#personal pick is Walrein

[puffballcat]

pick from faves poll 17

Reblogs okay and appreciated

[kyoroju]

Hashiras as Pokémon Gym Leaders!

what better first post than combining two of my greatest loves together? i felt that giving the hashiras 1 type to work with would be too cliché, so i gave them a second one that would work with them as well! maybe i spent too much time putting together their parties...but ultimately it was worth it. i really enjoyed writing for them, and i want to hear how you feel about them being gym leaders in a pokémon game! (i'd never stop replaying that version if it were real...)

Kyojuro Rengoku - fire, obviously; steel, less obviously ❥ so obviously, he would be a fire gym leader, right? probably chose a Charmander as his starter years ago and never strayed from the cute fire-breathing baby since they were the same. the rengoku's probably raise all the fire starters as a family tradition anyways ❥ he's got a lot of other pokémon that he adores, but he always gravitates towards the ones that can benefit from his training and vice versa ❥ his full party: Litleo, Fletchinder, Magmortar, Arcanine, Chandelure, Charizard ❥ kyojuro is 100% a steel type gym in disguise. his personality says it all. his determination, his drive, everything he stands for is as unbendable and unwavering as steel. (let's not get started about his body...) ❥ yeah, yeah, steel is super weak to fire, but in kyojuro's case? they make each other stronger in any other way that they can. they solidify wishes and goals and go for it ❥ his full party: Mawile, Klefki, Metagross, Corviknight, Steelix, Aegislash

Giyu Tomioka - water, obviously; ghost, less obviously ❥ as a water hashira, he'd be a water type gym leader. he chose little Oshawott as his starter and loves him greatly, they're quite literally inseparable. ❥ giyu doesn't pay much attention to his pokémon nor does he go out with the intention of training and capturing more, but this one bidoof has been by his side...even after it evolved into a bibarel... ❥ his full party: Shellder, Seadra, Sharpedo, Wailord, Walrein, Samurott ❥ he's distant and cold sometimes, but he ultimately means well, or at least he tries to convey that. people like him, right? shinobu is just teasing him any chance she gets, right? ❥ did i say sometimes? his ghost pokémon rat his real emotions out to people if he isn't watching, they just want the best for him! ❥ his full party: Corsola, Mimikyu, Gengar, Dragapult, Mismagius, Froslass

Obanai Iguro - poison, obviously; ground, less obviously ❥ kaburamaru picked his starter when he was younger, sobble. though throughout obanai's teen years, he trained closely with a bulbasaur instead. ❥ obanai likes to pretend that he doesn't care what happens to his companions, but the second the battle is over, he's hovering over each pokémon, ensuring that each feels cared for. ❥ his full party: Skrelp, Croagunk, Arbok, Nidoking, Nidoqueen, Venusaur ❥ obanai is a hardened soul but is still a softy after you get past kaburamaru and his own tough, rough skin. hold him gently and he'll melt without realising, like eroding ground. ❥ he gets mad when he does find out that his pokemon have been meddling in his life, though, so be careful! he's not easy to win back at alI. ❥ his full party: Drilbur, Krokorok, Nidoking, Nidoqueen, Sandaconda, Garchomp

Sanemi Shinazugawa - flying, obviously; fighting, less obviously ❥ sanemi is pretty reserved when it comes to his pokémon, but there's no denying that he has a soft spot for the bird species. he trained with a grass/flying type starter but later realised it was no longer flying. ❥ his pokémon may be free-spirited from time to time, but whenever he calls for them, they're by his side within seconds. his pokémon automatically give him tailwind whether he needs it or not. ❥ his full party: Rookidee, Drifloon, Gliscor, Archeops, Toucannon, Decidueye ❥ he isn't so much as a "go with the flow" guy as much as he just appreciates the ebb and flow of the air currents and he expects the same of his winged companions. ❥ he enjoys the rush of the wind, whether it's on the back of his pokémon or he's running right alongside them, though he loves the confrontation on the ground and will never pass a one-on-one fight ❥ his full party: Hawlucha, Kommo-o, Bewear, Scrafty, Machamp, Decidueye

Tengen Uzui - psychic, obviously; dark, less obviously ❥ his exceptional hearing doesn't discriminate when it comes to pokemon that he's raising. the louder, the better, he says...to everyone, though his wives would disagree... ❥ in another life he could've been a conductor but he wouldn't trade his life for another anyways. between him and his wives, he's got enough to deal with ❥ his full party: Bruxish, Gothita, Malamar, Rapidash, Alakazam, Delphox ❥ alongside his wives and him was a lone froakie, which later became his own cherished pokémon, as well as his wives' ❥ tengen may be very good at distinguishing sounds, but he lets his pokémon make as much white noise as want, even if he needs to concentrate on a mission ❥ his full party: Absol, Deino, Grimmsnarl, Honchkrow, Malamar, Greninja

Mitsuri Kanroji - fairy, obviously; dragon, less obviously ❥ she starts every battle by sending out her pokémon with a kiss. it's fitting that every pokemon she has is in a love ball since she's the love hashira. ❥ her pokemon are as graceful and tough as she is, both in appearance and battle. she's always making treats for every one of them, and especially herself! ❥ her full party: Togetic, Kirlia, Hatterene, Grimmsnarl, Alcremie, Altaria ❥ she’s one of two women who’ve become hashira, so she must be strong, right? in another life she could’ve been a ballerina of sorts, or any other profession that let her express her strength equally to her beauty. in this one, it means she harbors dragon types under her wing. ❥ don’t underestimate mitsuri and her cute stature or you’ll be sorry. she may be looking to marry, but you’ve got to show you love her dragons as much as she does… ❥ her full party: Dreepy, Dragonair, Goodra, Salamence, Garchomp, Altaria

Shinobu Kocho - bug, obviously; ice, less obviously ❥ her butterfly attire gives her typing away just like the original gym leaders. it’s only fitting that the butterfly mansion is home to bug types as well as the injured. ❥ she’d never admit that her favorite is her butterfree, but there’s a reason her haori matches the wing patterns near perfectly. confront her about it and you’ll likely be poisoned one way or another ❥ her full party: Skorupi, Whirlipede, Accelgor, Butterfree, Yanmega, Frosmoth ❥ have you seen the look in her eyes? or heard the way she talks to Giyu? she can be cold when she needs to (or wants to) so it only makes sense that the chilly Pokémon have flocked around her ❥ if you let her warm up to you she might show you some tricks her ice types have picked up, like how to beat rengoku’s fire types or how to make nifty potions for battle ❥ her full party: Sneasel, Lapras, Ninetales, Dewgong, Avalugg, Frosmoth

Gyomei Himejima - rock, obviously; grass, less obviously ❥ as the stone hashira, he has strong connection with rock types that are resilient as he is. they love joining him during training sessions and will often practice when he is ❥ his party's defense is so high, you'll likely have to whittle them down little by little. you'll be lucky to take a chip out of them before they trap you in a tomb ❥ his full party: Rockruff, Lairon, Bastiodon, Tyrantrum, Omastar, Cradily ❥ the rock types he works with are tough and hardened, but the grass types he works with a flowy and flexible. they may look super tough on the outside, but they're soft on the inside ❥ his grass types love practicing with him, especially when he's water training. show up with a water type of any kind and they'll show you who's boss ❥ his full party: Gossifleur, Skiddo, Ferrothorn, Shiftry, Torterra, Cradily

