#1. it’s not a poison type and 2. THINK OF ARIADOS

[hastalavistarbaby]

here’s a list of all the pokemon I’d trade with each Team Star boss (if the darn game would LET ME.)

-Giacomo: Scraggy

-Mela: Fuecoco or Charizard

-Atticus: Ariados

-Ortega: Impidimp or Tinkatink

-Eri: Iron Hands

[big-wicke-energy]

I’ve already seen a couple people base their fan-made “Paradox Raichu” designs off of Gorochu, which is a fun way to associate “Ancient Pokemon” with real world Pokemon prototypes... But I think that doesn’t go far enough, we need more Paradoxes based on Beta Pokemon!

Some ideas under the cut...

1) Paradox Ivysaur/Venusaur

Based on this early Ivysaur sprite, I could still see this being used to represent an ancient Venusaur as well. Perhaps the flower is absorbing so much energy to grow large that the actual Pokemon itself is frail and barely able to crawl along while pancaked underneath. Grass/Ground perhaps?

2) Paradox Wartortle/Blastoise

Based on the Wartortle beta evolution before Blastoise was tacked on to the end of the line instead. Definitely imagining this ancient Pokemon capitalizing on the wise, long-lived turtle stereotype... Water/Psychic or Water/Fairy?

3) Paradox Clefairy/Clefable

This one definitely feels like it could be adapted into a caveman-themed Clefairy or Clefable. You just need to give it back the hair tuft the finished design has but in a more wild style... Or with a bone in it if you really want to get the idea across. Fairy/Rock or perhaps Fairy/Ground?

4) Paradox Arcanine

You could definitely lean in to Arcanine’s more Qilin-like Beta design for a Fire/Dragon Paradox form. I also included a Beta Gold & Silver sprite (Totally unrelated to any Pokemon in the finished game afaik) because it feels like it could be a woolly Arcanine specialized for the Ice Age... Fire/Ice type then?

5) Paradox Poliwrath

I don’t really have any strong ideas for this, I just think an ancient Poliwrath from an age of vicious prehistoric Pokemon that’s actually more docile and friendly than its modern counterpart would be kinda funny

6) Paradox Seel

Caveman Seel... What else needs to be said?

7) Paradox Gastly/Gengar

Not sure which one I prefer, but both work to represent formless/amorphous versions of these Pokemon. Maybe this could represent what Gastly/Gengar looked like before humanity came along and they started adapting their habits to better scare humans. Would that that be a retcon? Perhaps... You could give it a Poison/Dark typing unless you really want it to be a Ghost-type

8) Paradox Scyther

Definitely Bug/Dragon or Dragon/Flying. What else can I say?

9) Paradox Magikarp/Gyarados

Based on this terrifying Beta Gyarados sprite, I can definitely see this being the inspiration for a Paradox Pokemon that takes elements from both Magikarp and it’s evolution (Also invoking shiny Gyarados’s red color scheme). Perhaps a huge serpentine fish with the same dopey Magikarp face lined with Gyarados’ sharp teeth? One could theorize that it evolved the scarier appearance of modern Gyarados for intimidation purposes... Admittedly this idea doesn’t have a lot to do with the Beta design as much as those “middle-evolution” fan-designs. Water/Dragon typing maybe?

10) Paradox Lapras

Lapras but more plesiosaur-like... Also included Aquarius the Water Starter from the Gold & Silver beta here because it feels like it could represent Lapras as an aquatic hunter before it developed the heavy shell that forced it into a more stationary lifestyle

11) OMEGA

Don’t know where exactly to put this, but Omega is literally too iconic among Beta Pokemon not to include in this list in some way. Also, it’s a Pokemon that’s actually a robot! A Future form for once! Perhaps a Paradox Rhydon or Aggron... Make it a mechanized future Kangaskhan if you really wanna go nuts

12) Paradox Ariados

Spooky scary spider

13) Paradox Sunflora

Perhaps this could represent Sunflora before it’s roots adapted into two distinct legs for walking on. Another Grass/Ground type then?

