THE RULES:
1—All pokemon must be nicknamed.
2—I must attempt to catch the first pokemon I see in any route or area. I may catch no others in that area.
3—If a pokemon faints, it is considered “dead” and may no longer be used. I will release them from the next PC.
4—Legendaries cannot be caught or used.
5—The Pokewalker cannot be used.
6—If the first encounter is a duplicate of a pokemon I already have, I may ignore it and re-try for a new one. After three re-tries, however, I must catch the fourth one even if it is a dupe.
7—Gift pokemon, such as Bill’s Eevee or the Tyrogue from the Karate King, can be accepted and used and do not count under the “first encounter” rule. Forced encounters, such as Sudowoodo and the Red Gyarados, however, do count under the “first encounter” rule.
8—In-game trades are acceptable, but out-of-game trades, even to make pokemon such as Haunter or Graveler evolve, are not.
9—The Daycare Center cannot be used to breed, but it can be used to level up pokemon.
10—If all pokemon in my party faint, or if I am in a situation where I need to use a move like Cut or Surf to progress but have no pokemon that can use these moves and cannot obtain one without breaking the rules, I lose and my adventure ends.
Deaths so far: 5
Badges so far: 7
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Radio Tower
I’m still reeling from the loss of Victoire. The director gives me a Silver Wing for vanquishing Team Rocket. Speaking to others in the area gets me prizes like the Sunny Day TM and a BrightPowder.
Regarding my replacement for Victoire… of my three buffer pokemon, none can really fill in the slot that well. I took out Carmen because she simply can’t keep up with the increasing difficulty and because she’s outclassed entirely by Laika, and those issues would still be prevalent if I re-added her. Noelle, the red Gyarados, is an option but I already have a physical Water-type in Felix, so she wouldn’t add anything new to the team.
Trevor is tempting, as I could really use an Ice-type for Clair and Lance. However, he’s completely useless unless evolved with a Water Stone, which are difficult to get before beating Lance. The only way to get one is if I get lucky and Fisherman Tully calls and offers me one. However, that’s entirely luck-based and I can’t afford to bank on it. Now that I have the Exp. Share I can level quickly so one of the other boxed pokemon could be an option, but none of them really stand out. I considered Regina (the Sandshrew I bought alongside Aaron way back when) as well as the Nidos and Ryan, the Gloom, but ultimately none of them stuck out.
When I was debating over it, however, I realized that an Ice-type really tickles my fancy. I’m coming up on the Ice Path. If I get lucky, maybe my first capture there will prove a worthy addition. If not, I’ll have to select one of the boxed pokemon.
Route 44
That stupid old man in Mahogany finally lets me pass. I’m not going to bother with first encounters or trainers here, though; I’m rushing right through to the Ice Path for the catch there. I’ll be back once I’m done.
Ice Path
All right, the moment of truth. My catch for the area is…
Dammit, it’s Delibird! That pokemon that only learns Present by level-up, has base stats lower than the likes of Raticate and Butterfree—significantly lower, I might add!—and is generally considered one of the worst pokemon in the game.
ADSGFASADGJASDKF
Well, it didn’t matter in the long run anyway. I dutifully tried to catch it but a crit knocked down all its HP in one go.
Route 44
Well, it came down to the wire between Regina and Noelle, but ultimately I decided that Gyarados is more versatile, not to mention that Sandslash learns no decent moves by level-up in Gen IV and I would have to wait until the Earthquake TM to give it decent STAB (thanks to already using Dig on Carmen).
Noelle, the red Gyarados, has joined the party!
Now that we have the party sorted out, we’re going to go tackle Route 44 proper-like this time. First on the docket is giving our new Gyarados a test spin. Our first opponent is a Psychic using a Natu. Bite from Noelle takes it down right quick. Girl is strong! Noelle does the same thing to his Kadabra despite it putting up a Relfect. Hoo boy!
After thrashing a Fisherman, we Surf to the grassy patch in the center. Time to see what we get! Our encounter is a Lickitung! Um… um. Uh. Okay. I name her Addy. “Brave nature. Likes to fight.”
Elsewhere in the grassy patch we get a Max Revive. Great in any other playthrough, not so much here. …oh my gosh, I just talked to Noelle and got the flavor text “Noelle is happily rolling around in the grass.” Just… just picture a Gyarados, this fearsome water serpent, on land, rolling around in grass with a goofy grin plastered all over her face.
I can’t
I can’t even
Some Ace Trainer describes herself as an elite. Um, sorry to break it to you, but you have a Mareep. A freaking unevolved cuddly sheep. You’re not elite.
Another Ace Trainer’s Charmeleon levels Noelle up to 31. A good thing about her is that she’s already near the team in levels, so I don’t have to do any training.
“Ack! You made me lose a Poliwag! What are you gonna do about it?” Jeez, Fisherman, calm down! Noelle reaches lv. 32 and learns Ice Fang. Booyah!
Ice Path
Back here again. Let’s move on to Blackthorn City. I quickly snatch up the Waterfall HM and teach it to Noelle. Now she has a physical STAB move!
In the basement below, there are some Strength puzzles. I’ve placed Carmen in the party for just this reason (boxing Franklin temporarily.) And of course the very next pokemon I encounter here is a Swinub. Of course! Now of all times, not first encounter when I needed you!
…well, whatever…
Irwin calls me to congratulate me on liberating the Radio Tower. Yeah, but at what cost… Speaking of annoying callers, I haven’t heard from either Joey or Lyra in a while. Perhaps their dastardly plot to destroy my patience has finally come to an end?
After getting all four boulders to drop down, I head to the next level down, grabbing goodies like a Max Potion and a NeverMeltIce. Y’know what this dungeon could use to spice it up? Some trainers. :V
(Incidentally, I’ve figured out Noelle. As her details and nature suggest, she’s lonely and quiet, and doesn’t really think too highly of herself. However she’s gradually loosening up and doing playful things like rolling around in the grass. She can be quite silly!)
A little further in and we’re nearing the end. One of the Kimono Girls is here again. Her sandals got frozen to the ice, she says. Why on earth would you wear sandals in the Ice Path anyway? After getting her unfrozen, she just wanders off without a word of gratitude. Rude!
Just on the other side of this opening lies Blackthorn City. Clair’s a tough nut to crack—how will we fare? Stay tuned!
Current Teammates: Felix (Feraligatr), Kenya (Fearow), Laika (Stantler), Aaron (Kadabra), Noelle (Red Gyarados), Carmen (Raticate)
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