Board 8 > Going to play my first Pokemon game in about 15 years

(+) Yeah! (+)

I will resume the game tonight. I can't imagine that I have too much left in the game unless Team Flare halts the pacing again.
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With nothing really left to do in Pokemon Village (I saw a guy blocking a cave entrance though), I went back to Snowbelle City and to its gym. I thought the buttons on the platform would move the platform and not the outer structure, and I will admit that it took some time to make my way to the end. The leader admitted that he might be a pushover. I suspect that he doesn't really like his job. Given his affinity for the Pokemon Village, perhaps he would rather live there without the burdens of human society. Maybe he's like all these other nutjobs and desperately wishes to be a Pokemon.

Well he fucking knocked out Greninja in one turn with Energy Ball + hail effect, so I guess that answers if he's going to be a pushover. I was a dumbass when it became Vespiquen vs Avalugg. I could have knocked it out in two turns with Power Gem, but I decided to see what bug moves did to ice types on the second turn. Well, Avalugg surived, knocked out Vespiquen, and things got ugly quickly for me. First, Wulfric or whatever healed Avalugg completely. Then Avalugg kept using Curse. I lost Roserade and with my remaining Pokemon, my attacks kept mysteriously missing. Wulfric ended up using another max potion/full restore. In the end, the one Pokemon that always comes through in the clutch, Malamar, took care of business. That was an ordeal.

I earned the Iceberge Badge. I'm still the only certified trainer at any gym, which I am interpreting as the only trainer to earn those badges. Surely, that means that I am the only person who will be at Victory Road and meet with the Elite Four right? I mean, what are the odds that someone like Serena will show up? Crazy right?
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Pokemon Team
Lv 75 Greninja
Lv 71 Vespiquen
Lv 68 Roserade
Lv 67 Malamar
Lv 61 Toxicroak
Lv 57 Vanilluxe

The entrance to the gym in Snowbelle is now mysteriously being blocked by the leader for whatever reason. At Route 21 now, I caught Ursaring, Spinda, and Altaria. Ursaring looked so miserable at the beginning of the encounter. There were lots of strength, cut, and surf spots. After taking care of all that, I made my way to Victory Road where I stopped.
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Holy shit those levels.
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A lot happened between the last time I updated the levels
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Yeah man you have some high levelled Pokemon. I don't see you having any issues with the elite 4.
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Yeah I pretty much fight everyone I can and constantly use several Pokemon. I do run away from from wild Pokemon that I already have though
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I assume you've had the EXP Share on a lot? Your non-ice cream team members are like 10-20 levels beyond where I usually am at that point
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It was on most of the game
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Update tomorrow
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Officially starting on Victory Road, I instantly regret not specifically asking anyone about Pokemon who can learn a lot of HMs. I am looking for Pokemon who can learn all four or at least three of Waterfall, Surf, Fly, and Cut. Strength I think has permanent effects (you don't have to push the stone slabs again), so I am not worried about that so much. As a result, I ended up going through Victory Road with only Greninja, Vespiquen, and Roserade as viable fighters given the levels of the Pokemon here. I had Malamar for a bit but swapped him out for Aurorus for his Rock Smash. I caught a Lickitung, Skamory, Geodude, Fearow, Druddigon, and Poliwhirl.

Lo and behold, Serena made an appearance. How she earned all eight badges is beyond me. Given the state of the entrance, it appears to be permanently open now, so maybe she didn't have to earn anything. She added a fifth Pokemon, so this is basically a 4-on-5 fight. Oh, the new addition is just Altaria. I fucking love Malamar's ability that reverses in-battle stat changes. Altaria used Confide, raised my special attack as a result, and died without inflicting any damage. Serena headed in the opposite direction of the Elite 4 after the fight, so I'm guessing this is it with her. I was expecting her to use a Mega Evolution somehow even though I have the ring since I remember being told she was training with the Mega Evolution guy. I swapped out Malamar for Aurorus after the fight.

