Monday, February 28, 2011

Part 28: Exposition Explosion

"Okay, gramps! I brought Donny like I said. All right, I'll be outta here!"

Professor Rowan and Dawn were sitting at one of the library tables. Rowan cleared his throat, and Tim rolled his eyes, sitting down.

Rowan nodded. "Hm! Everyone's here finally. Donny, everyone, listen. You may have forgotten already, but I study the evolution of Pokemon. But the more I study, the more mysteries appear and multiply. Pokemon that evolve, and those that don't...what makes them different from each other? Do those that are immature as living beings evolve to ones more mature? If so, what do we make of the legendary Pokemon that don't evolve? Are we to assume that the legendary Pokemon are complete as creatures?"

Silence went around before he continued speaking.

"This is where you three come in. In the three lakes of Sinnoh, there are said to be mirage Pokemon. If we can obtain data on them, it may shed some light on how the process of Pokemon evolution works. I need help from each one of you on this grand undertaking. Help me find these Pokemon that are considered to be mirages."

"What are you saying? I didn't get a Pokedex!" Tim yelled.

"And who was it that bolted from the lab before I had a chance to give you a Pokedex? But that's water under the bridge! Seeing Pokemon with your own eyes is important for you in becoming a better Trainer, too."

Dawn grinned. "You can count on me! It will help with my Pokedex, too. Donny, you'll go, too, won't you?"

Before I could speak, Rowan interrupted. "I would have made all of you go regardless...Anyway. Now, there are three lakes. Fortuitously, there are three of you. You should therefore split up and investigate the lakes individually. Dawn, you go to Lake Verity."

"Will do!"

"Tim, I want you to investigate Lake Acuity. That would take you almost to snowpoint City. The road there is harsh. I need a tough Trainer to go."

Tim nodded at Rowan. "Sure, of course! Gramps, you know how to call it! You can tell I'm the hotness! And you know what? I was going to catch those legendary Pokemon for you. You know, as thanks for giving us our Pokemon back on Route 201...even though I completely forgot about it until just now."

"Very well," Rowan said. "I'm counting on you." He looked at me. "And that leaves Donny with Lake Valor. The lake is between Veilstone and Pastoria, if memory serves..."

DDDOOOMMM!!

The shaking stopped just as suddenly as it had started.

Rowan's eyes squinted. "Has it stopped? Are all of you unharmed?"

Tim whined. "What was that all about? No, wait, I mean, TV! The TV! News, anything!"

We all turned to the tv, which had a picture of smoke rising from the ground. The announcer spoke over the image. "What you've just witnessed is actual footage from the scene. It was taken by a cameraman who happened to be there. It's certaintly impressive. Who knows what the explosion could expose at the lake?"

Tim looked worried. "Gramps! They said it was an explosion?"

"Hmm..." Rowan thought. "But why at Lake Valor? Let's get outside. I'm concerned about the town. You kids, be careful going down the stairs."

Dawn got up to leave, then looked back at me. "Donny. You should leave now too. There may be aftershocks, however. Be alert always."

I raced down the stairs and met the group outside.

Rowan was looking to the sky. "That tremor...that wasn't a natural occurrence."

A sailor ran up to us. "Hey, hey! Old dude and kids! Did you hear? They're saying there was a huge explosion at Lake Valor! But I hear everything's fine now. I guess it was just a lot of noise."

"Gramps!" Tim exploded. "I'm going! I have a bad feeling about this!" And with that, he rushed off.

Rowan shook his head. "That Tim, can't sit still. Donny, I don't like to demand, but I need you at Lake Valor. It's impossible for things to be OK. Not after an explosion like that. But I have no idea what's taking place. But before you go, let me stress: don't get in over your head. We will try to join you as soon as we inspect Lake Verity."

"Donny, you'll be okay, no matter what, right?" Dawn asked.

I nod and head off towards the lake.

Part 27: Canalave City

"Welcome to Canalave City, the Canal City!"

What is it about me? Do I look like a tourist or something? Or is it the trainer outfit?

