Headscratchers / Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

• Wouldn't the Professor's time machine just peter out after a while once it ran out of Master Balls to throw into the past/future? Those things aren't exactly common.
  • While the one instance we see does involve a Master Ball, to my recollection there is no dialog indicating that this is the only way it can pull in Pokémon. Without balls, it may simply summon Pokémon directly.
    • It's stated in dialog with the professor that the time machine specifically works by sending a ball to the past/future. Given that the design of the machine has it drop the ball into a tiny receptacle, not onto a platform large enough to support a full-size Pokémon (and that the concept is never brought up in the first place), it seems like directly yoinking a Pokémon without a ball isn't a possibility.
  • The AI professor mentions that Tera Energy is the only reason why it and the time machine even work, with the current levels of tech not being advanced enough. Presumably that energy also powers up a part that can create Master Balls.
  • Your legendary is stored in a regular Pokéball, so those probably work just fine with the time machine. The professor (or maybe the AI) probably just switched to Master Balls to increase efficiency over time, but it's in no way a necessity.
  • My theory is that he releases them into Area Zero, then reuses the Master Balls to catch another Paradox Pokémon.
    • Important to note that the player is capable of catching the wild Paradox Pokémon wandering around Area Zero, when it's been shown repeatedly throughout the franchise that Poké Balls fail if used on a Pokémon that's already connected to another ball, making it very likely that they were released by the professor or machine soon after they arrived. The only remaining question is if it's Gameplay and Story Segregation or not that releasing a Pokémon doesn't return its ball to the player; if it is, then the Professor could absolutely reuse the same dozen or so Master Balls forever.
  • In Indigo Disk, we find that mere students can invent an item printer, which occasionally can create rare Poké Balls, including Master Ball. Given how vastly more advanced and more powered-up the time machine is (what's with being literally walled with tera crystals), it's probably not a surprise that the machine can just conjure Master Balls out of the blue as well.

• Rather than battling the AI Professor and the berserk Paradise Protection Protocol wouldn't it be significantly easier to locate the generator for the time machine and smash it? The power draw on that thing must be immense.
  • Given the bizarre nature of the Tera Crystals, they may be the source of the machine's power, or may be protecting the power source. Said crystals grow on their own, and the sheer number of them would make destroying them all before they grow back impractical. The AI's protection programming would also react to it the same way and lead to a battle, as it reacts to anything that is attempting to prevent the machine from functioning properly.
  • Even if there is an explicit generator that converts Tera Crystal energy into more traditional electricity, there's no way of knowing where it even is in Area Zero, especially once The Indigo Disk shows that there's more to the Area Zero facility than the player is allowed to access during the main story.

• Okay, just why the heck are there NO POLICE in this region? Team Star would have been beaten and then incarcerated for obstructing roads in Paldea if there were a proper form of constabulary!
  • Team Star is considered a nuisance at worst outside of school, since their members just run away if they can't deal with problems. After all, sending riot cops after juvenile delinquents is a tad overkill and would make for bad publicity and Disproportionate Retribution.
  • You're forgetting that they are kids. Team Star's actions aren't inherently illegal. They just inconvenience their fellow students with their actions. At worst, they can just get expelled.
    • Road obstruction; construction of likely unregistered, non-street legal vehicles; underage, unlicensed operation of motor vehicles; squatting and illegally-constructed bases without permits; possibly even assault (which doesn't necessarily require physical violence or battery, just a confrontation with the threat of it, even if the students confronted were bullies). That's without full information of their actions over the last year and a half between their formation and the present, and assuming of course that there's no gang-related charges applied. They also openly harassed students into joining them. They may be kids, but that doesn't mean they didn't break the law.
    • Assuming the Pokemon world has the exact same legal code as ours. Penny essentially committed the equivalent of grand larceny and she gets off with a slap on the wrist, and Clavel lets the Team Star bases keep running as official school training centers, so their construction is obviously not illegal.
  • How to tell me Scarlet and Violet are your first Pokemon games without telling me Scarlet and Violet are your first Pokemon games. There's literally only one game in the entire series where the police are actively investigating the evil team throughout the whole thing. That's Platinum, and even then interpol sends just the one agent. And while interpol does tend to get involved with the evil teams in subsequent games, they only show up to perform clean-up after the player has already dealt with the problem on their own, and it's ALWAYS just the one agent from Platinum again. I didn't touch the Sword and Shield DLC but if you told me that Looker was asked to fly halfway across the world to Galar on zero notice just to apprehend Rose I would believe you. Someone give that man a raise.
  • No Pokemon game has an active police force during any part of the story; it tends to be an anime only thing. Most of the time the evil team's actions are never regarded as anything more than a nuisance or petty crimes at best, and in some cases what they do would fly under the in-universe radar of a police force. Team Rocket in generations 1 and 2 were obvious poachers and thieves. They also held business office hostage at one point, but due to them being analogous to the Yakuza (their boss operates in plain sight as the 8th gym leader and they run a few casinos) nobody did anything about them. Nearly every other villain team after were seen as weird cultists for trying to resurrect or awaken Pokemon which should, in the public eye, not exist at all. Even a group like Team Plasma had publicity on their side and operated openly but with Ghetsis having a hidden motive that wasn't altruistic. Since then, Skull/Yell/Star have been more or less petty thugs or over-enthusiatic hooligans that really didn't get in anyone's way. Even Team Star didn't do anything obstructive and their camps were defensive in nature.
    • Worth nothing, Generation II does have in-universe domestic police force - an officer shows up to investigate the rival's theft of a starter from Elm's laboratory (and is actually the mechanism by which you name your rival); and police officers can be battled at night-time in a couple of locations. Granted, they're nowhere to be seen during the Mahogany Town Rocket event, the Radio Tower takeover, etc...
    • I think their absence with the Johto Rockets makes sense. The Lake of Rage situation wasn't obviously caused by anyone - it took Lance himself taking an interest and personally breaking into people's shops to unveil the Rocket base and confirm they were responsible. With the Radio Tower, the Rockets basically besieged the entirety of Goldenrod and (based on your battles with them) the police force lacked the battle power to deal with them. Smaller incidents around the region were dismissed as copycats and "there's no way Rocket is REALLY back..." by most people IIRC.

• Why is pounce a bug type move? When I think pounce I think big cats (and that one song from Thomas & Friends) not bugs.
  • Jumping spiders.
  • There is also that move "bounce" that is similar, but it’s a flying type move for much larger Pokémon (like cat Pokémon that you mentioned). Pounce is presumably for smaller Pokémon.
  • According to Bulbapedia, some languages translate the move's name as "Bug Pounce" or something similar. Perhaps the specific Japanese name^note とびつく of the move is meant to convey the way insects leap, and that was just lost in the English translation? Wouldn't be the first time an incorrect translation has made a move's name really confusing (like "Nature's Wrath" being mistranslated as "Nature's Madness").

• What happened to all the diners in the main area at Treasure Eatery when it turned into a Battle Court? They all seemed to vanish out of existence when the room transformed.
  • They likely got off before it fully shifted, since there was a bit of transition time.
  • If you look carefully, the furniture piled up at the back had increased, so it's possible that everyone just got up and moved everything aside including the mats on the floor to create the Battle Court.

• Why does AI Sada/Turo not attempt to prevent the real professor's death?
  • We don't know how time travel works in the story. While there is the chance that it could work, for all we know, either the events would be cancelled (if the AI went to the past to save the professor, it would be wiped out since it no longer has a reason to go back) or do nothing at all (just cause a new timeline), or so forth.
  • In past games in this series time travel never causes a time line to change, instead it simply causes the existing time line to happen (the Celebi event where the player character stops Giovanni from answering Team Rocket's call to return, and Legends Arceus where the player character's adventure causes Spear Pillar to become Spear Pillar, among other things). In other words, if they did die then there is no way to make that event not happen.
  • In addition to the other two points, it's possible that the time machine was fixed to a specific point in time in the past/future with no way to update the coordinates. Even if it would be possible for the AI to put in new coordinates, it could take too much time for an uncertain outcome, during which (and potentially after, if it fails) the paradox Pokémon would have free rein over Paldea.
  • Also the AI seemed pretty restricted in its ability to actually use the machine. The same protocol that prevented it from turning the time machine off by itself probably also kept it from changing the coordinates to a different era.