Muichiro Tokito - normal, obviously; electric, less obviously ❥ his aloofness definitely takes a part in what Pokémon stay by him throughout his journey. normal types are unaffected by his amnesiac tendencies and care for him all the same. ❥ he might forget who is in his lineup, but he’ll always put on a worthy battle even if it takes him until halfway through to realize he might lose. don’t let him remember there’s a badge on the line and he might spare your party of Pokémon… ❥ his full party: Spinda, Minccino, Wigglytuff, Snorlax, Slaking, Heliolisk ❥ the blankness in his eyes can be fierce like a storm. if you get on his nerves, he might just lash out with everything he's got. you won't want to get caught in the spark. ❥ while his party is sparky and electrifying, he can still be pretty absent-minded and forget to pay attention to them. they remind him with a little spark and sometimes you'll even see him play with them. ❥ his full party: Pincurchin, Magnemite, Toxtricity, Ampharos, Electrode, Heliolisk

[kuipernebula]

my legends arceus hot take remains that irida and adamn desperately needed more interesting and evocative teams than a set of eeveelutions each. it sorta worked for penny later but for these team leads they needed something more unique.

personally i would have gone with diamond/pearl version exclusives. so irida could have had some combination of mismagius, purugly, walrein, houndoom, slowking, salamence; adaman with some combination of honchcrow, skuntank, aggron, mightyena, scizor, tyranitar. pick three for each, split for their various fights accordingly. i'd personally have their "ace" be their version's dusk stone evolution (mismagius vs honchcrow) and it doesn't evolve until the third fight.

[mtnprof]

CHARACTER INFORMATION: PROFESSOR VANYA.

NAME   vanya. ALIASES   n/a. AGE   thirty-four. BIRTHDATE   jan 3rd. GENDER   trans man. SEXUALITY   gay.

OCCUPATION   gym leader & professor. FAMILY living mother, estranged father, living younger sister.

physical information.

HEIGHT 6’3”. WEIGHT 173 lbs.

BODY TYPE tall and thin. SKIN TONE pale.

HAIRSTYLE medium-length & curly. HAIR COLOR pale blond. EYE COLOR dark blue.

SCARS multiple old scars on hands and forearms. MODIFICATIONS pierced ears.

personality.

POSITIVE tenacious, hard working, focused. NEUTRAL tendency to hyperfocus. NEGATIVE too focused, hard to reach, distant.

STRENGTHS powerful trainer. WEAKNESSES weak people skills.

HABITS nail biting, nail picking, snapping his fingers in anxious moments. HOBBIES study of frozen berries. LIKES his research, his pokemon, his siblings. DISLIKES the heat, being surrounded by people. FEARS bad brain business.

pokemon team.

PROFESSIONAL TEAM: aurorus, abomasnow, avalugg, glalie, beartic, walrein.

RESEARCH TEAM: camerupt, castform.

[latealzalost]

Have you ever tried thinking about what a "canon"-esque team for Wes and Michael would be? I mean that, what feels like a team an official adaptation of these games would go for. In my opinion for instance, I think Michael would use the Zangoose snagged from Zook since its semi-plot relevant, as well as Eldes' Shadow Salamence for the one battle left after it. You could either make him pick an eeveelution (I'd suggest flareon or jolteon aesthetically) or going with the beta starters of Vaporeon and Jolteon. Wes' would entirely depend on if you think using the legendary beasts is fair game lmao

Ah nah. I know some people try to make a "canon" team for trainers. But "canon" and stories in Pokémon games don't really mix. All versions of a game are true and they happened in their own universes. Every possible way a game was played is real and has already been done before you've even thought about it.

I believe in the definite fact that Michael snagged and purified every shadow pokemon. I also believe that Michael traded his Togepi back to Hordel for his Elekid named Zaprong, but I know some may opt not to do that. So whether or not he actually gave Togepi back it really doesn't matter cause he has and hasn't at the same time.

Now, there is an exception to that rule for my personal bias. It's canon that Michael is a good kid with a big heart and loves his Pokemon and family very much. So that scenario where he releases his Eevee to see the eeveelution captain's other dialogue is completely unlike Michael. And I don't believe he would release any of his Pokemon ever. I refuse to believe that anything that would be uncharacterstic of Michael are canon and part of the multiverse in any way.

Hypothetically speaking, referring to the story of Pokemon Masters EX, if Hoopa were to drag a Pokemon Character out of the infinite universal contexts represented by how their game could be played, Hoopa would never drag Michael from the universe where he releases his Eevee, but he could take him from the universe where he kept the Togepi and not give it back to Hordel, since I remember Hordel being a somewhat okay with Michael keeping Togepi. (Correct me if I'm wrong)

I believe that every possible universe is canon, but there are limits because the constant is Michael is a good boi. The variable is how the player plays the game. The multiverse of a game can be determined by the infinite possibilities of play, but only the reasonable universes that don't betray Michael's character should be canon.

And same goes for Wes, obviously. Anyone who releases Espeon, Umbreon, or Plusle outright assassinates Wes's character.

And you know, by extension, I'd say that also goes for the main-series games too. If Pokemas Hoopa ever dragged a protag from their universe, it would have to be a universe where they kept their starter all the way to the end of their story, or at least up until the point they were warped to Pasio.

In certain media I've seen Michael officially matched with Flareon and Jolteon in two different universes. I've never played through the game with Flareon nor Vaporeon so my bias tells me it would be Jolteon (at least it matches Michal's jacket aesthetically, I agree Flareon suits him too.)

Beyond that it's a toss up between all of the Shadow Pokemon and a few Pokespot Pokemon. At the end game he might opt to have tanky Shadow Pokemon like Snorlax. He might have an Aggron from evolving an Aron from the Cave Pokespot. He could have a Walrein from one of the Hexagon Bros's Shadow Spheal. He could have kept Teddiursa and evolved it into Ursuring. It's so hard to make a canon team without that bias you know?

As for Wes, as you know, he'd probably keep one of the Johto starters from either Bluno/Verde/Rosso and his two starter eeveelutions. Depending on which Johto starter, he'd keep Entei/Suicune/Raikou respectively. Hitmontop is a favorite. And last one, a Flygon, another favorite.

Scrolling back up to read your question, I see for an "official adaptation" I agree that Zangoose could be plot relevant. Though the one time you get to snag Zangoose is the last time you see Zook. Unless some liberties were taken with the game's story I can't see Zangoose becoming a main-stay for some rivalry with Zook. Miror B. is a better rival than Zook, and Lovrina along with other Cipher admins (excluding Ardos) have a character arc of starting out as enemies and accepting him as a friend by the end of the post-game so Shadow Pokemon belonging to them might be something to toy with for a rival thing. Zook is just a meat head masculine macho mohawk dukey-nukey wannabe who's more of a joke jerk character for how nothing goes his way after bumping into Jovi at Gateon Port. They'd have to do a bit more like how they developed Team Rocket (Jesse, James, Meowth) for the anime and how they're pretty much loved by everyone despite being the bad guys.

What I wouldn't give for an official anime adaptation, but alas all we have are obscure game walkthrough manga that few have seen and have (but I believe more should see and have)

[crystalelemental]

It’s easy to forget, since SC Lyra was like…honestly kinda lame. Team Rocket outfit was so disappointing…

No idea if it’s the same person, but yeah pretty much everyone has been annoyed. It doesn’t help that I am among Flannery’s Biggest Haters.

Wallace does feel in desperate need of an alt. I’d hope for a Champion alt but that seems less and less likely every month. Maybe one day. Winter Wallace and Glacia with Juan as a general addition would be interesting. Glacia would be the obvious pick, and I’d love for like. A competent Froslass, but Walrein would be nice too. Wallace could get Ludicolo? I just think it’d be fun. I’m not sure what I’d want for Juan. I can’t remember his team so well. Maybe Whiscash? Does he even have that?