Binacle soon evolved into whatever the hell a Barbaracle is, not that Binacle wasn't weird itself. I eventually found my way to the Pokemon League and was ecstatic to finally have a "true" full Pokemon roster again. The Elite Four specializes in fire, water, steel, and dragon types, and I can challenge them in any order. Choosing random doors, I ended up facing Siebold and his water types first.
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Siebold first took out Clawitzer, and I took him out with a pair of Night Slashes from Greninja. Clawitzer nearly took out Greninja with an Aura Sphere though. Next up was Barbaracle, whom I never got to see in battle after Binacle evolved. If it is the same as Binacle, then it is a rock and water type. Roserade is perfect here. Because I am a dumbass who is willing to gamble to make things more interesting instead of taking the boring, easy way out all the time, I led with Venoshock only to find out that one of Barbaracle's types is strong against poison. Luckily, its Stone Edge missed, and I KO'd it with Petal Dance.

Starmie was next. I know that Roserade will keep using Petal Dance if I leave it in, and that's what I did. The result was predictable, but Roserade was now confused. Gyarados was his last Pokemon, and I countered with Malamar. Gyarados' ability was Intimidate, so my attack ending up rising. God bless Malamar! The end result was delayed thanks to two Full Restores used by Siebold, but a timely critical hit by Malamar ended the battle without Gyarados laying a fin or whatever on Malamar. Siebold is always clutching his ridiculous-looking collar, so he is either a snob or has Tourette Syndrome.

Next random door led me to the steel trainer and Cybord 009 reject Wikstrom. I don't remember what steel is weak against, so this will probably be some battle. He led off with Kleki. Using Night Slash again, it is not good against steel. I also forgot to heal up Greninja after that Aura Sphere, so Klefki took him out in a single hit. I decided to go with Toxicroak only to find out that poison doesn't affect steel at all. Tried a Mud Bomb, and that was super effective. I think that I subconsciously remembered that Toxicroak was the Pokemon to put out there.
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Next up was Probopass. I kept Toxicroak unaware that Klefki's final move, Torment, prevented me from using Mud Bomb again. I put in Vespiquen only to find out Bug is not effective. Then it was Roserade time. A much-needed critical hit from Giga Drain vanquished Probopass and brought out Scizor. Things got ugly from there as X-Scissor one hit KO'd Malamar (only the second time I think that she's been knocked out in battle) and Vanilluxe was one hit KO'd from Bullet Punch. I had to revive Greninja who in turn KO'd Scizor with a Hydro Cannon.

The final Pokemon was something called Aegislash. I decided to keep Greninja in. Night Slash, which seems to be my go-to move for him recently, ended up being super effective. Another ill-timed Full Restore from my perspective delayed the inevitable, but Wikstrom was soon defeated. I should have bought some healing items before coming here. Assuming that this is like the other games, I am 40% of the way through this.

Third up is the woman I saw when I entered the building, fire trainer Malva. Go go Hydro Cannon! It swiftly took out Pyroar. Knowing I have to recharge after using it, I brought out Malamar to face Talonflame. The Full Restore usage is insane, but Malamar eventually took care of Talonflame. Going back to Greninja, I used in Hydro Cannon to take out Torkoal. Last up was Chandelure. I remember finding out that ghost types were weak to dark moves, so after a couple of Night Slashes later, and by far the easiest Elite 4 battle to this point was over. Last up is the dragon trainer. I have no idea what they are weak against though. I shall find out with Drasna.
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I actually had more to update yesterday, but I ran out of time. I'm about to start making Trick-or-Treat goodie bags, but I will provide the rest plus what I did last night after.
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Dragalage was first up for Drasna and it knows Thunderbolt. Fantastic. Luckily, it only took out about a third of Greninja's health, so Greninja was able to take it out without much of a drain on its HP. The second Pokemon was again Altaria. I forgot what I used to easily take that out. I went with Vespiquen. After a couple a Sings used against me, I was finally able to try out Attack Order only to find out that bug moves weren't effective. Rock moves are though, but it might be the flying type in Altaria that makes it super effective. Power Gem eventually took care of it.