• Just why did the Professor think it was a good idea to go solo into Area Zero!? With no lifeline, everything went bad fast!
  • That seems to be the Professor's Fatal Flaw, ignoring things like that in favor of their dream research, to the point where the AI copy of the Professor even comments on how much the real professor was dedicated to the research.
  • The professor was blind to the damage that bringing ancient dinosaurs or hyper-advanced robots into the present time might cause to the present-day environment, so it seems like planning ahead is a definite problem for them. Given that they also threw themselves in front of Koraidon/Miraidon in a desperate attempt to shield them, it's also possible the professor didn't truly know just how strong and dangerous the Paradox Pokemon were until it was too late.

• I know that talking about safety in an universe where ten year olds are routinely given animals that can breathe fire a bit of a moot point, but isn't it a bit irresponsible that professor Saguaro's main Pokemon is a Hatterene? If there's something this line is known for is its tendency to viciously attack anything alive that is going through any sort of strong emotion. Wouldn't a place like a school, with tons of kids going through all sorts of intense emotions be a horrible place to keep one?
  • Back in Sword and Shield, where the Hatterene line made their debut, Bede noted in-game that his Hatterene would find a remote area like the Isle of Armor a point of relaxation due to not having many people around, and said Hatterene appeared well-trained enough to never become stressed enough to lash out in violent fits even in the midst of huge crowds (in a Pokemon tournament with many spectators in the audience, mind you, due to Pokemon gym matches being promoted like sporting venues there), though Bede stated his Hatterene would feel uncomfortable in such a setting. It's possible for Saguaro's own Hatterene to have been well-trained enough to behave in a similar vein, never feeling stressed out enough to get violent towards random people having strong emotions but finding such a setting uncomfortable all the same.

• How exactly is the implied reincarnation thing supposed to work? A fortune teller says she can see memories of your past lives which is how you get the phone cases if you have save data from the other Pokémon main series games (e.g. Pokémon Sword and Shield or Pokémon Legends: Arceus). While this does make some sense for LA, implying one of the protagonist's past lives was Sword and Shield makes little sense because to me, SV takes place after Sword and Shield because of the VIII Pokémon and you can find Sonia's book she wrote in Sword and Shield. The whole thing is incredibly confusing to me.
  • It's probably not meant to be taken too seriously, but that said SV taking place after Sword and Shield would make the reincarnation make sense provided it happened long enough after Sword and Shield for the player character to die and reincarnate. We don't actually know how long after Sword and Shield this game happens though. Sonia's book could have become well regarded enough to be in institutions many decades after she wrote it.
  • If not the character, the Reincarnation could be talking about us, the Players behind the Player Characters (Red, Ethan, and so on) and refers mainly to the games that we have played before.
  • It seems to be more of Leaning on the Fourth Wall / a subtle but active fourth-wall break than an actual in-universe thing.

• In Scarlet specifically, it's said that the Ancient Pokémon, if allowed to escape Area Zero, will likely cause an ecological catastrophe by outcompeting present-day Pokémon. If this is the case, how did they go extinct and evolve (in the Darwinian sense) into weaker versions of themselves? Real-world species in prehistoric times went extinct because they weren't able to compete with other species better adapted to their environments or couldn't withstand a dramatic change in their habitats (like a natural disaster or an arrival of creatures from some other land).
  • As you said, many prehistoric animals became extinct due to climatic changes, environmental disasters, just plain bad luck, etc. not because they are inherently inferior to modern day species. Such events can end otherwise well-adapted species, especially large animals that are always more vulnerable to such changes but keep developing because in stable environments they do well. And this is all assuming that these Pokémon really come from the past.
  • Additionally, selective pressures in evolution function not based on strength, but on fitness, e.g. what factors increase the likelihood that an animal reaches reproductive age and passes down their genes. There are other ways to do that than simply raw strength, like sheer numbers or camouflage, and it may suit an animal better than being powerful. Additionally things that can be seen as a plus, like antlers, are actually very energetically costly and even with such tools, fights can still be deadly. It may be that ancient Pokémon have some sort of drawback that we can’t observe, or that maybe even something that doesn’t hurt the individual, but hurts their likelihood of passing down genes.
  • Adding to the complexity of the environment, introducing any foreign species to a place is a very dangerous endeavour, because the creatures that already exist there will not be ready to deal with the new creatures. It's not a matter of being better or worse, Paldean's environment has checks and balances to, say, keep Jigglypuff population from growing too much too fast and consuming all the resources, but it doesn't have those checks and balances (anymore, it certainly did in the ancient past when this species was actually from) against Scream Tail. Even if gradual environmental changes caused the changes that created modern Jigglypuff to prove they were beneficial over the original Scream Tail, introducing the old species back would throw it all out of whack.
  • To make matters worse for the situation, depending on how the time machine works, it could potentially end up being modern Paldea that is the threat as opposed to past Paldea. If it goes both ways freely, that's basically just the Violet danger, but with the highly-advanced pokemon taking the long way around to the present instead of being yanked backwards. Which opens up an even bigger and more dangerous can of worms: Grandfather paradoxes, Marty McFly style.

• So, breeding Pokémon in this game works by… making sandwiches? Do they get it on while the sandwich is being made or something? Does peanut butter make Pokémon horny? What is going on?
  • The sandwiches are not a prerequisite for breeding, they just speed it up. The in-universe justification taught in school for the picnics being where you find eggs is that the Pokémon sneak the eggs into the basket because they trust their trainers, so presumably the sandwiches just put them in a better mood, making them more likely to decide to trust their trainer. It's uncertain when exactly (if ever, even) the Pokémon actually mate, though.
  • …So, do they just hold it in until the next picnic?
  • Pokémon breeding has always been rife with Delivery Stork type rationalizations, there's just no biological intercourse involved. The Hot Skitty-on-Wailord Action implications have always been fanon, the eggs literally appear out of nowhere.
    • Tandemaus suddenly becoming Maushold without you getting any alert to such happening is further proof of this being the case. The extra one or two mice just kind of... appear.

