Individual RP: AmericanTreeFrog

BP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog I'll tag you in each post if you want

~~~~~

“Let’s leave the little guy alone,” the young man said to me. “But if he wants to battle Ludicolo is rearing to go.”

Ludicolo shuffled to the side and took a look at the Piplup before emitting a sharp loud barking of some sort. It took me a couple seconds to realise that it was laughter. I could understand why it was laughing - in general, Grass-typed Pokemon had a substantial advantage over Water-types. That didn't necessarily mean anything, though - there were very very few Water Pokemon that didn't have access to Ice-type attacks.

The Trainer seemed to be thinking along the same lines as me. "Don't mock it, it knows Flying moves," he chastised his Pokemon.

The Piplup had its little cheeks huffed out and it put its flippers on its hips. It quite clearly had taken offense from the Ludicolo's dismissive attitude. Despite the fact that the Grass-type was now looking a bit more serious, the Piplup was not happy. It bent down, forcing its stubby little flippers into the ground. It heaved for a second before pulling its arms up, spraying mud everywhere. A good amount hit me on the coat, and a few stray splatters covered my face. I wasn't nearly as badly hit as Ludicolo, though - his yellow and green patterning was now mostly covered by dark brown mud.

"I think the Piplup wants to fight," I said thickly, wiping the mud off my face. "Unless you want to use a PokeDoll? That should calm it down a bit."

~~~~~

Current Battle Statistics:

??? ??? Piplup: 100% (used Mud Sport)

Quirky Female Ludicolo: 100%

MUD_SPORT

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 11 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(?); ??? Piplup(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 3096

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage


Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi]
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch


Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze


Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: Please - @ChainReaction01
----

It seems the Piplup had taken offense at Ludicolo’s laughter because it had puffed out its small cheeks in what seemed like an angry manner and had placed its stubby flippers on what passed for as hips. It stared at Ludicolo before bending to the ground and forcing its flippers into the ground. It took me a few seconds before I realized what it was doing, but by then it was too late. With a small pull the Water Pokemon sent mud flying everywhere in a Mud Sport attack.

"I think the Piplup wants to fight," Carter said, wiping the mud from his glasses. "Unless you want to use a PokeDoll? That should calm it down a bit."


I wiped the thick mud from eyes and turned to glare at the smiling Ludicolo. “I would have to agree with you,” I said to Carter. “Ludicolo, I would like to thank you for getting us into this mess. As a reward you get to fight.” Ludicolo, his yellow body now covered in brown mud, flashed me a sheepish smile but still stepped forward. “I’m glad you agree,” I said sarcastically. “Start things off with your Fake Out move followed up by Energy Ball.”

Ludicolo might have loved to be a clown and have a quirky personality, but when it was time to battle he was deadly serious; losses were no laughing matter. He raised his broad green flippers to his mouth and started to chant, “Ludi, Ludi.” For the first second nothing happened, but then a small orb of swirling green and yellow energy began to appear. The orb slowly grew in size until it was the size of a bowling ball. With what had to be a mocking smile at Piplup Ludicolo fired the mass of energy at Piplup. But the split moment after firing the Energy Ball, Ludicolo moved so fast that it was but a blur as it narrowed the distance between him and his foe, his arms before him in a Fake Out stance.​

 

BP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog Piplup gender?

~~~~~

"I would have to agree with you," my Trainer said, wiping the mud out of his eyes unhappily. “Ludicolo, I would like to thank you for getting us into this mess. As a reward you get to fight.”

The Carefree Pokemon looked a bit sheepish, but he still smiled happily. He stepped forwards, towards the Piplup, preparing to battle the Water-type.

“I’m glad you agree. Start things off with your Fake Out move followed up by Energy Ball,” the young man commanded.

Ludicolo raised his flippers up to his mouth and began to chant quietly. A green sphere began to grow, interspersed with light yellow speckles that swirled slowly around the orb. When it was was large enough to throw solidly, the Grass-type smirked and pushed his flippers forward, sending the Energy Ball flying towards the Piplup.

I was a little confused - I could have sworn my Trainer had ordered a Fake Out. Maybe the Ludicolo didn't like to use priority moves? I was about to query this when the Carefree Pokemon suddenly blurred forward, ducking under the ball and reaching out to slap the small blue penguin. Both of his flippers struck opposite sides of the Piplup's face, and the little Water-type stumbled backwards in shock. Acting quickly, Ludicolo ducked low to the ground, and the Energy Ball whipped over him, crashing into the Piplup's head. The little bird was sent flying head over heels, landing on its stomach in the dirt. Ludicolo jumped from side-to-side happily, pleased that its attack combo had worked perfectly.

The Piplup tried to get to its feet, but only managed to its knees. It stuck its fist into the ground again. There was a pause for a few seconds. Suddenly, small vines erupted from the earth around Ludicolo, who was still low on the ground. The Grass Knot wrapped around his legs and arms and torso, pulling him close to the ground and immobilizing him. Both Pokemon stared at each other - the Piplup panting, and the Ludicolo tied to the earth.