[lepoppeta]

Favorite Elite Four members of each region, GO GO GO

Buckle up, buttercup.

KANTO - LORELEI. I have a Pokemon Adventures manga from my elementary school years that showcases several stories from the Yellow arc. At one point, Yellow gets chased and later cornered by Lorelai of the Kanto Elite Four (who are, in fact, all villains in the Adventures manga, hell bent on killing humans who caused the suffering of Pokemon). Villain or not, Lorelai is memorable in both aesthetic and personality; I like her sexy businesswoman vibe, and "Lorelai" is just such a pretty name. Ice is also one of my favourite types, even if it is a touch frail.

(Runner up - Lance, but he doesn't really count so much anymore because he becomes Champion in the sequel Johto games).

JOHTO - KAREN. I'm not sure what GameFreak were going for with Karen's design, because she sure doesn't look like a Dark-type trainer, but I like her regardless. She's got the all-famous quote:

"Strong Pokemon, weak Pokemon. That is only the selfish perception of people. Truly skilled trainers should try to win with their favourites."

... which I think really encompasses what Pokemon as a game is at least supposed to be (it was only successful in executing this I think in the most recent two or arguably three generations). Her Destiny Bond-Gengar is also a staple.

(Runner up - Will)

HOENN - GLACIA. When I was 9 and first taking on the Hoenn League in Emerald, I'm pretty sure Glacia gave me the most trouble due to her Hail strategies and also because her bulky Walrein was impossible for little old underleveled me to one-shot. Her outfit and overall vibe reminds me of an opera singer somewhat and I really like that. Also - more Ice types!

(Runner up - Sydney)

SINNOH - LUCIAN. I've always found Lucian to be much harder to beat than Cynthia, mostly due to his Bronzong and the fact that it's really hard to overlevel in the Sinnoh games (the later level jumps, especially in DP and BDSP, are kind of insane). I'm a big fan of calm, collected boss-types and Lucian definitely fits that bill.

(Runner Up - Aaron)

UNOVA - GRIMSLEY. I love Grimsley's energy so much; this lazy, aristocratic vibe he clings to. It's such a shame that he's got such an intense and detrimental gambling addiction (or at least he does until SM was released, I assume at that point he's in rehab) and what seems to be some sort of reliance on chance (maybe a sprinkling of OCD) but it's also what makes him so interesting. He was definitely the most intriguing of the Unova E4 for me.

(Runner up - Shauntal)

KALOS - DRASNA. I must say that I don't find the Kalos E4 to be particularly memorable as individuals (although the environment and build-up to fighting them is spot-on), so this was a little tough, but I'd have to ultimately pick Drasna as a favourite. She's just so nice to you! It's also nice to get another female Dragon specialist, and she's a heck of a lot more enjoyable than Claire ever was.

(Runner up - Wikstrom)

ALOLA - KAHILI. This one's a little weird because, at least to me, Kahili is the only member of the Alolan E4 (except for perhaps Molayne); all of the others (Hala, Olivia, Acerola) in my mind are temporary since this is the first League match.

Kahili is interesting in many ways; she's obviously a very serious person, she's a professional golfer (which I believe is a first for Pokemon), and she's the first Flying E4 specialist we ever got.

(Runner up - Molayne)

PALDEA - HASSEL. The man, the myth, the legend. There's no way I could complete this list without mentioned our dearly beloved bow-legged Dragon master. It helps that SV fleshes out pretty much every important adult NPC in the entire game, and it also helps that Hassel is one half of a whole ship that both I and @roxycake adore immensely. His history is out in the open for you to discover and yet still shrouded in a healthy layer of mystery. I wonder if anything new will be discovered when the DLC comes out later this year.

(Runner up - Rika)

[v0jelly]

Akari and Her Team: Legends Arceus

Hisuian Decidueye, nicknamed Roothoot

Gardevoir, nicknamed Joan

Raichu, nicknamed Mjölna

Walrein, nicknamed Maru

Hisuian Arcanine, nicknamed Roscoe

Alpha Garchomp, nicknamed Hammerhead

I've been a fan of Pokémon all the way back since it first came to the US In that time, I've played every mainline series game that have come out over the years. My interest in the franchise has waxed and waned over the years, but it hasn't gone away completely.  Every so often, just when I feel like I've played my last Pokémon game or that I'm ready to move on, a new game will be released that will completely reinvigorate me and get me excited about Pokémon again. It happened not too long ago with the released of Sun and Moon back in 2016, and it happened again this year with the release of Legend Arceus.

If you're like me, you might not have been terribly excited by any of the entries in the series that have come out on the Switch. Let's Go was fine and Sword and Shield were ok, but I was incredibly disappointed in Brillant Diamond and Shining Peral and honestly think they are a strong contender for the title of Worst Games in the Series. So, after being let down by BDSP, I was not really looking forward to Legends Arceus. It was actually the first Pokémon game in years that I didn't pick up on its release day. It wasn't until a few weeks later that I started to tune into the buzz around the game and heard people talking about how fun it was. So, I decided to eventually give it a try and see if it lived up to the hype.

In the end, I put over 100 hours into it, so you can say that I enjoyed it. Is it a perfect game? No, far from it. There are so many issues with it, it makes it hard to believe this was released as a AAA game in 2022, made by a company that is part of the largest media franchise in the world.

Was it fun? I thought so. Sure, it might not have been the best game ever, but it really got me engaged and interested in the series again. After being satisfied with how much of the game's content I had completed, I knew I wanted to make something to commemorate my playthrough. I decided a portrait featuring my custom trainer and her team would be the most appropriate, though I wasn't sure on how to proceed. I considered just commissioning someone else to draw it for me. I follow a lot of talented artists and I know they could have delivered a final product that would have been leagues ahead of anything I could make. But, as good as those commissions could have been, they wouldn't have been personal, and that's what I really wanted.

So, I got to work. I planned out how I wanted each Pokémon to look, and I collected a lot of references to help me. I work incredibly slow, mainly since I draw everything with my mouse instead of a stylus, and since I have to spend my days at work where I can't draw, so it took me about two months to make my way through the team. Finally, though, I am happy to say that I finished up everything and put them all together. I am incredibly pleased with how it all turned out, and I'm now able to move on from this and get started on the next few projects I have lined up.

[anemodaycare]

hihis , was scroll through agere tag n saw u do agere matchup ! never seen dese b4 , dey looks fun :0

mmnm sunny wuz wondering if u coulds do matchup w/ pokemon ! suny want cg pls

ums for personality sunny is prety seepy ,, n rlly slow it also harder 4 sunny 2 pick ups tone ,, if thing go wrong it can rlly upset suny [suny can stil get intrusiv thought so sometime get scared of dose ,,] o yas suny think suny is around 3-5 ? it hard 2 tell ,, it kind of easys 2 bring suny out of littlespace so have b carful ,, mm need mor e good tings ,, mmm rlly like stuffy !!!! nd fluffy thing s 2 !! suny can get p stimy , most ly rocking nd mayb noises n chew ing 4 favorite thing s , suny like stuffy , flufy thing s , nd suny like fairy , gras , bug , nd watr pkmns [no scary 1s ,,] [suny would share favorite pokemons but have lottttts , it be 2 manys hehe] o yas suny rly like kitys ! [suny have real at ears n tail :}]

uaa suny hope gave good info but also no overshares ! suny hope pepermin t have good days :}

This is wonderful info, Sunny! Thank you for the request, I hope you have a wonderful day as well <3

I think your caregiver would be..