• What does it mean for Geeta to be Top Champion? Is it ever clarified? It is stated she is considered the strongest of the Champions in the region, but this seems to run counter to how becoming Champion rank at all requires that she be defeated in battle (and how Nemona apparently didn't even use her full strength to defeat her). Is it simply that her overall battle record is still good enough that she outranks other Champions despite them having beaten her?
  • I see it like Spanish football, there can be at most two champions in a single season, the LaLiga Champion and the Copa Del Rey Champion, which are basically the top team in the Spanish League and the Top team in the entire Spanish football system. I think the Paldean Pokémon League is the same. the Champion-rank trainers have beating the Elite 4 and passed the Champion Assessment, but Geeta actually wins the end of year tournament to be crowned 'La Primera' the Elite/Top Champion, yes Geeta losses the Champion Assessment, but when it counts (any potential tournament), she's unbeatable.
  • If I recall correctly, Geeta mentions she'll not hold back and use her full strength during the post-game tournament. Meaning that during the Champion Assessment she was holding back, and therefore becoming a champion doesn't really necessitate that someone become better than her at battling. From her point of view, it's a test, not a title match.
    • But she straight up says that she's incapable of holding back in battle when you face her as part of your champion assessment.
    • She also notes that being incapable of holding back is considered inappropriate for the chairwoman of the Pokémon League, and that only Nemona has managed to beat her so far. This likely means Geeta should be holding back for Champion-rank assessments similar to what the Gym Leaders do, implying that being a Champion-rank trainer doesn't necessarily put you at the same level as the actual Champion in a no-holds-barred beatdown.
    • Also, despite claiming she is not holding back during the Champion Assessment, Geeta's team is still at a substantially higher level when faced again during the Ace Tournament, so perhaps she was holding back a little.
    • Presumably Geeta has multiple teams of the appropriate strength levels for what she's doing, she just doesn't hold back with whichever team she's using at the time.
    • The Indigo Disk shows Geeta with a different lineup along with deploying her Glimmora and Kingambit strategically, so she does indeed set some limits on herself during an assessment. Perhaps she really meant that she doesn't hold back, and that during the assessment that was the best she can perform with the handicap she put on herself.
    • Except we know this isn't true. It's been said a thousand times before, but sending out a revenge sweeper that is powered up by KOs before an entry hazard setter doesn't strike me as "unable to hold back."
  • The Paldean League, moreso than previous games, seems to exist solely as an aptitude test and not a true Championship. Galar very obviously was structured to resemble a sports tournament with the rank of Champion being held by the actual tournament winner, but the structure of the Elite Four was always a bit inconsistent in how the Champion was determined and what it meant. Geeta is more than likely the strongest trainer in the region, but her title of La Primera seems to be more related to her job of being the League's chairperson rather than her skill in battle; basically the responsibilities of Chairman Rose with the battle prowess of Leon.
  • Another possibility is that the "Top Champion/ El/La Primero/a" is a title gained in battle. Perhaps before we come into the story, there was a Tournament it similar where those of Champion rank went to do battle, and Geeta came out on top, with Rika, Poppy, Larry, and Hassel being the next highest. So Geeta becomes "La Primera", and the other 4 become the Elite Four.
    • That can't be the case, because Poppy is not champion rank. Nemona is explicitly stated to be the youngest Champion-ranked trainer, and Poppy is obviously younger than her, so if she were a champion-ranked trainer, Nemona wouldn't be the youngest.
    • Further, it's stated (by Rika I think) that Geeta strong-armed the four of them into becoming the Elite 4, just as she personally selected all the current Gym Leaders. In Paldea, the jobs seem to be appointed rather than gained through tournaments and such.
  • One more possibility: the title of Top Champion might be gained by competing in official League-sanctioned battles specifically to determine that title, not that one is undefeated. Otherwise, you, the player character, would be the Top Champion, but the game suggests you are simply a "Champion" and not a "Top Champion."

• You know it does intrigue me that a Gym Leader can also be an Elite Four member at the same time and Larry is the first person to do this (Hala and Olivia don't count since they're Kahunas and not licensed Gym Leaders). My question is that I wonder why Geeta would choose someone that is already quite overworked and serves as the technical 5th Gym Leader in the region over the later ones? Even if Larry is revealed to have a team of Flying-type Pokémon as well, his dialogue hinted that he had to put together a team of flying types in a short amount of time which is why they are so mismatched compared to his Normal-type team from his Gym. It's not like he wanted to do it either but felt like he had no choice.
  • We hear about one recently-retired Gym Leader in the region, but not about any retired Elite Four. It's quite possible Larry was an Elite Four first, and then got assigned the Gym Leader role later, out of sheer lack of personnel.
    • It's strongly implied that the replacement gym leader was Ryme, not Larry.
  • Outside of Larry being a parody of the overworked salaryman in popular Japanese culture, it could be hinted at that at one point in his life, Larry was a very spirited Normal trainer who took up the job of Gym Leader once he was old enough. Despite his attitude, he's quite popular with the townsfolk who all came in to watch him battle and cheer him on. Needing to work a second job (his office job) to survive is what wore down his spirit, but Geeta more than likely recruited him for the Elite Four knowing how good he can be if he was given the chance, either as a filler spot or because she genuinely believed in his abilities. While he mentions his boss giving him a hard time, never mentions which boss it is, and it could likely be Geeta because she sees him as a highly competent slacker.
  • To be fair, Larry did say that Geeta told him to cut back his overtime hours. The likely truth is that Larry is a workaholic, psychologically addicted to work, and Geeta recruited him to try an limit his job to two. She knows that he likes to work, but also knows that he will kill himself if he keeps it up, so having two jobs under her means she can monitor his health in case something goes wrong.

• What in-universe reason is there for the Starmobile Revavrooms to be completely immune to status?
  • Ortega might have done it as a deliberate modification to make them stronger, like how their types are different from normal Revavrooms.
  • The Starmobiles aren't just modified Revavrooms. They're machines that use many Pokémon working at once as their component parts (there are at least a couple Varooms that we can see and a few Charcadets that we hear about but don't get to see). The Revavroom is the one we see in a prominent position as the engine, but we're fighting the entire machine. The devs didn't want to give us different targets during the fight, so the entire machine works in a way you'd expect a machine to, instead of a Pokémon.

• Why is Espathra, an OSTRICH, a pure Psychic type?
  • Because ostriches can't fly.
  • Probably the reason why Rookidee and Corvisquire are pure Flying-types, they most likely realized that Espathra didn't need an additional type.
  • For a point of comparison, Galarian Zapdos and the Doduo line are noted to be poor at flying but still capable of it (and can be taught Fly), but while the Flittle line can levitate a bit, they can't fly or learn Fly. Not that learning Fly need make something a Flying type, but it is a point of difference.

• It's established that Miraidon/Koraidon fled Area Zero before the start of the game and came to stay with Arven. However, how its *Pokeball* reached Arven isn't quite clear. Arven hasn't spoken to Turo/Sada in years. Of course, it's not stated how long the legendary has been under Arven's care, leading to two possibilities.
  • The legendary fled Area Zero after the same incident that killed the professor. The professor's AI duplicate then sent Arven the Pokeball after confirming that the legendary found its way to his home. However, the cutscene at the beginning of the game shows the legendary flying for a brief period of time before crashing, implying that the legendary fled Area Zero shortly before the game's start, making this unlikely.
  • The professor left the legendary's Pokeball with Arven for years, allowing it to roam freely the entire time it stayed with them in Area Zero. This seems highly irresponsible, but the AI notes that the professor was somewhat careless at times and too focused on research to care.
  • Arven at one point explores Area Zero on his own going after his parent, it's possible he got the empty Pokéball then (possibly left by the AI specifically to help Arven out without revealing itself).

• Where did the Paradox Pokemon come from, again? It's stated that they were brought over from the distant past/future by the Professor's time machine - but it's been only active for a few years, where earliest descriptions of Paradox Pokemon came from the Scarlet/Violet Book, written some two centuries ago, and reports of mysterious monsters living within the Area Zero go even further back. In fact, Scarlet/Violet Book is implied to be what inspired the Professor to build the machine in the first place.
  • The best theory I've heard, and which seems to fit a lot of hints the game gives, is that the Paradox Pokemon are not actually from the past or future at all. Rather they are based on the "idea" of ancient or future pokemon, basically imagination given life by whatever mystery power (likely the mystery disc pokemon depicted in the book) that dwells within Area Zero. Presumably this entity is influenced by human imagination and creates accordingly. If so, it would mean the Time Machine was not the reason the Paradox Pokemon were increasing in number, rather it was the professor's obsessive desires being made manifest thru the machine (as they based what they wanted to see on what was described in the Scarlet/Violet book) and those desires lived on in the machine after they died. This is supported by the book including a creature that explicitly was simply imagined by an artist rather than observed, yet is likely to eventually be a DLC Pokemon, as well as how its implied that none of the ancient pokemon have been found as fossils (i.e. Slither Wing's Occulture info). It would also explain why all the Paradox Pokemon are creatures that fit the "stereotype" that humans have of what existed in ancient times (giant monster versions of existing animals) and what the far future may be like (more and more robots). We even have Arven in the end trying to dismiss the book's information as made up (after noting how it makes no sense that it described Pokémon that should only have been there from his parent's machine), only to remark that his parent believed it and made it real somehow. If so, perhaps there is parallel world that the Paradox Pokémon are summoned from, a world created by human imagination. If there isn't then it raises the question of just where the AI professor went.
  • The inconsistency is pointed out by Arven himself, and it, alongside the information from the Scarlet/Violet Book that never showed up in game is a clear case of DLC bait. We can only speculate how the paradox Pokémon will appear before the time machine was built, but it's interesting to note that the strange creature depicted in the book has tiles that resemble a lot the current time machine's room.
  • That’s why they’re called PARADOX Pokemon.
  • The DLC implies an answer to this. Terapagos can summon a past/alternate version of the Professor if you take it to the Crystal Pool in Kitakami. Therefore, it seems pretty likely that it can pull in the Paradox Pokémon, too. While most of the newer ones are probably from the time machine, Terapagos probably summoned the ones that Heath would've encountered.
  • Terapagos is stated to pull the Paradoxes from alternative timelines.