"In the old days, this port used to be a hub of cargo transportation. It's also home to the famous Canalave Library, a nexus of knowledge--"

I interrupted him. "I like to explore on my own, thank you, though."

The man fumbled a little. "Er...uh...I guess...that's okay."

I head up and stop in at the Pokemart, filling up on my potions, and then heal at the Pokecenter.

And then, I hear him off in the distance.

"DONNY!"

Tim. I turn to see the hyperactive boy run up to me. "You're going to challenge the Gym Leader up past here, eh? Someone should check to see if you're ready for this challenge!"

I narrow my eyes. "Lemme guess..."

"That someone is me! With my brand-new Gym Badge!"

And with that, he pulled out a Pokeball and threw it out, causing the battle to begin.

The first thing I'm up against is a Staraptor. I have Oswald deal with it easily enough.

Next up is a Floatzel, so I send Starbit to wipe it out with Thunder Fang.

Surprisingly, a Rapidash is next, so I figure Sheldon is good to take it out nice and quick with Surf.

Waffle can take out his Heracross, so a good Flame Wheel and Stomp faints it. I leave Waffle in for Torterra. Fire Blast is awesome.

With his team soundly defeated, Tim gathered up his Pokeballs and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, you're just a bit better than me, as usual. But listen up!" Determination glinted once more. "Let me tell you who's going to take on the Pokemon League and become the Champion. You guessed right! It's going to be me!" He quieted and looked off into the distance. "Anyway, you should go to Iron Island and toughen up some more. That's what I did before going to the Gym!"

And with that, he rushed off, leaving me to explore a bit more.

The library is right after the bridge, so I go in to learn a bit more about the history of the place.

The third floor has some interesting books, so I snap up Sinnoh Myth.

"Betray not your anger, lest ??? will come."

Interesting.

"Weep not with sorrow, or ??? will draw near."

What is this, the monster in the closet?

"When joy and enjoyment come natural as the very air, that is happiness. Let such be blessed by the hand of Master ???. Those words were spoken often as customary."

Spoken often as customary? Wut.

"Three Pokemon there were. Into the lakes they dove. Deep, deep, drawing no breath."

Well, that can't be good.

"Deeper, deeper they drove. Into suffocating depths they dove."

Okay, we get it. They're gonna live or die, just tell us already.

"Deeper, then deepest they alight."

Oh my god, really?

"From the lake floor they rise."

THEN WHY DID THEY DIVE IN THE FIRST PLACE?!

"Bearing with them the power to make vast lands, they rise again."

Well then.

Sinnoh Region's Mythology catches my eye and I crack it open.

"Long ago, when Sinnoh had just been made, Pokemon and humans led separate lives. That is not to say they did not help each other. No, indeed they did. They supplied each other with goods, and supported each other. A Pokemon proposed to the others to always be ready to help humans. It asked that Pokemon be ready to appear before humans always. Thus, to this day, Pokemon appear to us if we venture into tall grass."

I let out a loud chortle, and a few shush noises reached me. So...THAT'S why Pokemon throw themselves at me? Just because some Pokemon proposed that they should always be ready to help?

Another book looks short, so I put the others away and read it. It's called Veilstone's Myth.

"A young man, callow and foolish in innocence, came to own a sword. With it, he smote Pokemon, which gave sustenance, with carefree abandon. Those not taken as food, he discarded, with no afterthought. The following year, no Pokemon appeared. Larders grew bare. ...would you like to keep reading?"

I blinked. Well...yeah.

"The young man, seeking the missing Pokemon, journeyed afar. Long did he search. And far and wide, too, until one he did find. Asked he..."

WHY ARE YOU TALKING LIKE THIS.

"WHy do you hide? To which the Pokemon replied...If you bear your sword to bring harm upon us, with claws and fangs, we will exact a toll. From your kind we will take our toll, for it must be done. Done it must be to guard ourselves and for it, I apologize. Would you like to keep reading?"

YES.

