Welcome back, Pokemaniacs! Last time, I battled both of my rivals/friends, and ended things off before we caught anything. This time, we’ll hopefully add some members to the team, none of which will be of the type I eventually wish to master! I suppose I could have asked my friend to trade me a Bug Pokemon after I reached the first Pokemon Center, but unless he went out of his way to get an egg at a Daycare Center, anything he could give me would at least be powerful enough to make the next major battle or two trivial. And where’s the fun in that?
Continuing from last time, I step into the grass and quickly encounter a level 2 female Lillipup, which fell in 2 hits. While I want to win Cheren and Bianca’s little contest, it would be nice if I could do so without picking up weaklings. A girl on the path gives me a free Potion, and while attempting to walk out of the patch of grass she was in, I find a female Patrat, level 2. Mid gained a level after Tackling it to kingdom come, and learned Ember.
A few more random battles later, I actually find an opponent that isn’t level 2; it’s a male Lillipup, level 4. After weakening it a bit with Ember, I’m able to catch the critter on my first try! While I have no plans to use him, I decide to be nice and name him Hurdy, after the Moogle from Final Fantasy Tactics A2 and a side character from Crystal Chronicles...and then I trot back home, since Mid only had 9 HP left after that fight (his earlier encounters against level 2 beasts certainly didn’t help).
After Zidane’s mom heals his party, I go back to the grass, and instantly encounter a female Patrat at level 4. Thankfully, even though it gets burned by Mid’s Ember and was close to fainting, I once again was able to succeed with a single Pokeball. Continuing my Final Fantasy naming theme, she shall now be known as Belle, the rambunctious female from The Crystal Bearers.
After a few more battles, one of which brings Mid up to level 8, I come to realize that Lillipups and Patrats seem to be the only Pokemon I can encounter on this path. I mean, I know Audino appear everywhere in the world, but this grass isn’t rustling anytime soon. Deciding that Bianca and Cheren’s challenge isn’t worth having to catch a bunch of level 4 weaklings, I head north to the end of the path and find Cheren waiting for me. Apparently, despite each of us having been given five Pokeballs and one free Pokemon, I have one more member on my team than either of them do. The team then gets an Xtransceiver call from Juniper, who tells us that she’s in the town we’re about to enter. Naturally, I decide to put off meeting her until after I’ve checked out the rest of the town, including a pair of hooded characters that don’t want me to leave the area anytime soon. At least my curiosity led to a free Pokeball...oh, and I won my first game of Pokemon Rock-Paper-Scissors. Grass beats Water!
After listening to how the background music sounds with piano and drums added, I get around to the meeting with Juniper. Since the only things available in the built-in shop (a good idea, I should add) are Pokeballs, Potions, and different types of mail, I don’t make any purchases yet and step out in time to get a speech about Pokemon liberation. Once Ghetsis and his cronies leave, I meet N, a cool-looking Pokemon Whisperer that has a habit of talking quickly. My Level 8 Mid gets into a scuffle with his Level 7 male Purrloin, and after we both spend the first turn weakening each other’s stats, I manage to overcome his repeated Scratches (one of which was critical) and toast the kitty with Ember. This gives Mid the boost he needs to reach Level 9 and learn Odor Sleuth. Shame that I’ll probably no longer be using the little guy after I get a Bug type...or a decently-levelled Dark type, whichever comes first.
After a quick heal at the Center, where I also pick up 10 new Pokeballs (and one free Premier Ball), I’m allowed to move on. I don’t like how a bulletin board tells me that a garden makes me feel warm inside, since I should be the one to judge how warm I feel, but I quickly keep on going to Route 2. A few steps in, I get a call from Zidane’s mother, who merely uses the call to warn us about how she’s about to pop up right behind us. She gives us the Running Shoes, which are always a wonderful thing to have in these games, and utters some words of comfort before heading back home.
After picking up a Potion and fighting a couple of wild ‘mons, I get into my first fight with a regular trainer. The punk’s named Youngster Jimmy...wasn’t there an infamous trainer from an earlier game known as Youngster Joey? I only ask because their names sound quite similar. Anyways, his Level 7 Patrat manages to land a devastating critical hit on Mid, but he gets through the fight and earns yet another level for his trouble. One quick trip to the Center and back, I encounter a level 4 male Purrloin in the grass. Unfortunately, Mid’s now too strong to merely weaken it with a Tackle, and I end up KO’ing what would have been my first Dark type. It looks like it’s time to switch party members in order to make sure the next encounter goes well!