• If the past/future Pokemon are so vicious, how are certain types of Pokemon able to survive in Area Zero? It's understandable why fully evolved Pokemon are able to fight against them (like the Raichu and the Venomoth), but there are also Girafarig and Meditites there.
  • They seem to often be found in groups with their evolution, a herd of Girafarig around a Farigiraf for instance, so that likely helps.
  • Adding to that, the regular Pokemon there are at a much higher level than the ones in the main Paldea region. They can probably handle themselves especially with Pokemon like Garganacl being pretty common down there.
  • Also, a good number of them are Flying-Types or otherwise capable of flight (Masquerain, the above-mentioned Venomoth, etc.), so from a story standpoint, they could easily fly out of the way if things get too dangerous.

• The Ruin Quartet, given their names and origins, seem like they’d be a far better fit for a China-based region. what are they doing in the equivalent of the Iberian Peninsula?
  • Raifort explains during her lessons and conversations with the player character that the treasures that became the Ruin Quartet were sold to the Paldean king by a merchant from "the east," hence their names and origins.
  • Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem are based on the Tao and Yin-Yang concept and yet they're the main legendaries of the America region. The basis for the region and the basis for thr legendaries aren't always common. It's unnecessarily restrictive.

• The relationship between tinkatons and corviknights in the Paldea region confuses me. For one, how is the giant, steel-type bird prey to the tiny, fairy-type dwarf (yes, I know tinkatons are fairly/steel, but that just means they take neutral damage from steel attacks)? Not even taking size into account, there's a matter of base stat totals. Corviknight have higher defense than tinkertons do attack. So even if being part flying-type makes a Corviknight take neutral damage against rock-type attacks instead of half, they still wouldn't sustain much damage from a rock being flung at them. Speaking of rocks, if a tinkaton's method of attacking their prey is by smacking rocks at them, why can't they learn any rock-type moves, specifically move that involve launching rocks, by level-up to reflect that (let alone 'smackdown', a move explicitly for grounding airborne opponents)? Lastly, so the Paldean air taxi service won't raise these big, tanky birds to carry around passengers because of pink dwarves launching rocks at them batter-style to knock them out of the sky, so they instead have the taxies carried by squawkabillies, which are smaller and are far more susceptible to rocks because they're normal/flying instead of flying/steel?
  • Can't answer all those, but the indications are that Tinkaton go after Corviknight for two reasons. One is that they mature with a vendetta against Steel types who stole and ate their metal when they were Tinkatinks, the second is that Corviknight's metallic armor would be a quality source of more material to build with. It may also be a matter of prestige rather than simple predation, since them going after Corviknight is noted to be a daring activity for Tinkaton. As for the lack of Rock type moves in their level up movepool, it can be assumed they are simply using Gigaton Hammer or other moves to hit rocks and launch them that way. Unlike genuine Rock type moves that can just materialize them magically, this action would be reliant on suitable rocks being present.
  • It doesn't matter that the Squawkbillies are objectively weaker if nothing cares to attack them. They don't have predators who endanger the passengers like Corviknight does. Even if something did attack them, they fly in flocks so they can presumably defend themselves and the air taxi more easily.

• Why make Ryme middle-aged? Most rappers are usually younger.
  • She seems to be based off of a mixture of Missy Elliot and Queen Latifah who are both in their 50's and are still active in their careers.
  • Why not make her middle aged? Jay z is in his 50s and is still a rapper, so not like it's impossible.
  • She’s also stated to have been in the industry for over 30 years. She’s past the peak of her career like a lot of older musicians, probably, but she’s still active.
    • Alternatively, it's to make a point that she's just that GOOD at what she does. Even later into her life, she's STILL got the rhymes and beats to be one of the best.

• The last Pokedex reward is a Beast Ball. Why a Beast Ball? Is it just for people that like the look of it and want to use it in raid captures?
  • The last Pokedex rewards are the Diploma and the Shiny Charm.
  • They are referring to the last reward from the ‘catch 10 pokemon for a reward!’ Thing at the bottom of the screen, which gives you a Beast Ball.
  • Essentially, yes. There is a prestige among Pokémon fans to have something in a Beast Ball that isn't an Ultra Beast. In addition to its non-standard appearance, outside of Tera Raid Battles, the lowered chance of capture is appealing because it suggests an extraordinary effort was required to successfully capture something. This is in line with the price of a Beast Ball being 100 Dynite Ore in Galar's Crown Tundra: they're treated as the pinnacle of achievement by Pokémon catchers.
    • Unorthodox display of hubris but very well.

• Why does Penny choose to work off the money she stole running Tech Support for the Pokemon League instead of just getting the raw materials needed to do it and exchanging them for LP at the Pokemon Center (for those of you who may not be so good at economics, this would essentially entail paying off her debt by giving the Pokemon League an amount of goods that they consider equivalent to the amount of LP she stole)? It's not like she stole an amount totaling in the millions. She only stole a few 10Gs. In two playthroughs I did not once touch the feature that allows you to exchange Pokemon materials for LP, but surely it shouldn't take more than a few weeks for a trainer of Penny's caliber to gather the materials necessary materials. One might argue that Penny thinks that wouldn't be adequate punishment for her crimes, but not only is Penny incredibly smart, probably the second smartest character in the game after the Professor, her exchange with Geeta at the start of the postgame makes me think she's also incredibly lazy. When asked to do some computer work to prepare for the Academy Tournament, Penny at first complains that she was planning to binge watch anime that day until Geeta puts on a fake smile and basically says "The Pokemon League thanks you for helping us prepare for the tournament, Miss Penny". Even with the game's infamously low-quality animations and lack of voice acting I could tell she was thinking "Is this girl for real? We offered her a job instead of charging her with a crime after she stole from us, and literally the first time I ask her to do some work she complains that she'd rather watch anime?" Going off of that exchange, Penny strikes me as someone who would just take the easy way out by catching lots of Pokemon since her debt gets paid off regardless.
  • Another possibility is that Penny is playing it smart. She KNOWS she's no fighter (that would be Nemona and you), and isn't exceedingly keen on research and going out to find undiscovered things (unlike Arven). She's a techie, so she takes a repayment job that puts her in that field. So that she can both show her stuff (she's clearly able to hack the League's network so well that she can't even be tracked), and possibly get in good with people who might offer her a job after.
  • Her being lazy is irrelevant, both activities would require her to put in work. But she's above all else a shut-in, why would she choose to go outside and battle a lot when she could instead do something that's perfectly in her comfort zone, staying inside and dealing with computers?
  • This assumes she was even given a choice. It's not like she caused Geeta some minor inconvenience and decided to work it off for purely ethical reasons; she commited an actual, serious crime, one that in real life would land her in hot water even at her age (sure, they won't arrest a girl who is at most 13, but try to explain to your parents why you've been accused of large scale theft). League was well within its right to seek legal consequences, and the only reason they didn't was because of how impressed they were with her skills. A tech prodigy working on your security systems is better than one not working on them - but if she doesn't accept the offer, no reason not to report her.
  • ^ Tbf she WAS given a choice. She could've chosen not to come clean about the whole thing, collect the materials she needed, and pay them back in secret. I think the first two answered the headscratcher better. She chose the option she did because going out and doing that would've taken her too far out of her comfort zone, being the Otaku she is.
    • This is a practice real companies do when they want to hire quality digital security: they look for cybercriminals who have been busted, then offer them a nice-paying job to help with security. They have the skills needed to protect the company, and they have inside knowledge of the cybercrime scene. The ones who haven't been busted are not chosen only because they can't be safely contacted or can't be contacted at all. My impression with Penny also isn't that she "stole" LP from the League, per se, as it means the League would've lost that amount, but that as a strictly digital currency, she generated LP out of thin air. In this case, Penny works for the League not to repay anything, but as community service, to pay off whatever fines she owes in a way she can't just hack to create more LP.
  • First off, claiming that having her collect the materials and exchange them for the same amount of LP she stole is equivalent to paying off her debt follows the exact same kind of reasoning as claiming that if you steal a candy bar, buying another candy bar of the same kind is an ample compensation. It's not; the second bar would likely get sold anyway, and the shop still loses the value of the first one in money. Meanwhile presenting the materials themselves as compensation would require her to admit she even did something wrong in the first place - at which point we go back to the point where she's in no position to dictate the terms of paying it off. As for any potential trickery regarding sending materials to the League without accepting payment... a ton of actual, physical materials suddenly appearing out of nowhere with absolutely no record of their existence is going to be far harder to hide than making a bunch of virtual money disappear (or appear, assuming she didn't steal it, but rather overwrote her account balance to give herself non-existent money). Not that any of this matters because, second of, the entire argument misses the whole point of Penny's character. She acts rash and doesn't think the consequences of her actions through, then quickly regrets it and seeks absolution via proper punishment. Sure, she may grumble about having to work, maybe she really believed she would get off lightly yet again - but the point is, having her atempt to hide it in any way would go completely against her estabilished character.
  • I don't think the candy bar scenario is a good analogy, but otherwise you make a good argument. I'll take the L.