13) Paradox Dunsparce

A form of Dunsparce before developing wings and drill-tail, a pretty traditional tsuchinoko. Normal/Ground or Normal/Poison perhaps

14) Paradox Gligar

I love Gligar as a terrifying scorpion-bat that nonetheless possesses a shockingly friendly face, but something needs to be done with it’s freaky facehugger-inspired beta design some day. Adding the Bug, Poison, or Dark type would certainly get the idea across

15) Paradox Octillery

Another one that could actually work as a Future Pokemon, just play up the tank/turret elements that got toned down in the finished design in a more sci-fi way. Water/Electric or Water/Steel

16) Paradox Grotle/Torterra

This one’s simple, just use small aspects from the beta sprites to play up the saurian elements of this evolutionary line. Grass/Rock?

17) Paradox Gabite/Garchomp

That Beta Garchomp barely needs any changes to be an ancient paradox version... But I do wonder if a quadrupedal Gabite could be more interesting way to play with the concept? Water/Dragon or Ground/Water perhaps

18) Paradox Lickilicky

This beta design for Lickilicky that we only have a back-spirite for could easily inspire a Paradox Pokemon representing the Lickitung evolutionary family. The spiky rotund body and hunched-over posture works perfectly for a Ancient Pokemon, but also the resemblance to a mechanical tape measure (Or bubble gum tape if you prefer) could also work for a future Lickilicky... You could turn the spikes into a whole energy buzz saw or turn the tongue into an energy whip

19) Paradox Yanmega

Another one that could work for past or future. Play up the meganeura kaiju elements for the ancient variation or magnify the aircraft aspects for the robotic future counterpart. Honestly the more I look at this sprite the more it makes me think of an orbital space laser with the wings as satellite solar panels... But maybe that’s just me

20) Paradox Komala

This sprite obviously predates Komala by so many years there’s absolutely no way there’s a connection, but you can easily see how it could be used to inspire an ancient Komala. Perhaps the branch it clings to is expanded out into a whole spear that it wields? Normal/Grass or perhaps Normal/Fighting

There’s probably more beta sprites you could take inspiration from, but I think this is more than enough for now... I wish there was more future forms to even things out, but I guess it makes sense that there wouldn’t be that many inorganic-looking designs associated with existing Pokemon before now

[chatotbox]

//May we have rapid fire headcanons for each of your kid's Pokémon?~

prepare for many because remy has a lot of babies

chatot: this pokemon was almost definitely illegally traded from sinnoh to johto on one of the ferries that comes to the markets in goldenrod. remy saw him and fell in love instantly, and paid far too much money for this shiny little guy. he's treated like a prince and acts like such. he has not seen a single day of battle in his whole life and he's not meant to be a battle pokemon either.

crobat: remy was given this crobat as an oddball zubat by koga! it was from a colony residing in the safari zone that had crossbred with a sigilyph that had been released by a careless person near enough for their paths to cross. it has strange coloring and the egg-move of hypnosis, so it didn't know how to hunt without putting its prey to sleep first. koga, thinking remy might appreciate the beauty of a strange poison type, led them to the colony and let them take one of the zubats. they're extremely close now, and the first thing remy did when she evolved into a crobat was message koga about it.

ariados: remy's starter! she used to be a spinarak that, when it got scared, hung onto remy's back like a backpack to hide. it's why 1) she still likes to sit on remy's back / shoulders and 2) why remy prefers side-slung bags, so she can still do that. she's very old for a bug type and remy's going to retire her soon. she's had a few egg clutches in the past and remy has a few of them stored at their home, waiting for the day they pick up a new spinarak to train in her honor.

arbok: their 'standard issue' rocket pokemon, remy took in an ekans around the time they joined the team and has since turned him into a speedy powerhouse of a pokemon. he's in love with crobat like no one's business, and he has the speed pattern on his hood like from the manga.

cofagrigus: remy didn't so much catch this guy as he caught them. he was a yamask who followed remy back to their hotel and refused to leave them alone, so they eventually just caught him so they could at least keep him safe in a pokeball. he's quite mischievous and likes to steal stuff and tuck it into the sarcophagus to keep them.