Noivern was next along with me tossing out Toxicroak. I poisoned it with Sludge Bomb, but I had to take out Toxicroak after that turn since Air Slash took away 75% of his health. Vanilluxe was also doing well until I saw Noivern use an unexpected Flamethrower. I suppose if I'm able to throw out moves you wouldn't expect from some Pokemon, I should also expect the same to happen to me. A full restore once again delayed things, but Noivern eventually went down.

Last up was Druddigon. I remember having difficulty catching it. It kept using a tail attack that swapped out my Pokemon. Toxicroak succumbed to this, but Greninja and his high speed got an attack in that KO'd the final Elite Four Pokemon. With what few healing items I had left, I revived everyone who had fainted and brought most of my team to full health. I made sure to keep a small pile left in my bag in case this champion battle goes south. I assume that the champion is that actress I met in the cafe in Lumiose. She seems to be the only viable candidate unless it is someone I haven't met yet.
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It was Diantha, and the title bout begins. It is a 6-on-6 fight, but while her Pokemon are at full health and PP, mine are not. Advantage Diantha. The battle begins with Greninja vs Hawlucha. I take it that Hawlucha doesn't evolve then. For a short span of time, I forgot that Hawlucha was also a fighting type (I know that "lucha" gives it away), so I was briefly surprised when my Extrasensory made quick work of it. Next up for Diantha was Goodra, and I decided to stick with Greninja.

It was tough since Goodra's Focus Blast was devastating, but I avoided doing any ineffective attacks and took Goodra down. It was time to switch to a new Pokemon with Aurorus coming out for Diantha. Rock and ice type right? I decided Roserade was my guy despite him being one of two Pokemon to not be at full health entering the fight. Giga Drain solved my health and Aurorus problems. Next up was Tyrantrum. I vaguely remember it from another battle (reminded that Serena never used hers). Maybe it's a dark and rock type? I kept Roserade in to use Dazzling Gleam. That proved to be an excellent decision.

Next up was something called Gourgeist. Geist screams "ghost" to me, so I took out Malamar since she has a dark move, a pair of psychic moves (I think psychic is super effective against ghosts anyway), and at full health. All Gourgeist did was use Trick-or-Treat and Diantha used her first Full Restore of the battle before succumbing to the Mighty Malamar. I was owning this fight.
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This was shaping to be my easiest battle yet in whatever this building was called. Diantha was down to her final Pokemon, Gardevoir. I sent out Vespiquen, my tank. Oh fuck, Gardevoir Mega-Evolved and used a crushing Thunderbolt. Power Gem barely made a dent on Gardevoir. So I wasn't trapped in a cycle of healing Vespiquen while Gardevoir spammed Thunderbolt, I swapped out Vespiquen for Toxicroak. That didn't work out since Gardevoir got two attacks in before Toxicroak launched its first. Malamar might be my MVP of this game. There's no point in having her sit when this could get ugly in a hurry. Moon Blast nearly wrecked Malamar, but Foul Play won out in the end. The champ has fallen.

Inaugural Hall of Fame Inductees
Lv 82 Greninja
Lv 77 Vespiquen
Lv 74 Roserade
Lv 73 Malamar
Lv 65 Toxicroak
Lv 62 Vanilluxe

I have officially been given the title of Pokemon League Champion. We later see a ceremony for the "five" defenders of Kalos. Now I kind of like the kids (more Shauna than the others). I really do, but let's be honest here. I did 99% of the work, and that might be generous to Shauna, Serena, Tierno, and uhhhhhhh...that other guy. I am kicking myself because I constantly forget his name. That giant/king/mass murderer guy somehow got past security and has challenged me to a fight. I can't decline.

Greninja vs Torkoal. Hydro Cannon. Thanks for playing.
Vanilluxe vs Golurk. Ice Beam. Thanks for playing.
Malamar vs Sigilyph. Foul Play (x2). Thanks for playing.

His Floette returned. I don't care. More stuff that I don't care about shortly followed.

Game Over
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End-of-Game stats
Game Time - 49:49
Pokedex - 338, 164 obtained
Money - $3,216,369
Adventure started on - 9/15
Entered Hall of Fame on - 10/28

I ended up averaging about an hour a day.