• How is there a drawing resembling the Beast Trio in the Scarlet Book? The book was written 200 years ago, and the destruction of the now-Burned Tower and the creation of the trio was 150 years before the events of Gold and Silver. The drawing is said to be an artist’s interpretation of a prehistoric-looking Pokémon, so it isn’t something they encountered in the Crater. A 50+ year gap between Gens 2 and 9 could be the explanation but it seems unlikely - based on Red and Blue’s appearance in Gen 7, there would likely be a 30+ year gap between Gens 7 and 9.
  • The further back things are the more likely people are to approximate the years, especially outside a classroom setting. The 150 years ago perhaps was actually 175 years ago, which then if you add a 25 year gap from Gens 2 to 9 that equals 200. That the artist drew a amalgamation of Entei, Raikou and Suicune might even make some sense if they were inspired by reports and descriptions of a trio of Legendary Pokémon that had recently been "born" in Johto. But yes, it's explicit that it's not something anyone encountered in the crater, merely something they imagined could exist. Also I don't think it being prehistoric-looking was stated to be the inspiration, rather it being large and fierce was.
  • Another possibility is that these are what the Pokémon in the Burned Tower looked like before being remade into Entei, Raikou, and Suicune.
  • Lacey’s father is Clay, Driftveil City's Gym Leader. She’s like in her tweens so about a decade ago, she was born. We know BW events take about maybe 10 years apart from GSCHGSSDPPtBDSP as Caitlin is like 14 in her debut and about maybe a decade aged up when she’s an Elite Four and we can assume that SV takes place in 2022 so that puts BW about 12 years from SV and if Lacey is 10 she was presumably born a little around after B2W2.

• In Arven's room is a map of Paldea with about 20 color tabs on it. What are they pointing to? They don't correspond to any of the story mission locations, nor do they correspond to the watchtowers over Paldea.
  • Those are probably just locations that he either found some good ingredients at, or places he thought the Herba Mystica could be near.

• What exactly about Scream Tail suggests that it's part Psychic? The Fairy-type comes from its (maybe) status as Jigglypuff's ancestor, but Psychic?
  • The tail portion is kind of similar to the thing Majin Buu has on his head that he used magic through. Since magic typically translates to psychic in Pokémon, so it might be a reference to that.
  • It could be a supernatural being that lived way earlier than it's supposed to be possible. For context, it apparently lived a billion years ago, but the first multicellular life was estimated to exist around 600 million years ago.
    • To be clear, the whole "lived a billion years ago" thing is completely made-up in-universe, being based on a article in a paranormal magazine. The writer of said article came up with the billion years ago idea based on nothing more than the Scarlet book's description of Scream Tail making them associate it with prehistoric times.

• On the Fridge page, it's mentioned that it appears as though the Tera Crystals are seeping into metals and dissolving them. Yet, we somehow feed these to our Pokémon with no ill effects to change their Tera types. How would that work?
  • I don't think it's stated the crystals are dissolving anything, more that they are covering/merging with the facilities. Certainly when Pokémon Terastallize they also get covered with/merge with the crystals, its just temporary and thus harmless. Likewise it is stated the crystals react differently with living things than they do with machines (they alter how living things function, i.e. the type change mechanic, and they optimize how a machine functions).

• Okay, so if we're running with the "Paradox Pokémon aren't actually from the past/future and the machine wasn't actually a time machine but was creating Pokemon based on the Professor's book" theory...where did AI Sada/Turo actually go when they went through it?
  • They went to the place the paradox Pokémon are actually coming from...the third legendary. You see that big orb inside the time machine as they rise into it? That could be the orb that's seen below the third legend.
  • A scene available after beating The Indigo Disk heavily implies that the Paradox Pokémon are coming from alternate universes. The AI professor could've just gone of to that particular timeline instead of "our" past/future.
• What was Great Tusk/Iron Treads doing in the middle of Asado Desert? How did it escape Area Zero and why was it just roaming around the area?
  • It's unclear how it got out, but notice that you can find regular Donphan/Phanpy in Asado Desert, too. As to why they're in that specific area, Great Tusk/Iron Treads probably just found it hospitable enough, since they are similar to Donphan.
• Does anyone else notice how underutilized egg moves have become in this generation? Like, being able to breed pokemon that know moves they otherwise couldn't learn was one of the big incentives to have one's pokemon mate in the first place. Yet in spite of how many moves can be learned via TM in Scarlet and Violet, there are still many moves which a pokemon could inherit via breeding in past generations that they now can't in gen 9. Take 'steel wing' for example, a move which could be learned by nearly any pokemon with wings in generations where it's available by TM, and could be passed down from a male skarmory to any offspring he has in generations where it isn't. Gen 9 is one of the generations where the move isn't available as a TM. And corviknight and talonflame are the only pokemon who can learn the move via level-up. With how many Pokemon under the flying egg group there are in the Paldea Region, how come none of the females of those pokemon species can mate with a male talonflame or corviknight in order to bear children that know 'steel wing'?

• While it makes sense for the original professor to dispose of the teleporter inside Zero Lab to prevent anyone from just swooping in and stealing their research material, a conclusion they might have derived from their paranoia after being left behind by their spouse, it's strange that the Zero Lab's locked gate can only be opened from the outside but not the inside. Given how easy it is to open the locks from the research stations (even children can do it) as long as the one doing the opening survives Area Zero, how does locking Zero Lab from the outside makes sense? It's like building a gate in front of your house that can be opened from the outside so burglars can come in but not from the inside so you can't even go out to the supermarket to buy food.
  • From the circumstances, it seems that the Zero Lab was locked to keep the various Paradox Pokemon inside more than it was to keep people out. First thing that happened after opening it was a mob of them greeting the player and co after all.
  • You also have the assistance of the AI Professor who specifically wants you to get in. It's entirely possible that undoing those locks from the research stations would've normally required some kind of access pass or something, but the AI Professor was doing what it could to help override the system - bypassing the need for authentication where it could, but unable to just entirely disable the security system. This would also match up with some of the other security measures we see around the time machine; the AI Professor has a lot of authority and control of the Area Zero system, but there are some measures the human professor deemed too important and hard-coded to be beyond their control.