"To the skies, the young man shouted his dismay. In having found the sword, I have lost so much. Gorged with power, I grew blind to Pokemon being alive. I will never fall savage again. This sword I denounce and forsake. I plead for forgiveness, for I was but a fool. So saying, the young man hurled the sword to the ground, snapping it. Seeing this, the Pokemon disappeared to a place beyond seeing..."

WHAT NO OPTION TO CONTINUE READING? I want to know what happened!

"In the beginning, there was only a churning turmoil of chaos. At the heart of chaos, where all things became one, appeared an Egg."

Doesn't science say order cannot come from chaos? Weird.

"Having tumbled from the vortex, the Egg gave rise to the Original One. From itself, two beings the Original One did make. Time started to spin. Space began to expand. From itselfe again, three living things the Original One did make. The two beings wished, and from them, matter came to be. The three living things wished, and from them, spirit came to be. The world created, the Original One took to unyielding sleep."

Somewhat interesting, learning about the different things of the Sinnoh region and such. Enough library for now, though, I've got Iron Island to explore.

I step off the boat and meet a trainer named Riley. He gives me an HM for Strength. But...I need the Mine Badge from the Canalave Gym. Hope I won't need it in the cave.

I really hate caves.

Deeper in the cave, I meet up with Riley again.

"Donny, I'm glad to see you here. If you don't mind, let's team up. The Pokemon seem to be restless."

Apparently I decided to go with Riley. But, he'll heal my Pokemon, so that's kinda awesome.

After a few trainers, we beat off a pair of Galactic Grunts, and Riley gave me an egg to hatch. I hatched it and got a Riolu, the pre-evolution of Lucario, which is cool.

After that, I went to the gym and took down the leader rather quickly. I think I'm a little over-leveled, but it's not bad.

"Having the Mine Badge enables you to use the hidden move Strength anytime outside of battle. And you now have six Gym Badges. Here, take this too!" He gave me TM91 (Flash Cannon).

As soon as I stepped outside of the Gym, I saw Tim standing there.

"Hey, that's the Mine Badge! Good going! You're tough enough to consider becoming the Pokemon Champion. Of course, I'm tougher, so it's not going to actually happen. Anyway, Donny, come with me to the library."

He speeds off towards the library, and I give a sigh. Great. More reading.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Part 26: Marshes and Mansions

Slogging through the marsh is not fun. I'm reminded of the Lord of the Rings scene in the books where the flies and mud and such just torture the party as they travel. Thankfully, I don't have Ring Wraiths after me, so there's not too much worry about getting stuck forever or getting my soul sucked out of my body.

Which is always good.

But I do run into a few trainers, so I'm able to level up my Pokemon that way, as well as the random pokemon throwing themselves in front of my strong team for absolutely no reason. Y'know, I don't WANT random battles, I really hate random battles in games, even though I love RPG's. Like Final Fantasy for example. I've only played FF9 at great length, and that was on an emulator. I own X-2 and XII for console, but I haven't really pulled them out and played them...like...at all.

Because of the stupid, idiotic, take-three-steps and BAM BATTLE OUT OF NOWHERE.

K, enough of me ranting, back to my Pokemon journey.

I finally make it to the Pokemon Mansion. I step inside, and a woman greets me.

"This is the way out to the trophy garden. The garden is open for all visitors to enjoy. Please beware-wild Pokemon may appear in the garden."

Hmmm...might be a good chance to see what Pokemon appear here. But first to explore the rest of the mansion.

"The 5-Maid Knockout Exact-Turn Attack Challenge! Beat all 5 of us in a row without a break! Want to try?"

Hell yeah, let's give this a shot!

Ninteen moves later, I fail the stupid challenge. Let's go flind Backlot. His office is just down the hallway, and the maid shows me in.

"Hello, hello! Welcome to my opulent mansion! There's a lot for me to be proud of inside, and outside, of this home...But what makes me the most proud is my trophy garden in the back! Why bother traveling afar when Pokemon are attracted by my garden? They come to me in hopes of seeing the garden! You're welcome to join them and marvel at my garden!"