dodrio: this pokemon looks odd, because its a weird one from birth! a chimeric dodrio, two of the heads are male and the third is female. when it was a doduo, it was one and one, but the male head split with evolution. remy caught it because it was running in circles because the heads couldn't agree. she's fucking mean and thus remy doesn't take her out around people much.

dragonair: he was a runt from the celadon game corner that remy took in because they thought no one would really want such a small dratini. since then, he's grown into a small dragonair that still holds onto the dratini patterning he had before. he's temperamental and a lot of it comes from being taken from the wild as a baby. they need to find a dragon trainer to help them with him, but they're afraid someone is going to take him away if they do.

darumaka: literally a baby pokemon that got abandoned. remy's taking care of him now, but he's basically a two year old who spits fire when he tantrums. it's the wonders of parenting, but worse with the baby proofing.

masquerain: the first pokemon remy caught in hoenn, masquerain is one of their premier battlers -- and the most likely to take ariados's position of Bug Type Main on the team when she retires. he's a goofy little guy who likes sitting on people's heads.

ampharos: caught as a mareep during remy's original gym challenge, she evolved into a flaffy and then got kind of lazy. she was sidelined for a long time, mostly kept with remy because remy liked how soft her wool was, until the goldenrod incident. when remy was mauled by archer's houndoom, she evolved into an ampharos to protect her trainer. remy vowed to keep her nearby ever since, and has kept that promise.

scolipede: another strange hybrid, the parent of this scolipede was an orbeetle! besides lending itself to the terrific coloration on this scolipede, it gave him an increased intellect, penchant for psychic type moves, and mild telepathy. he uses these skills in combination to yell at remy when he's hungry.

salandit: last but certainly not least, salandit is the last of remy's pokemon and the newest edition. an outcast male from the group he was in, remy thought he was too precious to leave alone, and caught him to keep him on the team. he's small enough to wrap up around their neck when out of his ball, and likes to hide in their clothing.

[the-howling-wind]

Nuzlocke - Ultra Moon (Part 4)

<<Prev - Next>>

Chapter 6 - Rules of Nature

After the Fire Trial, I was more than eager to face the Grass Trial: I had a team with good advantages and resistances, so I wasn’t too worry about it... Not like I let my guard down given the past. In the meantime I added Soma to the team, using immediately my newly acquired Water Stone to turn him into a Vaporeon, so I grinded him a bit in the Lush Jungle, without the fear of Pursuit.

I had finally cleared all the Trials of the Island, all I needed to do was to face the Kahuna, Rock specialist... Which wasn’t good at all. Oliver, Dammek, Jiro and especially Douglas weren’t very fond of it. I had to rely on Raiden and Soma.

But before that I crossed the Diglett Cave and, once outside, I had to solve a difficult case... Five Dittos impersonating humans!

Once I cleared the streets, I marched to the Ruins, arena for my Grand Trial. But before that I had to save some Aether Foundation guys from Team Skulls. Unfortunately, this time they were lead by their Lieutenant, Plumeria. I found myself in a rather tight spot with Jiro versus a rather powerful Salandit: she took a Fire Shot, that she tanked, but she could not stay on the field. I thought she would not repeat Fire Shot on a Dragon Type, probably relying on Poison or physical attacks, so I throw in Raiden. Bad call. Despite my guesses, she insisted on Fire Shot and killed Raiden. That was a huge loss for the team, both as a mate and as an asset: no more Steel tank, no more Intimidation, no more Physical Attacker. 

Soma had to seal the deal with Plumeria, but now I had to face Olivia with Soma as the only option without weaknesses... Oliver could probably hold his ground, but the others were in a tight spot.

As Anorith entered the battlefield, I took few turns setting up the defenses: Acid Armor twice and Aqua Ring. Anorith went down easily, but Lileep was kind a pain in the neck: Giga Drain wasn’t fatal, but it undid most of my damage, so the battle dragged on quite a bit, until I landed Confusion with Water Pulse. With Lycanroc I was afraid of Crits, but one strike was enough to take him down.

Island cleared, but with four casualties.