• When Director Clavell dramatically whips off his "Clive" costume at the conclusion of the Starfall Street questline to reveal his real identity - how does he simultaneously whip off the jacket while also putting on a pair of trousers ("Clive" wears shorts, Clavell wears full-length trousers). Unless everyone politely waits around while the director struggles to pull on a pair of trousers in the middle of the courtyard...
  • Rule of Funny. This sort of impossible clothes changing is common in Japanese media and elsewhere.

• The first half of the DLC gives the player a Rotom Stick, essentially a selfie stick under a different name...but why would anyone need a selfie stick for a Rotom Phone when it can just levitate the distance you need for the photo?
  • The stick allows you to aim the camera however you want as soon as you want it, instead of having to tell the Rotom where to go and communicate every minor adjustment.
• How exactly were the Loyal Three resurrected? Was there some magic involved in bringing them back to life?
  • The Teal Mask that Kieran held is noted to give Ogerpon the power to revive plants, and it is noted that the crystals from the crystal pool can let people meet with the dead (though this sounds more like a purely mental/spiritual experience than a physical one), but I am not aware of any other hints and the game seems to treat it as a mystery given Carmine repeatedly voices confusion over how it happened but no answers are provided. One theory I have also read here is that the trio were not actually dead but in some kind of dormant state, and Kieran bringing the mask so close to them woke them up.
  • Since we see that Pecharunt has been sitting around Mossui Town for a while (albeit in a dormant state), it's possible that some of its energy latched onto Kieran and/or the Loyal Three and woke them up that way.
• Why did Kieran steal the Teal Mask in the first place? Did he want to be the one to give the mask back to Ogerpon or did he think he was protecting her from his sister and the player? Moreover, why did he go to Loyalty Plaza with the mask?
  • Given his obsession with Ogerpon, it's likely that Kieran wanted to be the one to bring her the mask. It's not really clear why he went to Loyalty Plaza, though.
• While it's cool that Briar's overall appearance evokes Scarlet and Violet's logo and visual theme, where and how did she get a jacket that has the designs of Koraidon and Miraidon on them? The hexagonal earrings make perfect sense since hexagons are strongly tied to terastallization, her subject of research, but Briar never makes any mention about the Raidons during the DLC (and the Raidons never greet her like they greet Kieran), and from what we know the Raidons only appeared in recent times due to Arven's parents' time machine and thus Heath is unlikely to have even known about them, not to mention that their existence is hidden until the events of the base game where you can show them off to anyone you want (and barely anyone batting an eye about them).
  • Miraidon and Koraidon are according to their dex entries apparently both mentioned in Heath's journal (or some other old book), we just aren't able to see those entries. Koraidon was called Winged King in it, and Miraidon Iron Serpent. In other words, like the other Paradox Pokemon, they were described in the Scarlet/Violet Book as somehow existing in Area Zero before Sada/Turo summoned them in modern times.

• Why are TMs back to single use? I get how BDSP sucked and couldn't act like a proper remake but this is made by GameFreak.
  • Perhaps to give the player extra things to do by hunting down materials, and extra choices to make by somewhat restricting TM use.
    • They could've had TRs craft-able or have TMs be craft-able with indefinite use. Or have Hyde’s Machine from IoA.

• Why back to an Elite Four?
  • Because everyone complained about Galar lacking one.
    • Source?
  • Elite Four for each region are the norm for the Pokémon world in general, regions without them are apparently the minority. Alola's people for instance considered forming an Elite Four to be a means of helping their league get recognized by the rest of the world. Galar's system on the other hand is its own special beast.
    • What kind of special beast? The D-Maxing and G-Maxing?
    • On the contrary, The Times They Should Be A Changin.

• Why back to the pre Gen V cry for Pikachu? I get that LA was set in the past but Junichi Masuda states that everyone hears Ikue Otani's Pika-pika for Pikachu.
  • The main game series seems to want to separate itself more from the anime these days, perhaps due to Ash's series ending they see this move as means to increase longevity for the game series by not depending on what the anime introduced. This may be why Ash Greninja as a form was retconned out, and Pikachu's non-anime cry reinstated.
    • But they have been doing it since XY.
    • And back in XY Ash's series still had a lot of years left. Things have changed.
    • If that’s the case, why isn’t Masters EX not going to update it?
    • Perhaps because it’s not a mainline game but a spinoff.
    • But they added characters from both L and SV.
    • And that has nothing to do with Pikachu's cry in the mainline games. Masters EX will continue to add characters from the mainline games for as long as it exists, that's kind of its purpose.
    • But that feels like DeNA isn’t updating the games.
    • DeNA probably just doesn't care about that aspect. They still have Ash in the game anyways although they have tried to Un-person him.
    • On the contrary, DeNA HAS to care.

• Why no special Trade rendition of Evolution music?
  • Why would there be a need for one? It's ultimately still just the Pokémon evolving.
    • Take the Alola and Galar games. They had a special rendition.

• Why is it now you can catch any Pokémon in the wild (even if you need an Evolution Stone to evolve)? There are 0 species now that can only be obtained via Evolution (sans the starters).
  • To make completing the Dex leagues less frustrating and grindy.
    • Even if they could do that, wouldn’t it have been better to have progress be shown as how many Pokémon player’s seen (which they have been doing from DP to ORAS (except HGSS for some reason))? Are there any non-starter species evolutions that can only be obtained by evolving pre-evos?
    • What is this troper trying to ask. Somebody is able to see what Pokemon they've seen before in the dex, what does this troper mean?
    • Have save data be with spotted Pokémon.
    • Trade evos can't be found in the wild outside of raid dens. Level-up and Stone evos can occur naturally, so they can be found.
    • But it’s impossible for Wild Pokémon to evolve (like Pikachu) without a Thunder Stone so it’s impossible for a wild Raichu to exist unless it was released.
    • Where do you think evolution stones come from? They're special ore found in the wild. All a Pikachu has to do is dig a bit of Thunderstone up or find some that already eroded out of the ground. As for trade evolutions, some dex entries (like those related to Shelmet and Karrablast) state what actually evolves them is exposure to a specific form of electricity. Trading therefore must mimic this electricity, but it must also sometimes happen in the wild.
    • How though? Are there wild Gengar or Machamp in SV or do you have to evolve Haunter and Machoke respectively?
    • People have to evolve them, they are not in the wild. That question is not what the Headscratchers page is for.
    • Then why do they appear in the wild in SwSh?
    • Also, why can't the player get an award for just spotting the species in Dex?
  • To make it more realistic? Step outside, and you're certain to see someone's local wildlife in many different stages of growth.
• Some fans don't like the fact that all the future Paradox Pokémon are robots, calling it "uncreative." My question is, well, what the hell else are they supposed to be? I feel like speculative evolution-based Pokémon would probably be too similar to past Paradoxes in terms of appearance and behavior, which, given that the whole theme of the paradoxes is "how the past and future are different," wouldn't be all that great.
  • Considering the past Paradoxes (barring Sandy Shocks) are all "natural" creatures that are supposedly related to other non-mechanical Pokémon, it's certainly possible that at least some of the future Paradoxes could've been non-robotic, too. Robots do seem like an "obvious" choice, but I think most people's issue is that all of them are robotic (especially since not all of them are even Electric- or Steel-Types, which at least would've sold the robot idea a bit better).
  • The problem is that really seem to be the fact that they are robots, more so it appears to be that the Pokemon just look uncreative and just like a robotic version of the original Pokemon (especially Iron Jugulis). These Pokémon would appear more artificial and alien looking (like say, add detailing to Iron Moth's wings to make them look like solar panels, or make Iron Jugulis' arms to be like cannons and the rear wings to appear like radiators).