~~~~~

Current Battle Statistics:

??? ??? Piplup: 75% (used Grass Knot)

Quirky Female Ludicolo: 92% (used Fake Out, Energy Ball)

MUD_SPORT

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 11 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(?); ??? Piplup(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 4881 / 15000

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi]
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01 - Female
-------

While the Fake Out plus Energy Ball was a move myself and Ludicolo had only come with a couple weeks ago, he pulled the move off flawlessly. Ludicolo ducked under the speeding Energy Ball and struck Piplup on the cheeks, causing the Pokemon to stumble backwards in shock. No sooner had Fake Out struck that Ludicolo ducked low and and away from the incoming Energy Ball. Still off balance from the Fake Out, Piplup had no time to dodge the yellow and green orb. The attack hit Piplup in the face and sent the Water Pokemon sprawling backward to land on its flat stomach in the mud.

I gave Ludicolo a baleful stare as he was hopping from foot to foot all excited about his perfect moves. I made to open my mouth but then vines suddenly rose up from the earth to wrap around the body and limbs of Ludicolo in a powerful grip.

Piplup was bending over, panting with fatigue while ludicolo was flush against the ground, trying to struggle but not having much success. This left me in a bind, Ludicolo couldn’t attack Piplup at this moment in time. I had to free him from the vines ASAP. Luckily I had a plan to complete just that, if it even worked seeing as how I had never tried something like this.

“Listen up, Ludicolo. Going to try another combo. I want you use to Icebeam on the vines followed by your Brick Break to shatter them, hopefully some of the shards will strike Piplup.

Ludicolo nodded and closed his eyes in concentration. Normally he would use his hands to summon the energy needed for Icebeam, but with his limbs immobilized that left his mouth. The large Water Pokemon opened his bill-like mouth and a small ball of ice began to form at the opening to his mouth. The small ball built up until it was about the size of a human fist, then, with another breath, Ludicolo channeled something of his Water powers out of his body. The water came rushing out his mouth and was flung at the ball of ice. When the water came into contact with the ball of ice it instantly froze and came out as a stream of ice which covered the vines and froze the ground around my Pokemon. While this had been happening, the left fist of Ludicolo had began to glow a white as it built up the power needed to use Brick Break. When the attack had reached sufficient power Ludicolo slammed a flipper into the ground hard. I hoped the combo worked.​

 

BP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog

~~~~~~

My PDA beeped as I watched the Grass Knot further constrict the Grass-type. I wasn't going to check it and take my eyes off the battle - to do so would be irresponsible and unbecoming of an Elite Ranger. Besides, I knew what it was. It was the file of my Trainer, which was good. I'd finally be able to refer to him mentally by his name.

He didn't seem too impressed with his Pokemon, but perhaps that was just how he kept his cool. It was working, too. “Listen up, Ludicolo," he said. "Going to try another combo. I want you to use Ice Beam on the vines followed by your Brick Break to shatter them. "Hopefully some of the shards will strike Piplup."

Ludicolo opened his mouth and a very light blue sphere grew in his mouth. Some mist drifted off it and around his mouth as it grew in size. The Ice Beam didn't scare Piplup very much, though - the little bird ran towards Ludicolo and began pecking the exposed parts of his body with its little beak.

The ice began to flow down over Ludicolo'd body, freezing the vines over and forcing the Piplup's attack to end. The ice sheets moved over the ground around Ludicolo too. With a powerful jerk of his arm, the Grass-type broke free of his prison. The ice shards flew up into the air, but most of them were going in Piplup's direction. Some of them landed on or near the penguin, shattering and causing it to flinch backwards. They didn't do much damage though - being a penguin, the Piplup was resistant to cold attacks like that. At least now Ludicolo was free again. It was time to go on the offensive before Piplup broke out one of those Flying-type attacks that my Trainer had mentioned earlier.