Wallace!

There's no need to fear any of the scary Pokemon with Wallace as your cg!

He adores the graceful Pokemon, and he'll put extra care into avoiding anything that might scare you!

He's big on privacy, so it's no big deal if you want everything to be a secret!

Once he learns that it's easier for you to come out of little space, he'll put more thought behind making himself clear

You being sleepy is no issue for him!

He's used to an active life, so getting to slow down and take a break every now and again is perfect for him

After figuring out you struggle with intrusive thoughts, Wallace takes the time to find some coping mechanisms for those

He's not a therapist by any means, but if he can help his little star he will try his best!

This man has so many nicknames for you

"Star, Sunshine, Lovely, Cutiepie-" He's very big on gushing over you!

He cried the first time you called him whatever nickname you choose for him

Full on tears

You might have been pulled out of little space at that, to which he apologizes profusely for

If you're a fan of Pokemon Coordination, he'll let you see some of his works before they're even finished!

You're the only other person to be able to hold and closely observe his ribbons

He wasn't too nervous with you and his Pokemon interacting

Until he thought of the implications of you, his sleepy baby, being near the water

Thankfully, he's always nearby when you're interacting

The only one you've been left fully unattended with has been Walrein

Mostly because you two took a nap together

He loves how you stim!

He stims as well, though it's not obvious when he is

If you let him, he'll hold you on his lap and rock both of you!

In general, if you let him, he'll love holding you

He'll make elaborate plans for whenever you're regressed!

Mostly it's just going out to the beach, going to competitions, sometimes shopping-

Though usually you two just end up staying home to do something less overwhelming

He doesn't mind, of course!

He wants you to be happy first

"Sunshine~! I have such a wonderful day planned for us- ah? ... Alright, I suppose we can stay in for the day."

[ask-professor-laurel]

Ugh, poachers. Do you have to deal with them often? Also, how are the ice types you got? Poor things must be hurting :(

We don't tend to get a ton of poachers who are brave enough to try it here- after a few get caught by our Pokemon security, or have to face Cloudhopper or Sweetbug, the word tends to spread that we're not easy pickings. We haven't had an attempt in... a few months now, I think. Last one was somebody trying to get their hands on the Aurorus who lives in the mountains, which, uh... went laughably bad. They never even saw her. They felt very awkward when they woke up after passing out in the cold to find themself onsite after a Beartic on our mountain security team found them and brought them to us. We had a long talk about life choices, they were pretty young, and last I heard they were back in school! Happier ending than we usually get- usually I'm handing poachers over to the police.

More often than not our experience here with poachers is taking in Pokemon that have been rescued from them. That's an unfortunately common scenario, and Pokemon rescued from them make up the bulk of the rescue Pokemon here. For the most part we're able to keep them here, even if aggressive, but with the Walrein we sent over to professor Mirabelle we just didn't have the right environment for her available at the ready, so she would've just been stressed out on top of the trauma she experienced. In a suitable environment with her own kind, I'm sure she'll make a swift recovery.

As for our new additions, we have 6 new Ice types we're working on rehabilitating. They were brought from Hoenn and Sinnoh, the poachers were caught trying to smuggle them- not sure to where, but they were caught here in Galar, so we were asked if we could take them in. Our new additions are a Glaceon, a family consisting of a Glailie, a Froslass, and their Snorunt, and two Weaviles. Glaceon and Weavile are both species that are rarer to encounter in the wild than their pre-evolutions, with Weaviles being exceptionally difficult to catch due to their strength and speed, and these two appear to be twins hence why they were caught together. The family I suspect was rounded up together because the Snorunt is Shiny- easy to dupe someone who doesn't know any better into believing that the parents might somehow produce more Shinies when bred. Nasty practice. Seems this group was with these poachers for a few weeks at least, they were travelling by boat over sea and trying really hard to avoid detection, but got busted when one of the Weaviles clawed her way through the deck when they stopped here in Galar. She'd been at it for most of the time they were in that boat, I think- we've been treating her poor paws for the injuries she sustained.

This group isn't anymore aggressive than others we've rescued from poachers- I think the Walrein was more aggressive than the rest because the poachers probably hurt her and were physical with her to keep her in line, since she would've been the strongest of the bunch, plus we just didn't have a good environment for her which stressed her out even more. The rest of the group we have contained for now, but they're contained in the colder area of the mountain, which suits their needs much better. We're working with them every day and after a few days they're already showing signs of trusting us- the one exception is the female Weavile, though we don't take it personally. She's still recovering and has to take antibiotics and pain meds, which she doesn't like very much, but we're working on positive associations. She's stopped trying to swipe at us at the very least, though that doesn't stop her brother from growling at us.

I expect this group to make a full recovery, and when they do we'll discuss with them if they want to stay here or return to their original homes. Some Pokemon like to stay here- it's safer, and we have what they need, but others want to go back home where they have friends and families. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it- whatever they choose we'll make sure it happens, but for now they're our patients who need our help, so we're focusing on recovery above all.

[lycaran]

Meet Lonnie

So uh...May have made a Hardenshipping fankid.

His name's Lonnie, an orphan street kid that Archie and Maxie adopted who counts as a fankid in my eyes, god damn it.

I can’t draw muscles or children to save my life.

Originally @cryptidanaphafsi​ did this I with their fankid I believe? 

Info under the cut because I really started to ramble about details...A lot. 

Bad Quality picture, but his adult versions both have a keystone in the middle of their mask that they use for Mega Evolution.

Notes:

RSE canon is Emerald, which leads in Alpha Sapphire in the future, though in this canon way, RSE events get resolved Without a protagonist. Hypothetical game futures for the SM and USUM games.

RSE Version -

-Still living on the streets at this point, 8-10 in age.

-Met a few times over the course of the story, usually found hiding around a corner after an encounter with Maxie or Archie(outside of hideout encounters), seems mostly in awe of how cool the plans seem.

-Selectively mute, if talked to he'll make gestures towards the player but since the player is about ten, all you really get from talking to him is "...."

-Jumpy, running off as soon as the player is done talking

-Vitiligo

-In the Sapphire & Emerald versions of the game, post game, he's absolutely Terrified of Kyogre, developing Aquaphobia as he grows older.

-Sometime post game, Archie and Maxie pick him up bc he still seems to tag along just behind one of them, and hey, the kid needs a home. And when they’ve patched things up, they’re really good dad’s.

ORAS Version, constants-

- Adopted pre-game and raised by Maxie and Archie before they split bc of differing ideals...again.

- Mid-twenties.

- Team Magma Admin.

- Aquaphobia from past trauma, selectively mute.

- I can't draw muscles but he's definitely the strongest person there, thanks to Archie and a bit of Matt.

- As an adult, Vitiligo patches have spread and caused part of his hair to grow in white.

- Personality wise, he's a rather nice man, only really being a sore loser. And takes after Maxie alot in the brains department, including dumbassery. 

- He’s dating both an Aqua Grunt and a Magma Grunt, don’t tell his dads though. A grunt in the Magma hideout asks you if you want to place a bet on that happens when the bosses find out, then realizes you are Not one of the grunts, and runs off.

- Aqua Grunt is named Dew

- Magma Grunt is named Ashe

- I will draw them eventually, they will be mentioned elsewhere.

Omega Ruby -

-he appears somewhat sporadically, usually around Maxie. Fought once at Mossdeep city when the player beats the gym, viewing the player as a threat to Maxie's goal...and wanting to make use of himself, aquaphobia keeping him from following the rest of the team down to the Seafloor Cavern. Team: Crobat, Camerupt, Mightyena, Sealeo.