• Miriam would rather be a health teacher than a nurse, and while she doesn't become one in the game itself, it's implied that she'll become one next school year. Now, that's all well and good, everyone deserves to live out their dreams, and maybe this is a dumb question that misses the point of her storyline, but what's the plan for when the change goes through? Every school needs medical staff, especially when the local wildlife (which the students keep as pets and have battle each other) has superpowers, and the fact that they don't have any plan (that we know of) to replace Miriam once she stops being the nurse (assuming she doesn't end up doing double-duty) is kind of concerning.
  • They'd hire someone to replace her, it's evidently not a position with a high benchmark given Miriam wasn't even qualified to teach about health yet she was qualified to practice healthcare, so it shouldn't be that hard. I don't think that's the sort of thing that needs to be mentioned as a plan, it's a sort of given. Heck, the school hired all new staff in general just a year before with no big issue. Double-duty isn't out of the question either, given Miriam notes a lot of the time she isn't doing anything as a nurse.
  • Going further on the double-duty question, Hassel being in the Elite 4 doesn't seem to interfere with his teaching abilities too much. If Miriam becomes a health teacher and stays the school nurse, at least that's two jobs in the same place, so it probably wouldn't be too hard to pull off in this setting.

• Why does Nemona help with Glimmora. Can’t the player do it by themselves?
  • The whole reason Nemona came down there was to help by battling. Plus she had a personal interest because Geeta uses Glimmora.
    • But we can handle stuff on our own. Also, what does the Scream Tail/Iron Bundle have a relation to Penny? It’s not based on Eevee. Great Tusk/Iron Tread is associated with being a Titan which is why Avern stops it.
    • It's not a question of us needing help or not, Nemona just wants to do it. As for Penny, the fight happens because she approaches the Scream Tail/Iron Bundle. Hence she battles it and we help.
    • Why couldn’t Arven or Penny help on the first?
    • Again, part of the reason Nemona specifically volunteers for the first one is because of Geeta's Glimmora.
    • And Avern helps on final because of Iron Pokémon. Presumably the Pokémon that attack Penny are weak to her Sylveon, her [1]

• How was Kieran so easily believed when he told the people of Mossui Town the true version of events surrounding Ogerpon? This all seems rather odd when one considers how much time passed during which the false version of the tale was passed down, as well as the mask-maker being deemed a heretic even right after the events in question.
  • The amount of time that had passed may well have helped actually. Some people in modern Kitakami apparently didn't even believe the Loyal Three and the ogre were real, treating the stories and practices as traditions and draws for tourists more than reality. Thus they were not so devoted as their ancestors were to the version of the tale they were taught, i.e. they did not treat it with the same zeal. That it was the normally withdrawn and shy Kieran telling them the old tales were inaccurate may have helped them take him seriously too. That Ogerpon proved to be so cute and gentle-looking when they finally saw her in the flesh may have helped as well. But without knowing just what Kieran said, we can't be sure how he convinced them.
• Why did Terapagos go berserk when it Terastalized? Was the power just too unstable to handle or was it scared because of what was happening? Also, did it intentionally target Kieran or was its power beyond control because of the Terastalization?
  • Going by the history of the series, it was most likely just power instability and Kieran having no idea what he was doing with the creature. Terapagos might have been angry over Kieran catching it when it showed immediate affinity toward the player character and instinctively lashed out at him when it went out of control though.

• Why is the player the talk of Blueberry Academy? Is it because they’re a transfer student so late in the year? Is it because Kieran has potentially talked a lot about the player who was his sole reason for getting so strong? Or was Kieran actually causing that much trouble at his school that other students wanted him to be defeated?
  • Considering that Carmine apparently mentioned them directly to Cyrano, it does make sense that she and Kieran talked a lot about the player character in general. Plus, Drayton, Crispin, and a couple NPCs all mention how much of a nosedive Kieran's taken lately, so it's also not out of the question for the other students to just want anyone to come along and beat him.

• Why does the player character look surprised when Terapagos starts walking towards them upon awakening? Are they surprised by Terapagos’s actions or they worried about how Kieran will react seeing the Legendary prefer them over Kieran like Ogerpon did?
  • A stone just transformed into a tiny blue turtle, why wouldn't they be surprised?
  • Also, Kieran is still acting unhinged at this point and mentioned his desire to one-up the player again, so it's indeed pretty likely that they're worried about his reaction.

• Since Drayton obviously wants the player character to join the BB League and defeat Kieran, why didn’t he just ask first? Why did he make things awkward between them and Kieran?
  • A lot of scenes with Drayton and the other Elite Four members (Lacey in particular) seem to imply that Drayton is really bad at knowing what is and isn't appropriate to say in social situations, and he also seems to be holding a little bit of a grudge against Kieran for how Kieran's been acting since he became the Champion.

• Why did Briar not realize how Kieran was acting in the final part of the Indigo Disk story? Was she that concerned with proving her ancestor’s research that she didn’t think that her student’s welfare was far more important than trying to get Terapagos to show its power?
  • Briar repeatedly shows she doesn't notice much else when she is absorbed in something.
  • Briar's a Terastal fanatic who wants to locate Terapagos. She was probably too obsessed in her goal to notice something changed with Kieran.

• If the game is meant to be a Stable Time Loop with the player giving the professor Briar's book in the past to create the time machine...what exactly happens if we have the Scarlet Book? If we have it, then that means the AI wouldn't have it in the past and would thus be unable to use it with the Time Machine, meaning the plot of the game wouldn't happen.
  • The professor does mention they could be from a different timeline rather than just a different time period. Notably the journal entry we see in the Underdepths makes no mention of seeing Koraidon/Miraidon nor of giving up the Scarlet/Violet book. It may be that the actual professor of the timeline we play in went back and met a character from yet another timeline. Alternatively, this event is meant to introduce yet another paradox to the story, adding to the paradox of how Heath somehow saw Paradox Pokemon long before they were summoned to Area Zero.
  • While it's likely the professor is also from an alternate universe, this still means that there's a timeline out there where Arven apparently never got his parent's Scarlet/Violet Book, therefore he can't give it to the player character to shut down the time machine. So... is that timeline just screwed, or what?
    • Given there are a ton of Paradox Pokémon left wandering Area Zero regardless, it's possible the situation is only somewhat worse. Perhaps, given enough time, another way to shut down the machine could be devised too (like perhaps the AI leaving via the machine would still cause it to no longer work, since they are tied to it functioning). It's also not like the AI's predictions of destroying the ecosystem of Paldea were a certainty or that Pokémon couldn't eventually adapt to the changes.
    • Assuming the professor who got Briar's book still went and created the time machine then go mad with obsession, they likely might instead use Briar's book as the key to shut down the time machine. Given that they deliberately use an item most valuable to them (the Scarlet/Violet book) as the key in the canon timeline, they'll probably use something equally valuable (Briar's book) in the alternate timeline, thus the protagonists of said timeline will have to fetch Briar's book instead of Scarlet/Violet book.
  • It's also possible the Professor just owned multiple copies of the book. By the time of the Crystal Pool conversation, Arven is already living separately from them, and they're deep in Area Zero. So the "main story" copy of the Scarlet/Violet Book must already have been at Poco Lab, since there is no later time where the professor leaves the crater. Thus they copy they gave you at Crystal Pool MUST be a different one. And that actually makes more sense - why would the professor leave behind their favourite book, the inspiration for all their research, unless they had another copy to bring with them? As for how that works with the security system, it's likely that any copy of the book would suffice.
    • That said, both the copy we use in the main game and the one the professor gives us in the DLC are both noted to have the professor's signature scrawled in the book in a manner a young child would, implying it is the copy they had as a child. Also, the professor we give the book to has yet to see Koraidon/Miraidon in person, despite Arven already having been born. Yet, in our game's timeline, the professor summoned the first Koraidon/Miraidon shortly before Arven was born.
    • There's some ambiguity with Arven's age as the relevant line is, "I was expecting one new life to treasure, but what fortune to be blessed with this gift as well!" That could be interpreted as the Raidon appearing shortly after the professor found out they/their partner was pregnant, but it could also mean it appeared soon *after* Arven's birth. With that said, it *would* be strange if the professor had sent a literal infant Arven back to the surface, even with another caregiver, so it's indeed possible that we're dealing with a slightly different version of events.