~~~~~

Current Battle Statistics:

??? Female Piplup: 66% (used Fury Attack)

Quirky Female Ludicolo: 83% (used Ice Beam, Brick Break)

MUD_SPORT

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 11 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 7219 / 15000

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi]
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
------

While Ludicolo was trying to use the Icebeam, Piplup had run over and started to peck at the exposed parts of Ludicolo in a series of quick but painful strikes. But as the ice started to fully freeze everything, Piplup was forced back; and when Ludicolo used Brick Break to free himself, shards of ice were sent flying in multiple directions, some even hitting Piplup and causing it it to stumble backwards, and giving Ludicolo some room to battle.

I waited until Ludicolo had rose to his feet and shake the pain away before calling out an attack. “Ludicolo, we’re going to try a Giga Drain attack.”

Giga Drain was a technical move that I had taught Ludicolo when I first acquired him. Because I had been teaching Ludicolo a slew of moves at that point, he had been exhausted when we finally reached the Grass type move. But luckily, since Ludicolo was a Grass type and a Water type he didn’t have too much trouble nailing the move down, especially because he had already learned Mega Drain by that point. And Giga Drain was just a more powerful version of the move.

Ludicolo stared at the feathery form of Piplup and began to channel the energies needed to complete the move. The move was relatively simple on Ludicolo’s part, the hard part for my Pokemon was the retrieving of health. Doing damage was the easy part. The attack started by first imaging a link being created between the two Pokemon. From there, Ludicolo had to imagine small microscopic orbs of life energy in Piplup that made up it’s whole being. Ludicolo would imagine taking each individual piece of such energy and plucking it from Piplup’s body. He would visualize each piece being dropped in the connection and it would flow back to him to heal. When he was first attempting the move it had taken him a few minutes to acquire the concentration needed to complete the task. Now, Ludicolo could do the move as easily as any of his other moves. ​

 

BP

Ranger Chainy

~~~~~

Ludicolo got to his feet and shook himself a little bit as the Piplup moved away from the icy spikes. It looked like he had been hurt a little bit but I knew that a fully-evolved Pokemon like Ludicolo could take much more than what he had been given.

“Ludicolo, we’re going to try a Giga Drain attack,” my Trainer ordered.

Ludicolo closed his eyes for a second before forcing them back open, staring straight at the Piplup. The penguin stared back and held its right flipper behind its body as light blue energy began to swirl. I took the opportunity to quickly open up the file on my PDA and read my Trainer's name - Garth Crysis. Interesting name, especially his last one. There's probably a story there.

Slowly the Grass-type raised his hands towards the Piplup. Small yellow-green spheres of life force bubbled out of the small bird's skin and flew across to Garth's Pokemon, sinking into the palms of his hands. I recognised it easily - Joey, my Breloom, often used these kinds of attacks to replenish his health.

The Piplup became more and more tired, but the energy swirling around its flipper kept growing. It swung its flipper forward and a blast of Icy Wind hit Ludicolo, forcing him backwards. Small icicles grew on Ludicolo's arms and legs, and bits of snow stuck all over his body. I knew they'd slow down his movement a bit. However, it probably wasn't going to be much of a problem - despite his slowed movement, the Piplup was looking very tired.

~~~~~

Current Battle Statistics:

??? Female Piplup: 44% (used Icy Wind)

Quirky Female Ludicolo: 88%, SPD-1 (used Giga Drain)

MUD_SPORT

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 11 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 9137 / 15000

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi]
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
---

Despite being sapped of its strength by the powerful Giga Drain, Piplup was still intent on keeping up the fight. It lifted its flipper and swung it forward and a sudden blast of Icy Wind sprang up and rushed at the legs Ludicolo. For whatever reason Piplup wanted to cripple or immobilize Ludicolo while it battled. That strategy could help Piplup if it could defeat Ludicolo, but by focusing on those moves it was leaving itself wide open to attack.

I wanted to defeat Piplup, but I didn’t want to knock it out. my hope was that it would eventually give up hope and flee the battle. But I didn’t rely on luck or hope ot win a battle, those factors could help a battle, but they were not the cornerstone. “Ludicolo, start with a Swords Dance followed up by your Seedbomb attack.”

Hopefully that combo would scare the little Piplup away or lower its health enough that it would go unconscious. But jeez, I was getting tired of having to battle Pokemon or use my Pokedolls. I hadn’t used a doll yet, but every Pokemon seemed to want to fight my guys. I didn’t mind a good fight, but the Water Pokemon I had brought along couldn’t keep battling forever, eventually they would tire and I would have to use a healing item or start using the dolls. But I had to focus on the battle.

Seedbomb was normally a pretty strong Grass attack, in fact it was my second strongest move for Ludicolo besides the all powerful Solarbeam. I could use Solarbeam, but I didn’t want to use the overly powerful attack on a relatively weak Pokemon like Piplup. It also used up a fair amount of energy seeing as how it took two turns to charge without Sunny weather.