-A Grunt, Ashe, follows him around and acts as an interpreter. Talking directly to Lonnie is always "..." before the grunt buts in to explain what he's trying to say.

-When defeated by the player, he'll turn to the grunt, signing furiously, only for the grunt to exclaim "I can't say that to a child!" before Lonnie leaves in a huff.

- During the Delta Episode he's fought at the Magma Hideout, without Ashe, absolutely Livid about what Zinnia did to Maxie, and fighting the player as soon as they enter, seeing them as just something else that'll upset his dad. Team: Crobat, Camerupt, Mightyena, Walrein.

- Post Delta Episode, you'll actually find him alone in a house on the Battle Resort. When talked to, he still won't talk, but after interacting with him Maxie walks in to explain that he and his son were there, trying to lay low, relax a bit, and they're waiting on "a certain someone" to show up for a talk.

Alpha Sapphire Version, aka the Canon Version-

- Not very active story wise, always seen rather ominously popping up mere seconds after an interaction with Team Aqua. He doesn't have an interpreter this time, so all the player really gets is "...." then a yes/no text box before he leaves.

- Appears on Mt. Chimney with Maxie to try and stop Team Aqua's little attempt. Maxie will actually translate some of what Lonnie's trying to say, and while it would be nice, he doesn't exactly explain Why Lonnie tends to be tailing Team Aqua, Archie most specifically

-And ho boy. When Kyogre gets awoken, this poor man is having the Worst day.

- In Sootopolis, he's seen quite visibly shaking, signing Something at Archie, who might be having a "Oh shit." moment and a half because his Son is VERY MUCH AFRAID OF WATER, AND VERY MUCH CAN. NOT. SWIM.

- So yeah. Not a fun time.

- Half of what he's signing is ruined by how shaky his hands are. Ashe looks ready to strangle Archie, and Dew is reeling from the reality and Actually starts cursing Archie out as soon as the player leaves to handle Kyogre.

- Tbh if the two boys didn’t start trying to murder Archie first, Maxie might’ve.

- When Kyogre is captured, when the player leaves and all is said and done, he gives the player a piece of Cameruptite with a small little Thank You note.

- Battle Resort/Battle Maison, he is once again found in a house, but this time Maxie is already there. And once the player talks to the two, Archie walks in, but when that happens, the player is asked to leave so they can have a Family chat.

Sun & Moon Games-

- Okay this is just me being self indulgent and including him in my favorite games of the series, plus it’s just neat.

- Basically, he’s there on a honeymoon with Ashe and Dew.

- Even after the teams disbanded, he’s very partial to his Magma outfit. Only real change coming coming from the removal of the Magma symbols on his vest. Still keeping the combined symbols on his mask.

- More or less appears as a cameo. The only reason they’re even having a Honeymoon in Alola is because it has both Water and Volcanos near eachother.

- Shows up in post game, investigating the Altar of the Sunne/Moone as the idea of other worlds really peaked his interest.

- Funny Images: 6′0″ string bean and a 5′7″ man with average muscle trying to carry a 6′5″ man with muscle from hell because the waves touched him and he freaked out.

Ultra Sun & Moon Games - 

- Mostly the same.

- With the addition of the player actually getting his help against Rainbow Rocket

- When reaching the mansion, Lonnie will be there. Along with Ashe and Dew.

- He’ll then “ask” which side the player wants to take on, fighting either Archie or Maxie depending on choice. Vs. Archie, he takes Ashe with him, Vs. Maxie, he takes Dew. The other of his husbands goes with the player to help handle the other boss.

- After this, you can find Lonnie, Dew, and Ashe at the battle tree.

- Funny Images: Trying to get Lonnie onto Aether, a man made island in the middle of the ocean.

Pokespe Version -

- His age is more me throwing darts at a board trying to guess when shit happens.

- He’s alot more playful and joking in this version.

Ruby Sapphire Chapter -

- 16

-Actually adopted prior to the Ruby&Sapphire Chapter, but in a surprising twist, stays mainly with Archie.

- Interacts with Ruby and Sapphire once, maybe twice through the whole Manga.

- Hard for Archie to be intimidating with a giant of a teen in a life jacket clinging to him everytime they get near water, but he makes it work

- He stays with Arche and team Aqua for two reasons and two reasons only

- One, he lacks past trauma with Kyogre in pokespe, thus doesn’t fear water as much and can stand to be around it more. Two, alchoholics scare him more than water ever could.

-Along with that, Archie also has the safer public persona, so win win on his part

- Lonnie, being a teen, does tend to wander though. Barely seen for most of the chapters. When Archie and Maxie have their fight, he's there for a split second, before letting out his Crobat and fleeing.

-I don't have it all ironed out, but basically, the whole battles between Magma and Aqua through the whole arc have slowly built up this fear in Lonnie's brain when it comes to his dad's, and this is the tipping point.

- Sadly, both leaders are a bit preoccupied to notice at first that he's gone, and it's a fullblown panic after the fact.

-Sadly tho, this doesn't slow down their plans. But Blaise and Amber are put in charge of trying to track him down and find him.(Not in a bad way, more in a Extremely worried parents with a missing son way)

- Cue end of arc.

Emerald Arc

-still 16

-Makes brief cameos, he tends to linger around the back.

- Actually, screw it, I'll make this pretty later but he and Emerald do become friends.

- Has a small interaction with Emerald, writing about how he finds his equipment cool, and is in awe of how he calms pokemon.

-And boy oh does this lead to some Fun

- Cut the confrontation with Guile in the cave, the first Jirachi attempt

- Alot changes here.

- First of all, while Jirachi still escapes, Guile lingers for a moment. Looking at Lonnie for a long moment. And while he does 'reflect' back the attacks with his sword, he sends the attack flying off into a wall instead of at Emerald and Lonnie.

- Later, Guile actually snatches the poor kid, pulling off somewhere just to have a few moments to make sure he's okay

- If you know the manga, you know it's gonna be revealed to Lonnie at this point that Guile is, in fact, Archie. And while he tries to avoid the details, he does tell Lonnie he needs Jirachi to fix things

- Lonnie assumes, sadly naive, that this has to do with Maxie and their family. Even asking Archie where his other dad is, only to be met with silence.

- That doesn't settle well with him, actually demanding to know what happens, atleast as much as you can demand when you can’t talk. The last he heard about them was nearly destroying Hoenn so what happened?

- Archie doesn’t tell him, straight up Refuses to tell him what happened.

- This does not go well. Leading to Lonnie once more running off.

- Lonnie keeps in touch with Emerald after the arc is over, basically adopted him as a little brother because they’re both weird looking kids, Emerald being unusually short, and Lonnie having Vitiligo.

- He runs into Amber after this and kind of just, vibes there, treats Amber like an uncle, and that’s who looks after him for the next few years.

ORAS Arc -

- 20

-Lives with Amber, mostly helping the man with fishing and all around, just trying to have someone around he can 'talk' to without needing an interpreter or to write down every word he says.

-Team Aqua....2!

-He does end up joining the New Team Aqua, since he feels more safe with them in Pokespe. Along with this, he’s curious about where they came from and what’s going on here.

-Looks most like my concept sketch for him in this version.

- Eventually just, disepears in the midst of fighting. He's learned enough and doesn't want to face that all.

- Listen when I tell you. When he sees Maxie and Archie, he's pissed.

-And when The Dustening happens...

- He actually does cry. Hell, it's probably the only time he speaks, begging in a hoarse voice he never uses for his dad's to stay there. Just for once. Let them be a family just for Once.