• How did Penny get her Tera Orb? The only characters in the entire game including DLC who have Tera Orbs but are not working (as staffs) for either Academy or Pokémon League are Nemona, you, Arven, Penny, Carmine, Kieran and BB League Elite Four. Nemona mentions that a student needs to have some kind of achievement to get a Tera Orb, hence she, the Student Council President and a Paldean champion, has long since earned hers. She then uses her position to pull some strings to get you a Tera Orb prematurely. With Arven, it can be inferred that perhaps his professor parent, who invented Tera Orb to begin with, gave him one as a present. Kieran and the BB Elite Four seem to earn their Tera Orbs for the same reasons outlined by Nemona: you need to be an accomplished student, and being the best trainers in the academy obviously counts as one such achievement. Carmine is a bit complicated; either she indeed earned her Tera Orb because she isn't bluffing when she claims her battling skills are on par with the Elite Four, or being friends with Amarys nets her one the same way you get yours from Nemona long before you even start school, or Briar specifically requests one for Carmine who has been taken in as an assistant for Briar's research. But Penny? Given that it's spelled out in the post-Indigo Disk optional quest that Team Star bosses don't have Tera Orbs (likely due to their truancy, among other things), how could she gain one when she herself has truancy issues, on top of having to temporarily "exile" herself due to the Team Star incident?
  • Perhaps she earned a Tera Orb between the start of the game and the end of Operation Starfall. Perhaps she got one as some form of apology for the whole mess that got her suspended in the first place. It's also possible she just hacked the school system and put her name next on the list for one, since she is rather casual about that. All these are viable, but if any canon answer is coming it will likely be in the epilogue next year.
  • Well, she is implied to be a pretty good student, at least when she bothers to turn up to class (as Penny doesn't need to do makeup exams like some of the Star bosses do). It could be that her grades since returning to the Academy are just so good that she's allowed to get a Tera Orb a bit early. Also, Clavell is the only current staff member who even seems to suspect that she's in Team Star, and that's not even until the end of Starfall Street. That said, her just hacking the system to move herself up on the list isn't out of the question, either.
  • She already has a Tera Orb when you battle her at the climax of Starfall Street, so the "apology gift" idea definitely is false, and in fact, that likely hints that she got her Tera Orb before Starfall Street storyline actually begins in earnest after the time skip, given that she probably wouldn't have time to earn one when she's busy monitoring your progress in dismantling Team Star. So this leaves past good grades and hacking as the most likely possibilities.
    • A correction here: Nemona states that to gain a Tera Orb, a student must take special classes, so as long as anyone does clear those special classes, they can earn a Tera Orb, no mention about their regular grades (though again, Nemona makes an exception for you). Thus, Penny probably indeed went to these special classes ages back while her Team Star teammates never did before the entire fiasco happened which prevented them from even taking the classes in the first place. Also, if Blueberry Academy indeed also uses these special classes for Tera Orb ownership, Drayton's possession of one could also be chalked at him focusing more on these special classes instead of his regular courses.
    • Just a follow up about Carmine, she did travel through multiple regions with Briar, so she could've gotten a Tera Orb from her as a reward.

• Why did Kieran withdraw from the League Club? Did he think it was best for him to quit after the trouble he caused?
  • Most likely, yes, given that he clearly feels bad about everything at the end of The Indigo Disk. The other League Club members mention afterwards that things have gone back to normal now that they can undo all of his rules, supporting this idea.
  • To clarify, he didn't leave the club completely, but removed himself from their ranking system. This allowed the Elite Four to be unchanged.
  • Also, Kieran himself says that he wanted to withdraw so he could just focus on school work in a club room conversation.

• Why did the possessed people flap their arms like chickens and chant “mochi mochi” while under Pecharunt’s control?
  • I can only assume Pecharunt found it amusing.
  • Either that, or by forcing its brainwashed victims to act silly instead of threatening, Pecharunt hoped that people didn't immediately notice that something wrong has happened. That is to say, had Pecharunt forced its victims to shamble around like zombies for example, the townsfolk would have immediately gone on high alert and enacted measures such as quarantine that might make it difficult for it to brainwash more targets.
  • Probably some combination of the above: It gets to obscure its brainwashing by the sheer ridiculousness of the act (With no context, would YOU believe someone if they claimed that there was something that forced people to randomly do the chicken dance and ramble about mochi?), allowing it to continue its plans unimpeded, and it gets quality entertainment all the while.

• Sooo, is no one gonna question how the grass-type Ogerpon was able to beat the crap out of the poison-type Loyalty Trio despite all three having an offensive and defensive type advantage against her?
  • One idea I've heard is she had affection bonuses going on like crazy (i.e. getting more critical hits, recovering from poison, living hits that should have knocked her out), given she loved her partner so much and was on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge (and heck, even in our battle against her simply the feelings from the experiences she has had allow her to basically revive herself to full strength three times). In the lore video where we see the fight, it also looks like she avoided most of the Loyal Three's attacks through sheer speed and agility. It's also possible she was at a substantially higher level than the Loyal Three were at the time. We are also told that she was badly injured by the end of the battle.
  • If there is a move that Ogerpon could use to beat the Loyal Three, it probably isn't a STAB Grass-type move like Ivy Curgel. Instead, it could be Retaliate, a Normal-type move that deals more damage when its ally (for this case, its human companion) previously fell.

• There are Alolan Exeggutors in the Blueberry Academy terrarium's coastal biome, implying that one can evolve an Exeggcute to an Alolan Exeggutor in that biome. Yet exposing an Exeggcute to a leaf stone in the coastal biome just gets you a common Kantonian Exeggutor. Where are those Alolan Exeggutor's coming from?
  • They certainly could have justified allowing regional evolutions to happen if you bring them there. A teacher outright says that the environment in the Coastal Biome is tailored to allow for Alolan forms to occur. If there is a in-universe explanation, perhaps it is that any Exeggcute you catch simply hasn't lived in the biome long enough to have absorbed the levels of sunlight needed to become Alolan Exeggutor. A bit of programming could have even accounted for that, maybe making you keep it outside of its ball in the biome for a certain amount of time, but perhaps they just didn't want to program that in when you can just catch infinite Alolan Exeggutor anyway.

• How did Sada/Turo find out about Terapagos, especially its name? Based on our interaction with Arven post-"The Way Home", the professor's copy of Scarlet/Violet book, like all other copies such as the one found in the academy's library, has a smudged last page that only shows how Stellar Form Terapagos looks like (not that anyone knows what it is until Indigo Disk) but not its name, which is written only in Heath's original manuscript that is implied to have remained in Heath's estate given that Briar, his descendant, is the current owner, implying that the manuscript never left the family. Or could Heath's estate possibly be one of the backers mentioned in the professor's journal in the research stations, and thus maybe one of them (for example, Briar's parent) showed the original manuscript that shows Terapagos' name?
  • Recall that there is a note in the underdepths about Sada/Turo receiving a white book in the past, fairly early in their research on Area Zero. This is in reference to the meeting between them and the player character in Kitakami (though not necessarily that exact meeting, as it may have been with a player character from another timeline). Said white book is Briar's book recounting the battle with Terapagos and such. Thus, Sada/Turo learned the name from Briar.
  • The mention about Briar's book opens another possibility. Recall that Briar mentions that Geeta reviewed her manuscript and requested that Briar omit some information prior to publishing. This likely means that Geeta's long-past predecessor, the Naranja/Uva Academy director who sponsored Heath's expedition, might have done something similar, which means that while the publicly-available copies of the Scarlet/Violet book have that botched last page likely caused by this censoring, said director probably had a copy of the full transcript of Heath's original writing that mentioned Terapagos' name. Then, 10 years prior to the start of the game, the academy once again sponsored an expedition to Area Zero, this time headed by Sada/Turo, and the academy director, either Harrington or his predecessor, shared the copy of Heath's original manuscript, which is how Sada/Turo found out about Terapagos' name.

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