Right now both Pokemon were staring at each other in the heat of battle. Piplup was looking very tried and Ludicolo wasn’t at one hundred percent either. And with the small patches of ice and snow covering Ludicolo’s body his movements would be slowed. But with the ice clinging to his limbs, Ludicolo started the ancient and rhythmic dance that would increase a Pokemon’s attack power. What seemed like a scattering of individual movements of the arms, legs and body was actually a small piece in a plan. Each movement by itself would do nothing of significance, only when combined would each piece merge and increase the attack. Ludicolo’s movements had speeded up a notch and already he was beginning to chant, the last steps needed for the attack to hopefully work.

The next step was the Seedbomb move. Seedbomb wasn’t a normally learned move, I had taken Ludicolo to a daycare center where breeders had taught Ludicolo the move. Because it wasn’t a TM or a level-up move Ludicolo had to focus more than he normally would for other types of attacks, but I was sure he could pull the move off.

The top head-tree of Ludicolo started to glow a bright yellow from the base as it slowly spread to the top, until the whole structure was glowing. When enough energy had built up within the head-tree of Ludicolo, a small shamrock-green of explosive energy was growing just above the head-tree. It took a few long seconds, but eventually a group of four energy bombs had assembled as the orbs swirled about the head of Ludicolo. Ludicolo looked at Piplup intently and fired the attack. ​

 

BP

Ranger Chainy

~~~~~

Garth watched both Pokemon closely as they faced each other, Ludicolo rubbing the frozen parts of his body and the Piplup panting hard. Finally, he spoke up, “Ludicolo, start with a Swords Dance followed up by your Seedbomb attack.”

Ludicolo began to sway from side to side, making erratic flicking movements. He was obviously stretching out his muscles, increasing his attack power and maneuverability. I'd seen my Gallade perform the Swords Dance many times, although it looked very different to this one. No doubt that was because of the two Pokemon's very different physiology.

The Grass-type finished swaying, and the top of its head began to glow yellow. Four small energy spheres detached from the yellow glow, spinning around the Ludicolo's head as they grew in size. The Piplup's eyes narrowed, and it opened its beak wide. A shriek spilled out of the penguin's maw, a noise much louder than any creature of the Piplup's size had any business making. Ludicolo flinched a little bit, but continued charging his attack.

When the Seed Bomb was ready, Ludicolo took a step back and lowered his head towards the Piplup, staring straight at the Wild Pokemon. The four yellow orbs shot forwards, colliding into the small bird and exploding into fine yellow mist. Each shot pushed the Piplup back a bit, and the last one launched the Water-type into the lake.

The Piplup floated motionless on the water for a second before getting into roughly a sitting position. It watched the Ludicolo for a couple silent seconds before diving under the waves. It did not look back.

"Good battle there," I said. I would have been worried about the Piplup fleeing, except I doubted that Garth had intended to capture it. "Are you ready to move on? Do you want to continue down on this path, or go out onto the lake itself?"

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 11 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 0

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
-----

Before Ludicolo could launch his Seedbomb move the little Piplup used its own move first. The penguin Pokemon opened its small beak as wide as possible. It seemed to intake a bunch of air before it released an ear piercing screech that would have shattered glass had there been any nearby. I couldn’t help but plug my eyes, but Ludicolo had to take it. He couldn’t cover his ears and complete the move at the same time; he made a visible flinch but continued to ready the attack.

When it was at last ready, he zeroed in on the small form of Piplup and fired the greenish-yellow orbs. Each orb hit successfully and exploded into a fine dust of Grass energy. Each ball of energy forced Piplup back and closer to the lake, until the last orb completed pushed Piplup back into the lake. The small Pokemon lay breathing on its back heavily before sitting up slowly. It fixed Ludicolo with a silent gaze before it did a flip and dived underwater, not surfacing again.

“Good battle,” Chain said. “Are you ready to move on? Do you want to continue down on this path, or go out onto the lake?”

I had a second to think about this, so I walked over to Ludicolo and fondly brushed a hand over his grass-like skin, dislodging the still remaining ice crystals. Ludicolo was still in a cheerful mood, despite the battle it just had. I enjoyed that about Ludicolo, not much got him down, even if he lost a battle. Not too long ago in a tournament battle he had won the match for me with a Fake Out attack. It was a come from behind victory against a tough opponent. “You did good out there, you almost made up for the fact that you didn’t help in the situation in the first place.” Ludicolo chuckled and said something in his language before patting my back. “Yeah, why don’t you take a rest for a little bit? I can call you out later if I need you.” I pulled his red and white Pokeball off my belt and recalled his large form into it. I re-hooked the ball before turning to my ranger. “Let’s continue down the path for now, we can check the water later. This path has already yielded me one Pokemon, let’s see what more it can give for me.” ​

 

NBP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog

~~~~~

Garth decided to check on his Ludicolo before answering me, which didn't bother me in the slightest. The paramount duty of all Trainers was keeping their Pokemon healthy. The young man walked over to Ludicolo and brushed his hand fondly over the Grass-type's skin, rubbing away at the remainders of the Piplup's Icy Wind attack.