Resuming my file, I was back at my house. Professor (Augustine?) Sycamore wanted me to meet him at the Lumiose Station. Exiting my house, Shauna was there waiting for me. She wanted to trade a Fennekin egg for any of my Pokemon. I was curious if I would see Graveler evolve into Golem, so I offered her up mine, but alas I was not privy to what happened on Shauna's end. Perhaps sometime during the post-game, she will challenge me. My new Fennekin is named Kinniekins.
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Here is a preliminary To-Do list for me now (in no particular order):
- Become stylish for Lost Hotel
- Try out Wonder Trading
- Fight the air battles that I skipped/lost just north and south of Couriway
- Finish Terminus Cave
- Enter the cave in Pokemon Village (assuming I can now enter it)
- Try to collect all TMs
- Try out battle cafes
- Try out that one place I had to be Champion to do
- Possibly take up on offer(s) to evolution trade with me
- Other post-game content that I was unaware of
- Meet Sycamore at Lumiose Station.
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And while I don't know if I want to get Sun or Moon, I am also aware that there are Ultra versions coming out soon.

Would it make more sense to grab the original or Ultra versions? I haven't exactly seen anything article to help me understand exactly what the Ultra versions are in relation to their predecessors.
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KCF0107 posted...

And while I don't know if I want to get Sun or Moon, I am also aware that there are Ultra versions coming out soon.

Would it make more sense to grab the original or Ultra versions? I haven't exactly seen anything article to help me understand exactly what the Ultra versions are in relation to their predecessors.

That's a tough call. Sun and moon were pretty solid entries, but ultra sun and moon seem to be different enough to warrant buying them as well. If you only wanted to buy one of them, I would go with the ultras. Keep in mind, sun and moon play differently. There are no badges or gyms, you do trials and fight what's called totem Pokemon. Pretty much Pokemon that get powered up. There is still an elite 4 of sorts, and a champion. The ultras from what we have seen so far, more content. They added a few new ultra beasts, which are kind of like legendary Pokemon. Sort of. A couple new areas, and new forms of Pokemon. That's about it.
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I second getting Ultra Sun or Ultra Moon instead of Sun of Moon. They'll basically be a more finished version of the story. Developers compared them to what Emerald was to Ruby amd Sapphire.

Btw, Psychic ikke not super effective against ghost, it deals neutral damage.
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Also Tyrantrum is Rock/Dragon and Fairy beats Dragon.
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KCF0107 posted...

We later see a ceremony for the "five" defenders of Kalos. Now I kind of like the kids (more Shauna than the others). I really do, but let's be honest here. I did 99% of the work, and that might be generous to Shauna, Serena, Tierno, and uhhhhhhh...that other guy

Trevor

And let's be real, while it is generous to those others, you have to admit that when you saved the region (world?) you expected a token thank you from some idiot and not a god damn parade in your honour.
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Tried out Wonder Trading by giving out some extra Haunters and Gravelers

- Takeshi from Singapore gave me Sandshrew (did not have one)
- Misael from Mexico gave me Eevee (I can use to evolve into something at least) (it also says SPA in top right corner)
- Orion from the US gave me Panpour (the fiend!)
- SpennyCo from Canada gave me Illumise

Okay, I'm done with Wonder Trading. I moved onto becoming stylish. I'm so glad that I decided to look online because otherwise I would have started visiting boutiques. Apparently stylish in Kalos means how many skating moves you can do. My prize for being stylish is...another skating move. Well that was a waste of time. I think that I'm going to try out a Battle Cafe and look for some TMs next.

Ironically, there was a TM behind a cracked wall in the previously inaccessible area of the Lost Hotel, so maybe it was more of an inconvenience than a waste of time.
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I ended up doing those missed air battles. While trying to find one of those battle cafes in Lumiose, I ran into Diantha. She offered a Ralts for any of my Pokemon. I gave her my original Illumise since the one that I received from the Wonder Trade was superior in everything but attack despite being the same level.

I went to Restaurant Le Nah. I was a perfect customer after following their directions, but I don't see myself doing this again.