- It doesn't work.

- Funny Images: Emerald, looking up at Lonnie who is like 3-4 times their height: “I AM GOING TO STEAL YOUR KNEECAPS!!!!” Lonnie, amused, signing: “You-can-try.”

-Pokemon Seen: Crobat, Sharpedo, Sandslash.

Sun and Moon Arc -

- 22

-He actually appears here.

- Listen, he's a smart man, and he knows a lot.

-Appears after that small time skip after Sun and Moon disepear through the portals, ultimately he's here investigating the portals.

- He 'talks' with Kukui and Burnet to try and figure out what's going on.

-I don't know how it'd be incorporated, but basically, he's trying to figure out where the Hell his dad's are. And if these Wormholes can help him, by god is he going to use them

- Knows that, most likely, they’re dead and gone for good. But still holds out hope that somewhere out there, they’re still alive.

- He's still wearing the life jacket. Less for Aesthetic, more because he’s scared shitless about being on an island.

- Are this chapter is where he would have started dating Dew and Ashe, having met them when that whole, other Team Aqua & Magma were made in ORAS.

[youtriggeredmytrapcard]

Ice types! c:

Send me a Pokémon Type and I’ll make a Team for my muse using only Pokémon of that type. // @mundaneaxel

Walrein (Big, powerful)

Weavile (Fast, hits hard)

Alolan Ninetales (Majestic looking)

Aurorus (Personal HC that Kaiba isn't huge on dinosaurs because he sees them as 'dragons, but lamer,' but pickings were slim on ice types so he'll begrudgingly take a blue dinosaur)

Mamoswine (Tough, fierce looking)

Frosmoth (Blue Eyes White... Moth... It's as close as he's getting)

[thedevilsruby]

A Sapphire Among the Diamonds (multi chapter Spanche fic)

Blanche never expected to be anything special when they were growing up, especially a person who shares a bond with the Legendary Articuno and the magic of hydro kinesis. What happens when an Isle of people threaten the world of magic?

Warning: Some chapters will contain violence and smut scenes. You have been warned.

(Chapter One) (Chapter Two: You are here) (Chapter Three) (Chapter Four)

Chapter Two: The Invitation

“Oof, taken down!” The Grunt exclaimed as he shook his head.

Blanche smirked as they returned their Walrein. Another battle well done. “Tell Giovanni Team Mystic says hello.” They chuckled as they watched the Grunt walk away from the field, tail between his legs.

Blanche gasped in surprise as a pair over arms hugged them tightly from behind, they relaxed as they felt a nuzzle to the back of their head. “You did amazing, babe!” Spark exclaimed in pride. “Team Rocket should know not to mess with the brains of our trio!”

Blanche let out the tiniest of smiles and rolled their green eyes. They never showed it but they adored Spark’s energy level when they won a battle.

“Thank you, love.” They responded, turning around to kiss his cheek.

Spark beamed once again, hugging Blanche tightly. “I’ll never know how I got so lucky.”

“Okay, love Pidgeys, break it up!” Candela laughed as she ran up to them, she beamed at Blanche. “Beat another Grunt?” she asked. Blanche simply nodded.

“That’s my best friend!” Candela laughed, high fiving Blanche who smirked amusedly.

“Thank you.” Blanche said, nodding.

“Anyway, Boss needs you to report back to base, you have a letter.” Candela said.

Blanche was surprised. Who was writing to them? Their parents didn’t even write now that they learned to video call and text. “Do you know who it’s from?” They asked Candela.

“All it had was your name on it.” Candela shrugged. 

Blanche tried to think of who would write them. The only friends they really had were Spark and Candela. Maybe Willow, but what they had was mainly professional. Their curiosity piqued, they looked at Spark and Candela. “Would you like to accompany me to read it?”

“Yes!” They both yelled excitedly. “I should have seen that coming.” Blanche chuckled inwardly.

Willow typed away at his computer, waiting for his assistants to arrive. Blanche had texted him they and the other two were on their way and would be there in five minutes.

“They’re always so punctual.” He smiled to himself with a slight shake of his head.

He had always admired his assistants, how they handled things with no qualms or complaints (but he was always willing to listen and reason if they had any). He remembered being like them twenty years ago when he started his own journey.

The door to his office opening was enough to snap him out of his thoughts and he saw his favorite trio enter.

“Hey you three!” He said with a smile.

“Hey, boss!” Spark chirped, waving.

“Hi, boss.” Candela smiled.

“Hello, Willow.” Blanche nodded to him. “I understand I have a letter?”

“You do.” Willow said, picking the cream envelope up and handing it to them. Blanche took it and saw their name written in black ink, a hand drawn diamond underneath. They raised an eyebrow. “Am I supposed to know this insignia?” They asked Willow.

“I tried looking it up and couldn’t find anything.” Willow shrugged. 

“Maybe when you read it, we’ll find out.” Spark suggested.

Blanche ripped open the top of the letter, then took the paper out and read it, their steely gaze slowly turning into one of surprise, everyone’s curiosity grew. “What is it, Blanche?” Willow asked.

“This is from an island very far from here.” Blanche said. “They found out about my powers and want to help me control and learn about them.”

“But we’ve had our powers since the Three Legends chose us.” Candela cocked an eyebrow. “That was years ago when we turned fifteen.”

“We worked hard to control them,” Spark said “but maybe they can even help us understand why the Three chose us.”

“Do you think I should go?” Blanche asked, looking at Willow.

Willow bit his lip. He trusted Blanche for sure but was it really wise to send them to an island alone? How did these people even learn about their powers? He had questions himself.

“Well...I guess if you have questions, the only way is to find out is to let you go there.” Willow said reluctantly. “I’ll watch over Mystic while you’re gone.”

Blanche nodded. “Thank you, Willow.”

“I’m going with Blanche.” Spark piped up.

Willow froze. “What? Spark, Blanche can handle themself. Why do you need to go?” He asked.

“I have a feeling in my gut. Blanche, may I?” Spark asked, holding Blanche’s hand and sincere blue orbs met hesitant green.

Blanche bit their lip. They loved Spark but could he really handle this trip? Then again, Spark’s gut has been right in the past. Maybe it was a good thing should he go with them.

“I can take care of both Valor and Instinct, boss.” Candela offered. “At least until Spark comes back.”

“Well...alright, let’s do it.” Willow sighed, relaxing in his chair. Spark grinned and put an arm around Blanche.

“I’ll pack, when should we go?” He asked.

“I’ll have my Lapras sail us there tonight, then I’ll have my Pidgeot fly ahead and have him warn us about waters ahead.”

Spark nodded. “Sounds like a brilliant plan as always, babe.”

--

I hope this was good, I don’t have as much motivation since BT&P and BT were finished.

Read and enjoy!

[pokemon-breeder-breeze]

Hey breeze, I have a question. So I have been recently been told that I need a Pokémon to help me with moving around and stuff like that. I’m in Constant pain if that helps any. I was told I could pick a Pokémon but I don’t know what kind of Pokémon would best fit ya know? Any suggestions would help

I’ll gladly help you out, but be aware that, because I don’t know what your exact mobility problem/source of pain is, nor where you live, I’ll be giving quite a large list.

 Arcanine is completely rideable, with thick fur that’s safe to hold without harming the pokemon and a strong, sturdy body. Commonly used to ride when needed.

Kadabra and Alakazam have a number of things that can help, from making you feel lighter to carrying you with psychic energy to even making your pain lessen depending on what’s causing it. Not usually recommended to anyone who lives in a dangerous area or travels a lot.