“You did good out there, you almost made up for the fact that you didn’t help in the situation in the first place," Garth said to the Pokemon. You did good out there, you almost made up for the fact that you didn’t help in the situation in the first place.”

The Ludicolo chuckled and made some quick barking noises in response. Garth either understood the Pokemon or got the gist of it.

“Yeah, why don’t you take a rest for a little bit? I can call you out later if I need you," he replied, and he returned the Pokemon into a generic red-and-white PokeBall before reattaching it to his belt. Finally, he turned to me.

“Let’s continue down the path for now, we can check the water later. This path has already yielded me one Pokemon, let’s see what more it can give for me," he answered my earlier question.

"Sounds like a plan. Hopefully we'll run across something powerful for you," I responded.

We continued down the dirt path. It led around the lake, heading towards the higher regions, where the freshwater waterfalls were located. There were many strong and rare Pokemon up there, although recently they had become scarce, only revealing themselves to Trainers infrequently.

I was too busy pondering the cause of this to realise that something was stalking us from just under the water. I only knew something was up when I heard a loud splashing sound and a big blue Pokemon erupted from the lake to stand in front of us. It landed on all fours and stared angrily at us. It had a prominent white mustache and two swords on scabbards on its forearms. A large structure on its back was sharply filed to a point - I didn't want to be anywhere near this Pokemon.

"I don't suppose you want to battle this Samurott?" I asked Garth nervously.

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 10 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F); ??? Samurott(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 0

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
----

“Sounds like a plan,” the ranger said. “Hopefully we’ll run across something powerful for you.”

I certainly hoped so. While I was mostly looking for basic types if I spotted a rare higher stage evolution I wouldn’t hesitate to catch the Pokemon if I could. So far that idea of running into stronger Pokemon had been a bust, sure I had found some basics but I hadn’t been looking for any of them. Heck, I didn’t even want to catch the Psyduck, but halfway through the battle I decided to catch it on a whim. I had a few reasons for changing my mind, one of them being it was a versatile Water type Pokemon so it could be used in a variety of different situations. That made up for the Pokemon’s shortcomings in the battle arena.

The ranger chose to follow the dirt path still. The dirt path encircled the rather large and headed for higher elevations where some beautiful waterfalls were located. Seeing as how I had never been to the Great Lakes save for this trip I was optimistic that I would find something worth catching.

We had been walking along the path for someways, the ranger lost in his thoughts, when I felt something behind us. I turned to scan the waterways but couldn’t see the cause of my mental alarm. Some would call such things paranoid, but too many people ignored their basics instincts. I’d rather be thought foolish than be caught unprepared for any situation. i lowered a hand to my belt and kept a careful watch on the environment, my eyes scanning for any signs of movement.

I wasn’t surprised a few moments later when a large multicolored Pokemon erupted from the lake, its large form sending gushes of water everywhere. The quad pedal Pokemon had a mustache-like patch of fur extending from its mouth. Two sword-like bone structures were attached to its limbs while a large sharp point extended from its back to point ahead.

“I don’t suppose you want to battle this Samurott?”

I looked at the cream and blue Pokemon and decided a battle just wasn’t worth it. I didn't want the Pokemon and it would be no easy feat to bring it down. “Why don’t we try to run? If need be we can use a Pokedoll.”​

 