To-Do list(in no particular order):
- Finish Terminus Cave
- Enter the cave in Pokemon Village (assuming I can now enter it)
- Try to collect all TMs
- Try out that one place I had to be Champion to do
- Explore waterfall areas plus any cut, strength, or surf areas that I may have missed
- Possibly take up on offer(s) to evolution trade with me
- Other post-game content that I was unaware of
- Meet Sycamore at Lumiose Station.
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There really isn't much post game content in X and Y. There are the legendaries to catch, and that's pretty much it. There is the friend safari. And that's an absolute God send in gen 6 if you're into breeding competitive Pokemon, or like having higher them normal shiny odds for your encounters. Essentially for every friend code you have with people who played x and y I think, or friend code in General, you get one safari with 3 Pokemon in that safari. Each person has their own safari, and it will be 1 out of the 18 types. It's a lot to go into, so I won't. Anywho, that's pretty much it. The battle cafes are good power levelling Pokemon up and earning a ton of cash.
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Yeah, X and Y was kind of super disappointing with this stuff.

There is an expanded storyline in Lumiose City though. I never actually did that though.
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Grand Kirby posted...

Yeah, X and Y was kind of super disappointing with this stuff.

There is an expanded storyline in Lumiose City though. I never actually did that though.

The looker missions I think? Yeah, I never did them either.
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Looking up TM locations, I found out some are located in a town that I haven't been in yet (with no idea on how to get there), so I will probably focus on the caves tonight.
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KCF0107 posted...

Looking up TM locations, I found out some are located in a town that I haven't been in yet (with no idea on how to get there), so I will probably focus on the caves tonight.

That's probably the town with the friend safaris. You will be guided there eventually. After you meet sicamore again.
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If I have time after going through the caves, I might go ahead and meet Sycamore tonight as well
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KCF0107 posted...

If I have time after going through the caves, I might go ahead and meet Sycamore tonight as well

Keep in mind. "Town" is a loose term here. It's very small. Like very small. But it's important none the less.
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Like 12 or so TMs require you to buy them with BP, the currency of the game's "competitive" battle facility.
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Well...I will try and get all the other TMs then.
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I caught Zorark on my way to the Pokemon Village cave. It still took two Dusk Balls for whatever reason despite making it go to sleep and its health being in the red. This cave in the village could hardly be called a cave. It was just a single room, but smack dab in the middle was Mewtwo. I used my Capture O-Power and went to work. Level 70! I accidentally KO'd it, so I had to reload my save. On my second attempt, things went a lot smoother. After using one Night Slash out of Greninja, I used Malamar after that. Mewtwo recovered and I was able to bring Mewtwo's health meter down to the red using just one Foul Play. I used Hypnosis to finish off my attacks. It took two Dusk Balls, but Mewtwo is mine.

I flew to Couriway to get everyone healed back up before making the trek to Terminus Cave. I took one step into the flower patch immediately north of Couriway, and I was met with a Level 70 Moltres. Unfortunately, it fled before I could do anything. At the area that I was previously locked out of going to inside Terminus, I found one funky-ass-looking creature named Zygarde. I saw the green bottom part of its body as I was collecting nearby items, but when I went up to where it was located, I saw the rest. It hit hard but not too hard to where I felt like the battle was going to get out of hand. I used a Greninja/Malamar combo again. It took around 10 turns this time, but I caught it from my first Dusk Ball. I bought 20 Dusk Balls in anticipation that I was going to be using a lot of them if either cave housed a legendary Pokemon (I totally did not expect both to).

I decided to meet Sycamore at the Lumiose Station. I am half-joking, half-not sure, but I think I spent more time looking for the station than I did fighting Mewtwo. My Pokedex was again expanded, but I think it's just a combo page of the other three. I grabbed some goodies in Kiloude and bought some TMs. I eventually met up with a man who wanted my help. I'm pretty sure the joke was that all of my answer prompts were variations of saying the same thing, so by "helping" him, I was able to fight and embarrass him. I stopped after that.
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So since you all told me that there really wasn't much of a postgame, it seems that all that I really want to do now is see if any of those waterfall or other HM areas house anything useful, try that one building in Lumiose that I had to wait until I was champion to use, and also look for some TMs. I'm not sure that any of this warrants additional updates on my progress.

