Now I understand Nuzlocke runs

So I finished my playthrough of Alpha Sapphire. In fact, I was so keen to finish that the moment I got to the Hoenn League that I ran through to face the Elite Four without purchasing any extra healing or status restore items.

So I ended up facing the final bosses of the game with only a couple of Super Potions and Revives to my name. In fairness to me I got all the way to the regional champion with three of my Pokemon intact. What's more, husbanding my potions and status restorers I managed to get all the way to my opponent's final Pokemon...

… which had a Mega Evolution that, sadly, I hadn't anything that anything that could counter, my two mega evolving Pokemon having bought it earlier to the Elite Four.

I had that Metagross down to like a millimetre of its health bar, though, before I used my last potion and got my final Pokemon (good, loyal HM slave Kemosabe the Linoone) got slammed in the fact and fainted.

But just there, just for a second, when I was one last hit away from winning after a slogging endurance run through the Elite Four, I finally understood the Nuzlocke idea.

Now I really want to do one. Its definitely something to do in a game you don't mind not finishing so I think I'll break out Pokemon X again but I really want to see how far I can get under the harsher conditions of the Nuzlocke. 

Alpha Sapphire take 2

I do have a horrible habit of abandoning games. I set Pokemon Alpha Sapphire aside months ago and by the time I got back to it I couldn't remember what I was doing, where I was going or where I'd been. So a few hours wandering the Routes and stumbling into towns I'd already been to after I just deleted the save files and started again. It started off as a Nuzlocke run but since I haven't finished this game I decided that was a dumb idea (but if I finish this before Sun and Moon come out, I might do a Nuzlocke for Pokemon X).

I like the idea of a Nuzlocke run but I also like the idea of finishing this game and it strikes me as being one or the other, really.

Anyway, here I am, new Pokemon trainer Erin (yes, female character again, its sort of a thing with me) starting my journey through the Heonn region. I've beaten my first gym leader, Roxanne of Rustboro and her Rock-type gym. I've also received the gloriously broken Generation VI version of the EXP Share, which makes life so much easier. If they nerf that thing in Sun and Moon I am basically doomed.

Anyway, the new team at this time stands as follows:

Ace the Marshtomp (Water-Ground)

(yes, I power level early)

Dusty the Dustox (Bug-Flying)

Toby the Shroomish (Grass)

Snowy the Poochyena (Dark)

Kemosabe the Zigzagoon (Normal)

Redfeather the Taillow (Normal-Flying)

I've got pretty good type-coverage so far. Not a perfect team by any means but there are plenty more routes and plenty more gyms to go before the Heonn League. Kemosabe look set for a future of HM-slavery and unless Redfather gains some decent attacks soon he's PC-bound what with his typing being completely redundant.

And I don't like the Shroomish's design. Most Grass-types I love but as soon as something better comes along he's gone. Not even a better Grass-type, I've beaten the Rock gym and that's the main reason to have a Grass-type. Who knows what I'll find on the Routes of Hoenn? Not even me, since I seem to have completely forgotten everything about this game. Having gotten my arse kicked by a couple of Grass-types, however, I am painfully aware that I need a Fire-type on the strength.

Just makes things more interesting, frankly.

(images from Bulbapedia, the resource that allows me not to get killed fifty millions times when I enter gym battles). 

Alpha Sapphire: The Team So Far

I'm a couple hours into Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, just entered Rustboro City on my way to the first gym, and my team is starting to take shape. It isn't an interesting or useful shape but it is a shape and it looks like this:

Sunny the Treecko (Grass)

Lady the Poochyena (Dark)

Kemosabe the Zigzagoon (Normal)

Dancer the Surskit (Bug)

Puddin' the Ralts (Psychic/Fairy)

Seaspray the Wingull (Flying/Water)

Now I'm playing this one blind: no strategy, no smartphone, no wikia. This means I have no idea what's waiting for me in the Rustboro City Gym (no spoilers, please) but if it is anything like the trainers I encountered on the way then I am royally screwed. Hell if its anything like the Lv.16 Wurmple that just randomly ambushed me in the forest I am royally screwed. I seem to have lucked into the most incompetent Pokemon in the least useful combination. They miss like crazy, come down with status ailments if anything so much as looks at them and STAB bonuses elude me.

So far the only ones who have proven themselves even semi-useful are Sunny and Lady, mainly by deigning to have learnt halfway effective offensives moves.

On the plus side, I'm probably saved the agony of choice when it comes to replacing team members when I capture something better. Seaspray won't be with us long because I'm lukewarm on his design and I know what he evolves into and it looks terrible; and Kemosabe is either going to get the chop fairly early on or live a life of HM slavery, I haven't decided. Dancer is borderline, I like the design but I've never favoured Bug-Types so we'll see what attacks it levels into.

What do I want to replace them with? Well, I've no idea what's ahead but broadly speaking Fire-Types are always useful and as soon as I have a fishing rod I'm going after a Magikarp which I'm pretty sure this game has since I just fought a trainer who had three of them. 

Pokemon Sky Trainer roleplay is a go!

Nintendo just revealed the starters and legendaries for Pokemon Sun and Moon and... boy, do I love it when a plan comes together!

So, yes, we have a dual Grass/Flying type starter, the spherically adorable Rowlet. Also, the legendary for Moon is a big bat thingy. All good news for me and my plan to roleplay a Sky-Trainer character. I genuinely wasn't expecting to get a Flying type starter, I think the only time that's even sort of happened is that Charmander evolves into one.

I actually picked up a cheap copy of Pokemon Alpha Sapphire this morning (they're good games to tinker with whilst I'm listening to audio plays) and I'm going to take it more “blind” than I did Pokemon X. With Pokemon X, I was perpetually checking out the weaknesses of my enemies on my smartphone. Honestly, I feel that's no more cheating than the strategy guides we used to have as kids but I would like to see how I do actually trying to learn the advantages and disadvantages of the types and items and so on.

The only thing I have to decide (for this and for Moon) is whether I'll be giving my trainer a new name or whether my Pokemon X character Vicki is going to be travelling the various regions Ash Ketchum style.

If I decide to go with a new character here, I think I'll call her Elspeth.