Machamp can stabilize to carry most people with ease, with the only challenge ever being in anyone taller than them and that’s because of discomfort more than anything, so as long as you’re not too much taller than 5′03″ {assuming you have an average sized Machamp if this is the one you go with}, that should be good.

Ponyta and Rapidash are also good picks for riding, as they use to be used like that all the time. For Kantonian Ponyta and Rapidash, you will need to get their trust in order to safely ride them, though. They’re also some of the fastest options, but relatively easy to make them move at a slower pace.

Dodrio can be ridden, but it’s hard to hold onto for some people. It’s also pretty challenging to make them slow down.

While Slowpoke can’t improve ones mobility, if it’s just pain, it does have a strange ability to lessen other’s pain when it’s close to them emotionally.

Rhyhorn is a common ride pokemon for Kalos, and it’s surprisingly easy to stay on and comfortable.

Phanpy can hold even full grown, average weight adult males! They are small, however, and may be uncomfortable to ride.

Gardevoir can and will make gravity lighter for its trainer if asked. They’re highly recommended for people who have chronic pain that makes riding a pokemon a painful choice as well.

Lairon is strong and sturdy and able to carry a person with ease, but it’s not the most comfortable ride, and can leave you sore afterwards if you’re not positioned right.

Tropius can be a comfortable ride, but if you need to hold onto it a bit more than expected, it won’t be able to move as fast, as it’s wings will likely be occupied.

Walrein is one of the only pokemon that can carry someone both over land and water with relative ease, but it’s a pretty bumpy ride on land. It can go over rough terrain with little change to its pace, though.

Shelgon is sturdy as well, but likely to be slow and potentially stubborn. If it likes you, it’ll carry you though.

Salamence is good if you want to fly instead of just regular ride, but otherwise it’s probably best not used for mobility.

Metagross is very handy for transportation! They can use either electromagnitism or their own psychic abilities to keep you on, and hover slightly over the ground for travel at whatever speed you may need. It’s also smart and could alert you before your pain even starts.

Torterra is a popular choice for those who have difficulty walking and breathing, as it has plants right on it and has no issue carrying others. If you have hay fever or pollen allergies, it’s not recommended, though.

While not the easiest thing to get ahold of, Bastiodon can easily walk over and through most terrain. Not recommended for a city/large town or anyone who wants to easily see where they’re going at all times.

Drifblim can be handy if you live in a rural area or the country, as it’s able to float at a low altitude and hold you to where you can still seemingly walk without major issue, but it’s not the best option otherwise.

Garchomp is fast and can fly a bit if need be, but it’s also sometimes reckless and prefers going the fastest route.

Magnezone is a pretty smooth and fast ride, but it’s not as ready to help hold you as Metagross because it’s just unaware. Decent pick for those who can’t get a Metagross but want that one.

If you live in a cold area, Mamoswine is a great pick. May be a bit intimidating at first, as that over 8-foot height is scary for some, but it’s kind, gentle, and easy to hold onto.

Stoutland is used often by those who can manage a bit more walking without anything more than a cane usually, and can carry people a short distance after a certain height and/or weight. Not recommended for long distances.

Scolipede is surprisingly easy to ride and safe. Do be careful of their claws.

Gogoat is one of the best picks for ride pokemon. They’re steady, calm, and able to easily follow orders. They aren’t a big fan of rocky terrains, however.

If you like the cold, Avalugg is a very handy choice. The cracks in their ice make good footholds and handholds for people. The coldness can also help alleviate pain.

Mudsdale is a good choice for most people. I’d only advise against it if one has an allergy to dust, asthma, or a dislike for dirt or mud.

Corviknight is so good for transportation that Galar relies on it. It is exclusively air-travel, though, so if that’s a problem maybe not go with Corviknight.

While strong enough, Copparajah is only for those with excellent resistance to metallic chairs, with lack of a better wording.

So, there’s your options. My top picks are Metagross, Gogoat, and Gardevoir, depending on your preference. I wish you well, and hope you find the perfect partner!

[crystalelemental]

Hoenn was, at one point in time, my least favorite region. This is an asinine statement, but listen. They didn't have Eevee. Eevee was my favorite! I did Crystal with an entire Eeveelution team! How am I supposed to play this game without Eevee? This is a concept that will come up twice more in the series, but to simplify this moment: Hoenn is now arguably my favorite. I adore these games.

I played Emerald, the superior game. My team was Blaziken (Lonely), Delcatty (Hasty), Tropius (Bold), Banette (Naive), Walrein (Naughty), and Mawile (Jolly). The game was pretty much a straight shot, with only one stop to train up to Walrein's evolution before Tate and Liza.

Hoenn is a region based on exploration more than any other. One of the interesting things that stands out about Hoenn is the pathing of the game. You start out going up to Rustboro, then double back to take a boat to Dewford and then around to Slateport, continue north around Fallarbor then loop back to the gondola that takes you up to Lavaridge, then go all the way back to face your dad, then you open up all the Surf routes you took on the boat and the east toward Winona, then to Tate and Liza, and then all the surf routes that loop to Slateport again. The game feels very interconnected, and the constant looping back somehow doesn't feel too irritating. You'd expect this to be tedious, retracing your steps so often, but it's always with something new you can do when you come back. Alongside this are a ton of optional areas, like the Sunken Ship, Shoal Cave, all the Trick Master trials, the routes between Slateport and Pacifidlog including the nonsense Regi puzzles, etc. There is a metric ton to do in this game.

Part of what's exciting about Hoenn is that, in my personal opinion, this is the best new roster of Pokemon ever made. Hoenn has some of the strongest new designs, and almost nothing I could criticize. With the size of this dex, it creates a situation that is perfect for replays, picking between all-time favorites like Mawile, or options that I like but never used before like Tropius and Walrein. It's a delightful region.

The biggest gameplay transition is also one that you could completely ignore: the change from Stat Experience to EVs. I won't bother getting into specifics, if you know you know, but these changes...fundamentally alter nothing. Your Pokemon are unlikely to hit caps, and the main way you do is through medicine. In essence, your stats aren't any higher at the end of the game between these two systems. I will note that EVs tend to go faster than stat experience does, at the cost of not improving every stat simultaneously.

A criticism I have historically levied against EVs is that they can be, at times, wasteful. This is, from this replay, a superficial complaint. The idea is that, if you're training Kadabra in the Fighting Dojo in Gen 1, you still gain the stat experience of their defenses and speed, while in Gen 3 using Ralts against Brawly puts on a lot of Atk EVs that Ralts will never use. While this is technically true, it is functionally without meaning. By gameplay, you will never feel this substantial difference. It's a minor optimization you can make at best, to consider using, say, Taillow instead, but it's not necessary. If anything, EVs in a generation before the physical/special split are best when they distribute evenly. Ralts and Kadabra are extreme examples, but most Pokemon will utilize both offensive stats, so no EV truly goes to waste here.

But this raised an interesting question for me. If the system doesn't feel different...why change it? And I think I know the answer now.

Gen 3 introduced Double Battles, and Emerald in particular offers a ton of situations where you can get into Doubles. In the old stat experience model, stat EXP was split between combatants, such that each participant received half. In essence, in a Double format, Stat EXP would train each Pokemon half as quickly. EVs, however, cannot be split. All participants share the EVs, so a Double battle is training two at the same time for the same full amount. I suspect that EVs were adopted due to the anticipated shift to Doubles formats. Which. Did not catch on. As it turned out. Best laid plans?