Belle almost gets knocked out from a Lillipup, and I definitely have to switch from Hurdy back to Mid when I encounter a Level 7 Patrat. Hurdy levels up due to the shared experience system, and learns Odor Sleuth as a bonus. A battle with a Level 4 Patrat lets Hurdy level up again, and then I run back to the Center...again. If you think that’s pesky now, wait until I only let myself use a single ‘mon...and you don’t have to wait long, because the very next wild encounter was another Purrloin. One of Hurdy’s Tackles and yet another one-toss success later, I have my very first Dark type, who I shall name after the thie...I mean, treasure hunter, from Final Fantasy VI. One more trip to the Center later and my current party only consists of two critters: Locke the Level 4 Purrloin (since I said I’d be going mono-Dark until the option to become mono-Bug is available), and Mid the Level 10 Tepig (since I don’t want to be doomed should Locke die during training).
And indeed, my very next fight, against a slightly higher-levelled Purrloin, would have ended me if Mid hadn’t been brought along. The musical remix when your Pokemon hits red health is a WONDERFUL improvement compared to the beeping of earlier generations. The fight after that one was a Level 7 Patrat...is it just me, or is the whole world against Locke? Thanks to shared experience, though, Locke soon reaches Level 6 and learns Assist. I move on from the first patch of grass and encounter Lass Mali, whose level 7 Purrloin wasn’t smart enough to realize that Assist doesn’t work if it’s the only member of its party. My Locke, on the other hand, was able to use Odor Sleuth and two Embers successfully, and a few good Scratches after that was all it took to get the kitty to reach Level 7 without Mid stepping in even once. I have to go back to heal yet again, but this is still a major step on the path to glory!
Lillipups, Purrloins and Patrats constantly give me a good reason to run back to the Center, but eventually, Locke reaches Level 8 and Zidane reaches Youngster Roland. I find that funny, since my main character in Pearl was called Roland; I had named him after a warrior I constantly used in Valkyrie Profile 2. Thanks to my foe’s constant use of Leer and Odor Sleuth, and not a single Tackle, Locke pulls off yet another miraculous victory against a trainer all by himself. Before heading up to the next town, I take a side path and pick up a Potion and a Poke Ball that I saw earlier from a balcony in the previous town.
Right as we’re about to enter the town, Bianca pops up and forces us into a battle, even though Locke’s a little wounded from earlier. Her Lillipup (the one Pokemon she caught earlier) wasn’t doing much damage at first, but after Bianca used a potion and got off a good tackle, I decided to switch to Mid before Locke kicked the bucket. Mid gets in a critical with Ember, defeating the Lillipup, and while he also takes on her Snivy with ease, I briefly switched back to Locke for the experience bonus. Unfortunately, I wanted Locke to get the final hit, and he ended up getting Vine Whipped and knocked out before pulling off one last Scratch. It just goes to show that even when victory seems certain, you should never get cocky.
Bianca seems rather hyped despite her loss, and promises to keep training before heading back to the last town. I take a few steps north, enter Striation City, and make a beeline for the Pokemon Center. Now that I’ve reached a safe place, I think it’s time to end this update...but first, like last time, here’s the vital statistics of a major member of Zidane’s current party.
- Locke (Male)
- Lv. 8
- Quirky nature.
- 10/6/2012
- Route 2
- Met at Lv.4
- Good perseverance.
- Dex No.: 015
- Name: Purrloin
- Type: Dark
- OT: Zidane
- D No.: 15437
- Attack: 13
- Defense: 13
- SP. Atk: 13
- SP. Def: 12
- Speed: 16
- Ability: Limber
- The Pokemon is protected from paralysis.
And, again, here’s some data from the Pokedex!
- Devious Pokemon
- HT: 1’04”
- WT: 22.3 lbs.
Thank you for reading along, and have a good day! Oh, and don’t forget that Black 2 and White 2 should come out tomorrow! ...In the U.S.A. Up here in Canada, sadly, we usually get things a couple of days later. At least I have the original game to keep myself occupied!