Chapter 7 - I'm the best there is at what I do: screwing up my life

[[Narration wise I’ll skip Aether Paradise, it was rather pointless]]

I sailed to Ula’ula Island and I was off to a rough start: my good pal Hau challenged me... Something was different about him. He was even more determined than before, but also a little... vicious? Maybe it was just my impression, but in any case it was a very tough battle: victory without casualties was achieved with great suffering and effort. 

I went to the Gardens to meet Kahui, but I left my guard down: thinking Douglas could outspeed a Raichu and U-Turn he got hit by a Thunderbolt. No need for crits, it was a 1HKO. That was my fucking screw up. But more were to come.

I did what I needed to do in Malie City and left for Route 10. And then...

I was devasted. I did thought of the possibility of an Ice Move, but that was supposed to be rare... My grief and the grief of my team was palpable and that heavily influenced my performances, leading to a slaughter of the rookies that were supposed to fill the voids.

Looking at them back, most of them were something I could not foresee: Pursuit on Raine the Natu from a Crabrawler, Fearow using Mirror Move to mimic Brick Break and oneshot Mako the Komala, Ribrienne the Raticate going down from a Crit from Absol.

Still that was ton of blood on my hand, a heavily unbalanced team and more challenges to come.

What was I supposed to do???

- - -

Info & Rules

Trainer: Howling Wind

Time: 27:17

Deaths: 5

Rules (I know I seem to be adding them as I go, but most of them I forgot to put there in the first place)

Random Starter

Double Clause

Battle Mode Set

No Exp Share

No Rotom Power Ups

TMs can be re-used, but there can be only one Pokémon that learned the move in the team at one time

No Pokémon Care (at least to the point of getting free crits and resisting the KO)

UltraNecrozma doesn’t count as Nuzlocke Battle (they told me you either over level and trample everything after that or you’re in for a team wipe, so I’m not to keen on these options)

Team:

Dammek (Charjabug ♂️ Lv 35; Ability: Battery; Nature: Hasty; Moveset: Spark, X Scissor, Crunch, Acrobatics)

Jiro (Noibat  ♀ Lv 34; Ability: Infiltrator; Nature: Bashful; Moveset: Psychic, Screech, Leech Life, Aircutter)

Soma (Vaporeon ♂️ Lv 35; Ability: Water Absorb; Nature: Mild; Moveset: Water Pulse, Acid Armor, Aurora Beam, Haze)

Elvis (Elgyem ♂️ Lv 31; Ability: Synchronize; Nature: Calm; Moveset: Psybeam, Simple Beam, Reflect, Light Screen)

Weiss (Petlil ♀ Lv 26; Ability: Chlorophyll; Nature: Quirky; Moveset: Giga Drain, Magical Leaf, Leech Seed, Stun Spore)

Pokémon Caught:

Route 1 - Dammek (Grubbin ♂️ Lv 4)

Route 1 (Outskirts) - Krillin (Wingull  ♂️ Lv 5)

Route 1 (School) - Lupin III (Zorua  ♂️ Lv 5)

Hau’oli City - Monoma (Mime Jr ♂️ Lv 6)  

Route 2 - N/A (Abra that got away)

Hau’oli Cemetery - Gabriel (Ghastly ♂️ Lv 8)

Sandy Cave - Cobbletpot (Psyduck ♂️ Lv 9)

Verdant Cave - Jiro (Noibat ♀ Lv 8)

Route 3 - Judith (Spearow ♀ Lv 9)

Melemele Meadow - Weiss (Petilil ♀ Lv 10)

Seaward Cave - Platinum (Delibird ♀ Lv 12)

Ten Carat Hill - Raiden (Mawile ♂️ Lv 12)

Ten Carat Hill (Meadow) - Bastion (Carbink Lv 13)

Route 4 - Akande (Pikipek ♂️ Lv 14)

Paniola Ranch - Ivan (Mareep ♂️ Lv 15)

Route 5 - Ada (Fomantis ♀ Lv 14)

Gift - Soma (Eevee ♂️ Lv1)

Brooklet Hill - Gwen (Dewpider ♀ Lv 15)