The last big takeaway I had was that Hoenn is where difficulty first appeared in the series. Not like in a big way, but Gen 1 is piss easy, and so is Gen 2 barring Red, and even Red can be easily counterpicked. Gen 3 has a lot of tools it throws at you that test your problem solving, or at least push you to grind.

Consider Roxanne. In Gen 1, Brock is easily beaten regardless of starter, because Geodude and Onix have terrible Sp Def and no Rock or Ground moves. There isn't really a trial, so much as maybe a showing for Charmander that not very effective attacks may still be better. Roxanne, however, goes for the throat. Nosepass is obscenely bulky for this time in the game, and she backs that up with two Potions. She can stop you from switching, lowers your speed with Rock Tomb to spin turn order to her favor, and is generally a menace. I love her for that.

The rest of the bosses also have an interesting flow. Brawly has Bulk Up, which turns Makuhita into an absolute beast. He then hands you the TM for Bulk Up, which you may decide to employ against your next big battle. Only for Wattson to whip out paralysis and Selfdestruct, killing you instantly. So okay, status is good. Only for Flannery to go "I may be statuses, but have you tasted Overheat in the Sun?"

Every gym leader seems to build off previous concepts, and at a minimum, has a lead that is carefully designed to counteract possible strategies. Winona has Perish Song on Swablu, Sidney has Sand Attack and Roar, Phoebe has Curse, Wallace has Water Spout for absurd damage, and Steven has Toxic and Spikes. This is the first game to easily hand you boosting moves to play with, and its bosses are designed to teach that you can't just use them without repercussion. Which I think is a really interesting design, and shows the care and consideration they put into their fights.

This does, however, have the long-lasting effect of "just hitting them with sticks is the most effective plan." Four attacks to cover weaknesses remains the dominant strategy, and there's a lot less opponents do to counter that approach than there is countering the boosts or status. But then again, the boosting still works if you're careful. Trust me, you have not lived until you sweep the superboss with Mawile Baton Passing to Calm Mind Delcatty.

Speaking of, Steven Stone qualifies as one of my favorite fights here. I know I dunk on Red, but that has a lot to do with discrepancy of level. The difference between Red's best level and the top level of the League, the best grinding location, is 31. The difference between Wallace and Steven is 20. With the introduction of boosting moves, You also have a lot more options to work with. Despite that, Steven also employs a lot of nasty tricks, like lead Skarmory having Spikes and Toxic, Claydol having Dual Screens into Metagross, or the unbreakable nature of Cradily. Compared to GSC Red, who is very easily counterpicked by just switching around team members, Steven is much harder to counterpick. Unless you bring the legends. Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza are all excellent responses to him broadly.

I just have very little negative to say about Hoenn. I started this talking about how it used to be my least favorite, and that is true. Lacking my favorite Pokemon of the time was rough for my baby child brain to deal with. But you manage. You pick up new favorites, and they grow on you, and maybe you learn to love something new. And by god, did I learn to love Hoenn.

"Even the Battle Frontier?" Don't push it.

Ruby and Sapphire Corner Ruby and Sapphire are games I have not played in 20 years. This is not an exaggeration. They came out in 2002, Emerald came out in 2004, and I have only played Emerald since. Sapphire is one of the only games I don't physically own anymore. I wish I did...

Ruby and Sapphire are very different from Emerald. Aside from the changes made in Emerald to have both Magma and Aqua involved, Ruby and Sapphire also lack the Steven superboss, the Battle Frontier, and changed up a lot of the gym teams and layouts. I have seen a map of Ruby and Sapphire Tate and Liza's gym. No thank you. But of course, the big difference is that Rayquaza has story significance, and a whole event surrounding it.

Obviously, I consider Emerald far superior. But this is the time to talk about something I remember an old high school friend explaining to me. See, he preferred Ruby and Sapphire because of a single event: The Sky Pillar. In those games, Sky Pillar is 100% optional, and he greatly valued exploration and finding out something novel. To him, the best experience he had with the games was accidentally discovering the pillar, climbing it not knowing what would happen, and then running into Rayquaza. Which...fair enough! The third games do tend to put story emphasis on something that used to be a surprise benefit if you explored. I tend to like the added focus and story, but I can at least understand feeling like you found something magical just by putzing around.

[sunsetsinhoenn]

Howdy! Came here via Heavens-Doar! Since I noticed you do both Pokemon and Jojo headcanons, could I ask what you think each of the Jojos Pokemon teams would look like? ✌️

I could have easily made this a lot simpler by just picking pokemon and then calling it a day, but everyone tends to have a favorite type, so I started with that and then made their teams based off of it! I don’t want to get carried away and explain why I chose each pokemon as that’d get way too long, but I’m sure this suffices. 

Jonathan

Type Specialty – Lightning, Fighting, Normal/Fairy

Fighting goes without saying for him and the rest of the JoJos. Hamon is always seen as this yellow-like energy and never fails to remind me of lightning. Normal/Fairy was chosen because out of all of the JoJos, he had one of the more kinder and forgiving personalities, which I think fits with the typing.

Pokemon – Pikachu, Manectric, Machamp, Blaziken, Bewear, Audino

Joseph

Type Specialty – Psychic, Fighting, Ghost, and Lightning

Fighting and lightning are the same for Joseph as they were for Jonathan. Psychic was chosen because of his crazy ability to read his opponents and ghost was chosen because he can be a no-good trickster with more than one card up his sleeve. Also, his stand reminds me of a ghost possessing technology even though it’s a psychic ability. I suppose dark would fit better because they have more moves that go along with the ‘underhanded’ personality I chose ghost for, but… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Pokemon – Gengar, Plusle, Gallade, Crabrawler, Rotom, Sableye

Jotaro

Type Specialty – Water, Ice, Psychic, Fighting, and Ghost

Water and ice are kind of a given. Psychic and ghost go hand in hand as they’re both similar typings. Since Jotaro is always calm and collected, he’s able to analyze what’s happening in front of him and act accordingly, making him a sort of trickster in his own right (just without as much a scene or as inconvenient as Joseph makes it). also fighting -> punches -> oraoraora

Pokemon – Lapras, Walrein, Starmie, Poliwrath, Jellicent, Machamp

Josuke

Type Specialty – Fairy, Grass, Fighting, and Poison

A good boy, so he gets fairy for the same reason Jonathan does and because his stand also looks like it follows the usual fairy-type color scheme. Grass is known to have a lot of healing and status effect moves, which fits with his stand. He still has fighting because he can fight like the rest of ‘em, even if he’s more of a fixer. Poison, however, was chosen because while he’s able to fix things and have them revert to their status just before it got destroyed, he can also completely wreck its original make-up or appearance and seemingly gets to choose how far back in the fixing process he gets to go. It’s the concept of fuckin things up from the inside that makes me choose poison for him. Also, the aesthetic.

Pokemon – Wigglytuff, Roserade, Nidoking, Venusaur, Sylveon, Lopunny

**bonus**

I’m only on episode 3 or 4 of part 5, but I wanted to take a crack at writing for Giorno! My opinion might change, but we’ll see how well I can get it.

Giorno

Type Specialty – Psychic, Grass, Fairy, and Dragon

From what I’ve seen, Giorno is a hell of a lot better in terms of personality compared to his dad. He’s got the kindness of Jonathan, but I also think he’s got the drive/ambition that Dio had. So that’s where the duality of fairy and dragon comes into play. Dragons are often mentioned as a force not to be taken lightly. I chose psychic because I sort of equate that with intelligence and intuition, and then grass for obvious reasons.

Pokemon – Altaria, Gardevoir, Lilligant, Tsareena, Goodra, Musharna