contact with Lyra because he’s a little shy. He’s also not used to being out in sunlight; it doesn’t hurt him or anything but it takes a while for his eyes to adjust to it. But as soon as he realises Lyra’s highkey fascinated by him—Ghost-types are amongst the most poorly understood Pokemon and thus she hasn’t been able to read up on them much—and genuinely wants to work out how to put his weird ghostly powers to best use, he gets attached to her really quickly. He’s just never had anyone be so vocally supportive of him before! And all the rest of her Pokemon are so nice to him too??

Plum loves his new trainer so much!!

Violet Gym.

   It’s time baby.

Hell.

Yeah.

   There’s not too much to say about the trainers leading up to Falkner. They were pretty easy and one of them comments on the fact that Lyra’s mad strong. My headcanon that the protags are prodigies isn’t a headcanon lads, it’s just Facts.

See? Anyway the dojo-esque vibes in this Gym kinda made me wonder; are Gym’s called gyms because the trainers under the leader train their Pokemon there? Are they kinda like advanced Pokemon schools? Obviously the trainers have to be at least decent to be able to act as a leader’s gatekeeper but they’re probably there primarily to train under them. It’s definitely a topic for a worldbuilding post. Anyway that’s not important right now, what’s important right now is—

—Falkner.  

   Lyra had no trouble dealing with his first Pokemon, a level 9 Pidgey didn’t face up well against Lyra’s team of level 11s. Blog-wise, Scritches dealt with it very quickly by using a Quick Attack aimed at the ground to knock it out of the air.

  But the level 13 (under-leveled!) Pidgeotto that followed was an absolute menace. It was absolutely the bulkiest Pokemon Lyra had battled against so far and that combined with it’s Roost move made it incredibly difficult for her Pokemon to get any damage on it. 

He

completely 

rased

her 

team.

   As the fight progressed, Lyra began to cotton on to the fact that there was something not quite right about this Pidgeotto. After a Pokedex scan revealed it’s odd level, she began to suspect that this wasn’t a Pokemon that Falkner trained himself. It took a highly skilled trainer to get a Pokemon to evolve and unorthodox (and sometimes cruel) methods to get a Pokemon to evolve before it’s reached a level of power that it normally would need to do so. And Gym leader Falkner might be, but highly experienced trainer he is not. 

   By the time her last Pokemon went down, Lyra was fuming mad and extremely anxious. She rushed back to the Pokecentre and spent the next six hours flying between panic attacks as she hoped and prayed her Pokemon would pull through and utter rage at the fact that a league official would use a Pokemon that they had not only not trained themselves but also potentially abused. When her Pokemon were finally stabilised and returned to her she was still pacing around the Pokecentre for an hour after, trying to work out how best to tackle Falkner in a rematch.

   Eventually she decided that she had focused too intensely on raw attack power. If she was going to deal with a trainer who made use of some underhanded training techniques then it was only logical that she would have to get him back with some nasty tricks of her own. She and Plum were going to need to spend a little extra time training together, and I’ll be going into the details of it in the next entry.