The butler next to him straightened. "Master is a truly wonderful and generous person! It's on his orders that the garden, his pride and joy, is open to all, even Trainers."

Maybe this guy isn't so bad after all. I thought he would be incredibly snooty. Maybe I'll find some interesting Pokemon.

Eh, nothing terribly interesting, so I just head back into town to take down the gym.

Even though it was slightly annoying to navigate, it wasn't very hard. Starbit was most valuable player of course, because of the elctric type.

After heading out, I walked by the signboard with the Croagunk picture on it, and saw Tim's face sticking out of it.

I blinked and turned to talk to him, but noticed the Gym Leader, Crasher Wake, standing near the entrance to the Marsh. I tried to ignore Tim, but when I started to talk to Wake, he just sorta butted in.

"Hey!" Tim rushed up. "What am I, Chopped liver? Don't forget I'm here too!"

Wake sighed. "So, where's this Galac..."

DDDOOOMMM!!

Best sound effect ever.

With the DDDOOOMMM!! sound sounded, a Galactic grunt rushed out of the marsh.

"Fweh! That was rough."

Wake looked angry and stared at the grunt. "YOU! What've you done?!"

Crossing his arms, the grunt snorted. "What've I done, you're asking? Well, technically speaking, it wasn't me. The package that arrived, see, that was a bomb, named the Galactic Bomb. Me, I was told to ppush the button. So I did. Like, poink! Oh, that's right! Mustn't forget! The test results need reporting! Cheerio, then! You daft codger, your mask's absurd!"

"The Great Marsh is invaluable..." Waka turned to the entrance. "You two! Do NOT follow me! Don't let anyone else in, either! There'd be big trouble if there's any of that bomb left!"

Tim started to go in after him. "Hey! Donny! Go after that Galactic guy! I'll wait here!"

I finally caught up after a rather long chase and was able to defeat his one Pokemon rather easily. What do these guys think, only having one Pokemon up against a trainer?

After the battle, Cynthia showed up and gave me something called SECRETPOTION (all one word so you have to say it really fast) to heal the Psyducks that are blocking the route to Celestic Town. Tim and her headed off to Lake Valor to investigate the Galactic stuffs that's going on.

Awesome, that gives me a chance to grind up some of my Pokemon and look in a new town.

WHICH IS INCREDIBLY SMALL.

How come I always end up in a town without a Pokemart after getting something from an event?

----------------------------------------------

We went to Gamestop and got Celebi from the event there, and it's supercute.

----------------------------------------------

Anyways, on my way to Celestic Town I taught defog to a Tropius I had. I actually think that Pokemon is kind of cool. I wouldn't mind using one on a team one day.

I got there and perused the town for a while, found Cynthia's grandmother (we'll call her Old Lady) who I had to deliver some sort of charm to. She told me about the Glactic Grunt who's standing out in front of the shrine.

He was an easy win, and I head inside to take a look around. There isn't much in there other than a cave drawing depicting three Pokemon "in balance".

After a bit of history about the balance of Pokemon and such, Cyrus shows up out of nowhere.

DUNDUNDUN

So, he spouts off a bunch of stuff about wanting to make the world a new or better place, and I defeat his team easily. Can't make much change with a weak Pokemon team.

After Cyrus admits defeat, he runs off, and Old Lady hands over Surf (HM03).

SUDDEN BACKTRACKING TO ROUTE 218 TO FISH, WHEE.

I didn't really catch anything of interest.

BACK TO CELESTIC TOWN, WHEE.

After a bit of grinding up, Belle evolved into Purugly. Everyone says it's ugly, but I think it's super cute and fluffy looking. The colours are nice on it too.

Sheldon evolved into Empoleon, and it's now part water and steel, and really awesome-looking. Waffle evolved FINALLY into Rapidash. Been waiting a while for that to happen, it's one of my favorite evolutions.

Me and Josh have been playing Pokemon together a bit now, and sometimes I just don't type what happens, thus the un-story-likeness of some of these posts. They aren't really entertaining, hopefully later ones will be.