NBP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog I got your list rerolled ^^ It's not fantastic, but it's better than what it was before. There's at least three things worth catching on it, and that's all that really matters.

~~~~~

“Why don’t we try to run? If need be we can use a Pokedoll," Garth suggested.

"Alright, let's go," I said.

Following my lead, we both burst into a run, thudding down the path away from the big blue monstrosity. The Samurott roared and took off after us, giving chase. However, it soon became clear that speed was not the Water-type's strength, especially on land. After two minutes of chasing us, the Samurott roared in frustration and gave up. It padded off away from the water, towards the outer edges of the Great Lakes area. I exhaled in relief and turned to Garth.

"Are you sure you want to continue along this path?" I asked him. "It doesn't look like you're having much luck following it. Maybe there'll be better Pokemon out on the lake itself. What Pokemon are you looking for anyway?"

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 10 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F); ??? Samurott(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 0

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01 - Better than nothing.
------

“Alright, let’s go,” the ranger said.

He turned and ran, I didn’t need anymore words to follow his lead. As we thudded down the winding dirt path I thought the Samurott had decided to leave us alone. But then I heard a roar that would have scared a Gyarados and I felt my speed slowly increasing after that. For some unknown need a felt a compulsion to look behind me, it was a bad idea. The squat Pokemon was giving chase, its short powerful limbs slamming into the soft dirt. Luckily for us Samurott wasn’t a Pokemon built for speed, and a couple minutes later, with one last roar, the Pokemon gave up the chase and left us alone.

I stopped short as the ranger stopped running and turned to me. “Are you sure you want to continue along this path?” He asked. “It doesn’t look like you’re having much luck following it. Maybe there’ll be better Pokemon out on the lake itself. What Pokemon are you looking for anyway.?”

“That Samurott turned me off from going up there, we can head to the lake; just lead the way. As to your second question, I’m mostly looking for a Staryu and Horsea and I once had a Milotic so finding one of them wouldn’t be bad. Other than that I’m just trying to build my collection of Water Pokemon.”​

 

NBP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog Just in case you're not sure, this isn't your next Encounter.

~~~~~

“That Samurott turned me off from going up there, we can head to the lake; just lead the way. As to your second question, I’m mostly looking for a Staryu and Horsea and I once had a Milotic so finding one of them wouldn’t be bad. Other than that I’m just trying to build my collection of Water Pokemon," Garth explained.

"Oh, you're a Water Pokemon trainer?" I asked, grinning. "You might like this, then."

I put my pointer and middle fingers up to my mouth and blew hard into them. A whistle erupted from between my fingers, echoing shrilly across the gentle waves. I let the sound lapse before I blew again, sending a second whistle chasing after the first one. Nothing happened for half a minute. Then, we heard a low moan. It was echoing and sounded like it was coming from far away. The noise reached us again, but this time it was more like a roar, and it was much closer. Finally, a huge blue Pokemon with red markings breached the surface of the water. It turned around and lowered its tail onto the ground, providing us with a way up onto its back.

"Garth, I'd like you to meet Kyogre," I said grandly, walking up onto the Legendary Pokemon's back. I extended my hand towards Garth, inviting him to come up with me. I technically didn't own this Kyogre, but it held allegiance to me because of a battle it had lost not long ago. Hopefully, on the back of a Legendary Pokemon, we'd find something worth catching.

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 10 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F); ??? Samurott(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 1187

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail]
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
-----

“Oh, you’re a Water Pokemon trainer,” he said to me, his face breaking out into a wide grin. “You might like this, then.” He whistled sharply and a shrill sound bounced across the lake waters.

A moment passed and he whistled again, same pitch as the last one. My curiosity was piqued by this, who or what was he signaling? Unless he had left one of his Pokemon in the lake I had no clue. Nothing happened for about thirty seconds, but then a low moan could be heard coming towards us. It wasn’t unlike a large whale sound. A few seconds passed and again the noise could be heard, except this time it was more akin to a roar, and it was much closer than the last. With a loud splash a blue Pokemon with red markings on its side splash upon the shore. It turned around to face the waters and lowered a rather large tail to the beach sand, it was clearly telling us to climb aboard its back.

“Garth, I’d like you to meet Kyogre,” Carter said, climbing the tail. He extend his hand to meet mine as I climbed atop the legendary Pokemon.

“Thanks, nice friend you have here.”
​

 