If anybody has any comments or questions they would like to ask me (or any that I may have skipped over from earlier in the playthrough), now would be an excellent time.
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Yeah, I don't have much more to ask/add. I don't do post game stuff much either. I hope you enjoyed the game! Surprised to see Vespiquen make it as far as she did and it kinda made me want to play a game with one on my team.
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It was nice playing Pokemon again. Having not played for such a long time, the majority of the Pokemon I was unfamiliar with, which is key for me. Experimenting with new Pokemon to see what clicks for you and ultimately come up with your team of six might be my favorite part (that or simply seeing all the new Pokemon).
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Reading your reactions to new things and pointing out the absurdity of series staples was entertaining to me. Thanks for a fun thread, KCF.
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You might as well try the line of post-game sidequests in Lumiose City.
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If nothing else, I have strong reactions to the absurd. They are staples of my playthrough topics, which have included the likes of Ace Attorney and the king of all things absurd, Danganronpa.
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mnkboy907 posted...

You might as well try the line of post-game sidequests in Lumiose City.

Was that the vague thing that I've been talking about regarding some building in Lumiose that forced me to become champion to use (it shouldn't be hard for me to look to see which post mentioned it), or are you talking about something totally different?
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The first time you enter Lumiose after becoming champion, you're supposed to get some holo caster message telling you to go somewhere in the city.
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Uh, I've been in the city and haven't received any Holo Caster message, assuming all Holo Caster messages interrupt whatever you are doing and force you to watch it.
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Hmm, well Serebii's page on it mentions walking into Lumiose, so maybe try leaving and entering on foot (if you haven't already done that)?
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Oh, I flew in there previously, so I will try that.
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Well. Now you need to do an ultra sun or moon playthrough. I would fully like to read that.
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I decided to try out these safaris. I laugh at their idea of a safari involve you going out a small plot of tall grass inside what amounts to a small animal pen that you would see on a farm. That being said, I'm glad that I have a lot of 3DS friends because I was able to catch plenty of Pokemon that I haven't seen in the game up to that point. I tried out all the fire, normal, and water safaris available to me and caught a Growlithe, Kecleon, Lillipup, Aipom, Minccino, and Krabby. I plan on trying out all the other safaris later.

Inside the Pokemon Center in Kiloude, I found someone who would judge my Pokemon's potential
- Greninja is above-average
- Vespiquen is decent
- Roserade is superior
- Malamar is above-average
- Toxicroak is superior
- Vanilluxe is superior

I also went through and counted my TMs. I had 77 of the 100. I cross-referenced that with a site that mentions all the TMs in order and where to find them, so the non-BP ones I have left are:
- Dragon Claw
- Psyshock
- Rain Dance
- Roost
- Earthquake
- Psychic
- Sludge Bomb
- Stone Edge
- Psych Up (website actually didn't mention where to find this)
- Rock Slide
- X-Scissor
- Dark Pulse
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I went in and out of Lumiose a couple times, but I didn't receive any Holo Caster message. I did find that building I had been referring to. It was called the Battle Institute. Knowing that everyone would be at Level 50, I decided to do a Double Battle and brought Greninja, Roserade, Malamar, and Toxicroak for flexibility (perhaps I should have done Vanilluxe instead of Toxicroak). During the first battle, I only lost Greninja and felt pretty good. Things went horribly wrong after that. I ended up losing the remaining four battles and took out 2, 1, 3, and 1 Pokemon respectively in each battle.

Now we know how garbage I am when everything is on a level playing field. The sense of helplessness and hopelessness is probably how Serena felt during all of our battles. That being said, I'm also assuming this was meant to be brutally difficult given I had to wait until after I became champ to try it. I was given the rank of Beginner and 0 points. I need to find some toddlers to destroy to build my confidence back up. However, I did receive 3 BP, but I'm not going through that just to get those TMs from the Battle Maison.

So all I plan to do now is do more Safaris, find those TMs (some require Waterfall, so I can finally use that), and see if I can do this Looker side quest thing somehow.
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