Anyway, here's updated stats for my Pokemon after grinding and such:

Oswald (Drifblim) GHOST/FLYING

HP: 181
ATTACK: 82
DEFENSE: 50
SP. ATK: 88
SP. DEF: 46
SPEED: 86

Starbit (Luxray) ELECTRIC

HP: 120
ATTACK: 117
DEFENSE: 74
SP. ATK: 91
SP. DEF: 69
SPEED: 70

Belle (Purugly) NORMAL

HP: 124
ATTACK: 82
DEFENSE: 50
SP. ATK: 60
SP. DEF: 61
SPEED: 105

Waffle (Rapidash) FIRE

HP: 108
ATTACK: 92
DEFENSE: 75
SP. ATK: 87
SP. DEF: 77
SPEED: 104

Josh (Floatzel) WATER

HP: 130
ATTACK: 92
DEFENSE: 53
SP. ATK: 79
SP. DEF: 46
SPEED: 115

Sheldon (Empoleon) Water/STEEL

HP: 131
ATTACK: 89
DEFENSE: 85
SP. ATK: 109
SP. DEF: 90
SPEED: 66

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Part 25: Pastoria City and B&W Thoughts

So let's explore, shall we? What have we got?

I walk up to the first person I see.

"I'm visiting here to see the Great Marsh. I'm staying at the lakeside hotel."

What's the Great Marsh? Before I could ask, she just turned and walked off. Hmmf. Bit rude.

I continued walking more into the city, and someone with blue hair grumbled past me, mumbling to themselves.

"Grr...the package hasn't arrived from the Veilstone warehouse yet...I'm going batty from this wait...why do I have to wait here until it arrives? Wish I could do something that involves lots of explosives. Yup, this is going to be a smashing job for Team Galactic."

My eyes widened and I turned to see him dissapear into the crowd of people. What was Team Galactic up to now?

I saw a sign for Pastoria Great Marsh Observatory Gate. I ignored it for now. I like to sort of scout a city before doing anything else.

Ah, a Pokemon Center. As my Pokemon were healed, I struck up a conversation with someone there. I asked about the Great Marsh again, but he seemed to ignore me.

"The Great Marsh is vast! How vast is it, you ask?"

I didn't ask.

"Take a look from the Observatory and you can see for yourself!"

Ah, so that's what that was for.

"Pastoria'S Great Marsh was once a part of the Sea. The seawater drained slowly away over time, leaving the huge marshland. That's why they say there are rare Pokemon that you can only see here."

Well, let's head into the Great Marsh and see what we can get. I head back and walk up to the counter.

"Welcome to the Great Marsh! Is this your first Safari Game?"

I nod, and she happily explains what should be done.

"When you enter the Great Marsh, you start with 30 Safari Balls. That's the only kind of ball you're allowed to use in the Safari Game. The game is over when you run out of Safari Balls, or when you've walked 500 steps. Please do enjoy the untamed nature of the Great Marsh!"

I caught a Bibarel, Tropius, Wooper, and Tangela.

Tropius I actually kind of like. I might have used it earlier in the game, but I like my team now.

Another house has a man who wants to see a male and female combee. Thankfully, I have caught them, so I gladly show them to him.

"Cool! A female and male Combee. I feel giddy! Here's a reward, go ahead, take it!"

He hands me the Macho Brace, and I take a look at it. It promotes strength, but lowers speed.

"The Pokemon Combee is quite interesting. Only the female evolves and grows strong. The male does not. Come to think of it, my wife was awfully strong, too. She evolved from my bride to the mother of our kids."

Well then. I go and return my Combees to the Pokemon Center and continue exploring.

A woman called out to me. "Have you been to the Pokemon Mansion? It's on Route 212. The owner, Mr. Backlot, likes to brag about his herd of rare Pokemon."

Hmm...well, rare Pokemon doesn't usually mean awesome Pokemon. My team is clearly the better over any rare Pokemon.

Well, maybe I'll have to pay a visit to Mr. Backlot. I head to Route 212, eager to meet this man who thinks his Pokemon are so awesome.