NBP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog

~~~~~

"Thanks, nice friend you have here," Garth said, taking my hand and climbing up onto the Kyogre's back. He didn't seem shocked or intrigued by the Kyogre's presence, which further reinforced my opinion of him as an unflappable Trainer. I'd hate to battle him - he gave off the aura of a calm chessmaster, one who knew much and saw more.

Kyogre immersed itself into the water, until it looked like the two of us were zipping along on a blue hill in the middle of the lake. One might think that Wild Pokemon would avoid Legendary ones, but that's not true. Calm Legendaries like Kyogre provided a sense of security, and they really drew out the shyer Pokemon. I explained this to Garth - heaven forbid he think I had summoned Kyogre just to show off.

It turned out I was right. It was only a couple of minutes before a very rare Pokemon swum up curiously to us. It was a pink fish that was roughly heart-shaped, with large fins on the top and bottom of its body. It swum luxuriously up to us and batted its eyelid at Garth. My plan had worked perfectly - Alomomola were usually very shy and very rarely came to investigate Trainers.

"This is a rare Water-type, wanna try catching it?" I asked my Trainer.

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 9 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F); ??? Samurott(?); ??? Alomomola(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 2258

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail]
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01

Kyogre gave off another cry and sank below the cool lake waters. The waters rose until the Pokemon was fully hidden under the waves and we remained dry. Soon we were moving through the waters swiftly, but in a calm manner so as not to disturb any Pokemon.

We hadn’t been on the Pokemon when Carter spotted something and turned my attention towards it. “This is a rare Water type, wanna try catching it?” he said, pointing at pink -heart shaped Pokemon. I stared at the Alomomola in curiosity, I hadn’t seen one in battle or in its environment. It reminded me of a higher evolution of the Pokemon Luvdisc, just with fins on its underbelly and top.

But before I could make a decision I had to do some research on the Pokemon, I didn’t know nothing about it besides its type. I pulled a small hand computer from a pocket and tried to obtain an internet signal. While the device was originally intended like a small PDA, I had a friend do some technology upgrades for me. It had roughly turned the thing into an advanced Pokedex with the ability to surf the web. I plugged in the Pokemon’s name and waited for the results to come back. It only took a few moments for the information to completely download. It was interesting, based on its stats and moves I was able to deduce it was more of a team Pokemon. In double, triple, or rotational battle it would be an excellent member to have by your side, but in heads up battle it was found to be lacking. It had some interesting moves, but head to head it’s stats were lacking.

“Nah, despite my wish to catch all Water Pokemon I don’t feel a need for this critter quite at this time.”​

 

NBP

Ranger Chainy

OOC: @AmericanTreeFrog You really should try to capture it *hint hint*

~~~~~

Garth watched the Alomomola curiously as the Wild Pokemon did somersaults and barrel rolls in the water for his benefit. It was quite clear he'd never seen one before. The man pulled out a small PDA and fiddled around with it for half a minute - he was probably checking out the Pokemon's usability in battle. From my (admittedly mediocre) knowledge, Alomomola was a support Pokemon as opposed to one that was fearsome in battle. This meant it was great for multi-battles or Park exploration, but not so good in the majority of common battles - that is to say, one-on-one battles.

“Nah, despite my wish to catch all Water Pokemon I don’t feel a need for this critter quite at this time," Garth said finally.

"Alright, we'll just move on then," I said, mildly surprised. I sat down on the Kyogre's back and rubbed the tough blue hide a couple times. A low rumble was emitted from the Legendary Pokemon and we cut through the waters once more. However, the Alomomola wasn't finished with us. It had taken quite a liking to Garth, apparently. It chased after us and jumped through the air, landing in front of our ride. It continued to jump as we moved forwards, trying to impress my Trainer.

"Looks like it's not gunna leave us alone." I laughed. "If you don't want to battle it, you're going to have to give it a PokeDoll to chase."

~~~~~

Trainer Statistics:

Name: Garth Crysis
Location: The Great Lakes
Area Effects: 9 Encounters Remaining
Pokemon Encountered: ??? Bidoof(?); ??? Lotad(?); Naughty Psyduck(M); ??? Piplup(F); ??? Samurott(?); ??? Alomomola(?)
Pokemon Captured: Naughty Psyduck(M)
CC since last Encounter: 3889 / 15000

Pokemon Statistics:

Bold Male Gyarados [Nicknamed One Tail]
Ability: Intimidate
TMs: Surf , Waterfall, Stone Edge, Earthquake, Roar, Taunt, Substitute
Avalanche, Thunder, Thunder Wave, Dragon Tail
BMs: Outrage

Quirky Male Ludicolo [Nicknamed Musashi] - 79%
Abilities: Swift Swim
TMs: Surf, Waterfall, Substitute, Sword Dance, Icebeam, Giga Drain, Solarbeam, Sunny Day, Toxic, Brick Break, Focus Blast, Hidden Power ~ Water
BMs: Leech Seed, Seed Bomb, Synthesis, Thunder Punch

Naughty Male Tentacruel [Nicknamed Raine]
Abilities: Clear Body
TMs: Waterfall, Surf, Swords Dance, Attract, Swagger, Thief, Giga Drain, Hidden Power[Flying], Sludge Bomb, Icy Wind.
BMs: Confuse Ray, Mirror Coat, Rapid Spin, Haze

Jolly Female Toxicroak - 95%
Ability: Dry Skin
TMs: Rock Climb , Swords Dance, Protect, Substitute, X-Scissors, Rain Dance, EQ, Focus Punch , Brick Break, Stone Edge, Rock Tomb, Shadow Ball.
BMs: Fake Out, Super Fang, Vacuum Wave, Gunk Shot

Item Statistics:

Parkball, Superballs (x2), Hyperballs (x2), Pokedolls (x2), Energy Root, Energy Powder Plus (x2)

~~~~~

 

OOC: @ChainReaction01
-------

“Alright, we’ll just move on then,” Carter said. He sounded surprised, which wasn’t too surprising as the Pokemon was of the rare variety.