Route 6 - N/A

Diglett Cave - Cinzia (Diglett ♀ Lv 22)

Route 7 - Buttercup (Wishiwashi ♀ Lv 14)

Wela Volcano Park - Douglas (Fletchling ♂️ Lv 18)

Route 8 - N/A

Lush Jungle - Glimmer (Steenee ♀ Lv 19)

Memorial Hill - Garruk (Phantump ♂️ Lv 23)

Akala Outskirts - Raine (Natu ♀ Lv 22)

Hano Beach - Ashido (Tentacool ♀ Lv 24)

Malie Garden - Natasha (Ariados ♀ Lv 25)

Route 11 - Mako (Komala ♀ Lv 28)

Route 10 - Ribrienne (Raticate ♀ Lv 29)

Mount Hokulani: Elvis (Elgyem ♂️ Lv 28)

Pokémon Dead:

Gabriel (Ghastly, Lv 8->14, Route 2, Pursuit by wild Spearow)

Lupin III (Zorua, Lv 5->16, Route 3, Silver Wind by Ace Trainer’s Butterfly)

Krillin (Wingull, Lv 5->19, Totem Aquarinid)

Bastion (Karbink, Lv 13->21, Tomem Marowak)

Monoma (Mr Mime, Lv 6->24, Totem Marowak)

Raiden (Mawile, Lv 12->29, vs Plumeria)

Douglas (Fletchinder, Lv 18->30, Thunderbolt by Trainer’s Raichu)

Oliver (Dartrix, Lv 5->32, Aurora Beam by Trainer’s Octillery)

Mako (Komala, Lv 28->28, Mirror Move by wild Fearow)

Raine (Natu, Lv 22->24, Pursuit by wild Crabrawler)

Ribrienne (Raticate, Lv 29->30, Critical Slash by Trainer’s Absol)

[a-trainers-tale]

Hello, I would like to request both a trainer description and team description. I am a very introverted person, riddled with anxieties. I am a very thoughtful and introspective. But because of that I usually get in my own way, need to come up with plans and make sure everything is perfect. And am very hard on myself if things don’t go as planned. I can be very stubborn and a little lazy. I am very loyal to those I care for and can be fairly aloof towards others. 1/3

I like pokemon because of their design, lore and powers. The aesthetic of the pokemon is important to me as well as there abilities and powers. My favorite types are Dark, Poison, Ghost, Dragon, and Steel. My team of favorite pokemon (excluding legendaries) would be: Umbreon, Scizor, Crobat, Mimikyu, Tyranitar, Haunter. I would want to become a trainer to find, capture, and raise all the pokemon I have a connection with, grow and learn with them so we can become a perfect team. 2/3     

I am a male INTJ, Aries, Slytherin/Horned Serpent, Lawful Evil individual. I enjoy creating both 2-D and 3-D art as well as playing most versions of games out there be they: video, board, card, and war. I like to go for walks out in nature (forests, beaches, etc.) and look for bones to add to my collection. Thank you in advance for my trainer description and pokemon team, I look forward to seeing who you partner me with and what sort of trainer you think I am. 3/3            

Trainer class: Ace Trainer

You will stop at nothing to accomplish your goals, namely to learn and master all you possibly can about Pokemon. You are highly skilled and motivated and rely heavily upon yourself and your team as opposed to any others outside your core group. Your Pokemon bond with you through training and the sharing of goals, just like you your Pokemon want to get stronger and learn and master their power. In times when things don’t go your way, your emotions might get the better of you but your Pokemon will help shield you from the world until you feel strong again. Never underestimate your Pokemon’s support of you, and remember that you can always show your vulnerability to them.

Partner: Blastoise

Blastoise is a very serious and protective partner. It will share the same goals as you and fiercely protect both your progress and you. It takes great pride in its battling and will do everything in its power to learn and get stronger alongside you. Blastoise is somewhat of a leader to the rest of your Pokemon and you can trust it to take care of your party even if you are not with them for whatever reason.

Team: Beedrill, Muk, Mawile, Ariados, Marowak (Alolan)