---------------------------------
In Which I Talk About Black/White
---------------------------------

On a side note, I'll be preordering Pokemon Black, and Josh is going to be getting White. I doubt I'll do a text LP of it, and I do want to finish Platinum before even starting that one up, so we'll see. I've heard it's pretty different, so it should be interesting to talk about.

I don't really have a specific team I want to use, I usually pick when I find the right Pokemon. I usually go for the cute ones.

I do know my starter is going to be Oshawott, but I probably won't evolve it past it's second form, we'll have to see. I like the name Samurott, though.

I like Liepard, Tirtouga, Deerling, Vanillite, Klink, Litwick, Virizion, and Deino. I like the Legendary that's going to be in White (Zekrom) better, but no sense in having two of the same games.

I do at least want to use Deerling and Deino (even though you get it later on in the game) in my team. I'll probably end up using some other cute pokemon like the fluffeh dog and such. Have to see.

Part 24: My Journey Continues

So last we left off, Dawn had approached and was all like "help me, I can't fight these goons alone!"

Unfortunately, I forgot to type out what I've done since then, so, I went through the Galactic Building and such. I'll type out what my little note cards say when I start up the game.

"Feb. 2 Wednesday:

Started from Veilstone City. Departed from Galactic HQ. Got through Solaceon Ruins. Rare Candy was obtained. Got through Maniac Tunnel. Caught UNOWWN (LATE NIGHT)."

In other news, Josh and I went to the Gamestop event and got the three Shiny Legendaries. I didn't feel like resetting for stats, because I'm not going to use them for battle most likely.

Raikou (lvl 30)

A nice design, and the tail is kind of cool with the ligntning tail. It's an electric type, so it makes sense. Yellow is one of my favorite colours, so the yellow pouf thing on it is neat.

My Raikou has a rash nature.

HP: 102
Attack: 63
Defense: 55
Sp. Atk: 89
Sp. Def: 63
Speed: 74

Entei (lvl 30)

Not too impressed with the way this one looks. It's not terrible, it's just not my favorite. It looks chunky, and has this weird blue face/brown body thing going on like they ran out of colours. It's a fire type.

My Entei has an adamant nature.

HP: 116
Attack: 88
Defense: 57
Sp. Atk: 55
Sp. Def: 53
Speed: 67

Suicune (lvl 30)

My favorite out of the three, I absolutely adore the design of this Pokemon. Excellent lines and has an unearthly feel to it with the flowing wavy stuff coming off of it. The colour is nice, with the dark blue/light blue body with the white spots. It is a water type.

My Suicune has a relaxed nature.

HP: 103
Attack: 53
Defense: 88
Sp. Atk: 64
Sp. Def: 81
Speed: 53

I continue on to route 214 towards Valor Lakefront. I battle a few trainers on the way, trying to get everyone on my team up to level 30.

I finally make it into town, and discover that some lady is missing her room key. She gives a very Anvilicious clue that the dowsing app might help. But she doesn't have it. Good thing I do. What would people do without me, seriously?

I start to explore a few houses, because no one seems to care me just barging in wherever I want to. A clown gave me the TM92 (Trick Room)

I finally got the key back to the lady and she gave me a White Flute. A bleh prize. It makes more wild encounters. Which I suppose may be useful if you are looking for a particularly rare pokemon somewhere...otherwise...no.

I head into the Seven Stars Restaurant: More Flavour Than You Can Wish For. I beat all the trainers in there, then continued towards Pastoria City. A couple of trainers later, and Starbit evolved into Luxray.

I saw an old man standing around near the Pastoria City sign in the building, and he waved me over.

"Footprints are left in the sand when you walk on a beach."

I nodded. That's usually what sand does. But I continued listening. He was old, and probably didn't get to talk to many people.

"Pokemon seem to enjoy leaving footprints as much as people." And with that he just went silent.

I sort of hung around for a few more seconds, but he just stared off into space as if remembering another time and place. I shook my head and headed into Pastoria City.

What would I find here? A difficult gym? New things to do? What would await me and my Pokemon?