The ranger shrugged the comment but he sat back down and rubbed a hand over the leathery hide of Kyogre. The legendary Pokemon rumbled, a sound low in its belly, and started to knife through the waters once more, an effortless glide. This didn’t seem to faze the small Alomomola though, the Luvdisc-like Pokemon continued to follow us. It was now doing tricks in the water, playfully jumping into the air while playing the wide tail of Kyogre.

“Looks like it’s not gunna leave us alone.” Carter laughed. “If you don’t want to battle it, you’re going to have to give it a PokeDoll to chase.”

I smiled wistfully, I didn’t want to catch the Pokemon, nor did I want to use a Pokedoll to get away from the creature. I sighed when I came to the realization the wild Pokemon had made a choice and I decided to honor it. “Fine, you wanted this,” I told the Alomomola solemnly. “Gyarados, come forth and wage battle.” I threw a standard Pokeball in to the air and with a bright flash the Gyarados was in the water.

Gyarados was widely regarded as one of the most fiercesome Pokemon one could train. The beasts were even harder to train, and when one invoked the wrath of a Gyarados it was best to get out of the way. But Gyarados had two weakness: one was the Electric typed attacks, and the other was its pre-evolved form of Magikarp. The Pokemon was especially weak to electrical attacks because of its dual types of Water and Flying. And Magikarp was a contradiction to Gyarados. Were Gyarados was large and mean, Magikarp was small and clueless. These and other comparisons often made Magikarp the butt of many jokes, and this had often made me wonder whether such jokes made Gyarados so mean. It was perhaps the method in which Gyarados got back at the world for making a complete mockery of its younger form.

Gyarados were predominantly blue Pokemon with white fins running along its back and the sides of its face. It had a long snake-like body that started with a large head that was often in hateful scowl and ended with a single large flipper for swimming. Four large canines decorated its large mouth while ochre-colored skin ran along its underbelly. All told, the Pokemon closely resembled a serpent, just bigger with a mean attitude.

Upon his release from his Pokeball, Gyarados roared and turned to look at me. His small red eyes focused on me at first, then moved down to the Kyogre. His eyes narrowed to slits and his stance took on more a fighting look. I think he suspected he was to save me from the legendary Pokemon, and I had no doubt he could give Kyogre a run for its money. I waved a hand and waited for Gyarados’s gaze to return to me.

“Hey, you’re not fighting this guy. You’re fighting her,” I said, pointing at the Alomomola who was now staring up at Gyarados, who absolutely dwarfed her in size. Most powerful Pokemon might have scoffed at facing a much weaker opponent like Alomomola, but Gyardos relished any fight and any challenge. “Now, we’re trying to catch the Pokemon, so let’s be careful.” Gyarados gave me a look that would have turned a Salamence mellow but I stood my ground. “I mean it.” I didn’t want Gyarados to get out of hand, and that was always a risk when dealing with such an independent Pokemon. I consulted my device and pulled up the moves of our new foe. “We’re going to start with a simple Taunt and Thunder Fang combo.”

Taunt was an obvious choice to limit all the non-damaging moves that Alomomola knew. With a good half of its moves gone the Pokemon would lose some of its edge. But that was if Taunt worked, but it could counter if it had the right nature or used one of its moves. Thunder Fang was chosen because it do damage that would just damage the Pokemon enough without weakening it too fast.

Gyarados started with theTaunt attack first. There was numerous ways for a Pokemon to use Taunt, but Gyarados preferred a simple version. He swung his long tail around to face the Alomomola, then he started to wave it in her face, goading her to attack him in the heat of the moment. But while Gyarados were known for their rage, they could also be smart. So while Gyarados was using his tail to taunt his foe, he moved it so that it blocked his gaping mouth, hiding the fangs there that were there cackling with electricity as he charged the energy in his body. The idea was that when Alomomola attacked, Gyarados could dodge and then whip around to bite at her with his fangs. If Taunt failed, he could just spring forward, because by swinging his tail to the front he had effectively coiled his body. And he could use that pent up energy to spring forward like a missile and hit with shattering force.

Now, we just had to wait to see if Alomomola would take the bait and attack.​