We Are All Pokemon Trainers Discussion

Current update:

1. Team Ozone (Jet)
2. Team Aqua (Every)
3. Team Magma
4. Splinter Aquas That Cloned Kyogre
5. Splinter Magmas That Cloned Groudon
6. Agents of Charon
7. Doppelganger!Nadia and team
8. Youngster Joey
9. Veronica
10. Ghost Fangirl(?)
11. The Greedy Gollet
12. The Shahinne Legion
13. Various J-Team Members
    1. Tracer
    2. Tangent
    3. Rex
    4. 49
    5. Star
    6. Every (but reentered as Aqua Bob)
    7. Umbra
    8. Artesia
    9. Mezzo
    10. Fool
    11. Wolf
    12. Katie
    13. DS

edited 22nd Jan '12 1:48:52 PM by Tangent128

I won't be around tons tomorrow, but I should be here in the evening, and on Sunday, so I can do another one then.

Why is Every listed twice?

Again, DS entered and lost the competition earlier. It's not on there.

He was in, and lost. Then he was reentered as a member of Team Aqua.

He's Bob and a member of Team Aqua?

edited 13th Jan '12 5:47:24 PM by Hobgoblin

Hush, you'll break his cover!

Bob is the member of Team Aqua.

D'uh, my mistake, I was thinking Every.

But he's listed twice.

"2. Team Aqua (Every)"

"6. Every (but reentered as Aqua Bob)"

The note on the second one refers to the first one.

Oh, I see.

To reflect some concerns Luke and Tracer, among others, have had, I have the following request for all thinking about getting into this RP:

Please, avoid any mysterious pasts or weird twists for you trainers for the time being. We've received an over-saturation of them lately, and it's getting annoying. Heck, I'm annoyed and my character is an IMMORTAL. So please, avoid it if possible, and if you insist on a twist idea for your trainer, get it approved here or in the chat first. We honestly prefer being prepared for new developments over being "suprised" or "impressed." Thank you.

edited 14th Jan '12 2:04:22 PM by Umbramatic

I will say, I think the problem is less "weird past" (though really, ordinary-background characters like Every and Rex are some of the funnest) so much as "mysterious past", since, frankly, we have practically seen everything by now. Character interactions/development are where most of the fun comes from, which tend to be limited by the fact that twist!pasts can't tie into established canon.

But to bring up a proposal for chatroom order:

• At various times, we may decide to have an "on-topic" topic.
  • These will be prefixed with "OT:"
    • for example, "OT: Plans between Fortree and Lilycove"
  • These topics should not be changed until discussion is finished
    • thus, these topics should be specific enough that the discussion can be concluded "finished" in a reasonable amount of time (and participants, if a strong clash of opinion is found, should try to establish priorities that allow a sufficient compromise >:| )
• During an "OT:" topic, intentionally changing it prematurely or persisting in going off-topic will result in a kick, if a mod is present
  • relax, kicking just means you need to log back in / refresh. It's a signal, not a punishment from on high
• At times, there will be topics not-strictly-RP-related that are of strong interest to some members anyhow.
  • for instance, general worldbuilding, DS's fanfic, or science lectures
  • these topics will be preceded by "SALON:"
  • these topics are still protected from changing, but do not require everyone in-chat to discuss them.

Current update:

Team Ozone (Jet)

Team Aqua (Every)

Team Magma (Steven)

Splinter Aquas That Cloned Kyogre

Splinter Magmas That Cloned Groudon

Agents of Charon

Doppelganger!Nadia and team

Youngster Joey

Veronica

Ghost Fangirl

The Greedy Gollet

The Shahinne Legion

Various J-Team Members

Tracer

Tangent

Rex

49

Star

Every (but reentered as Aqua Bob)

Umbra

Artesia

Mezzo

Fool

Wolf

Katie

DS

edited 14th Jan '12 7:26:56 PM by Troper49

As an addendum to the whole issue about unusual pasts, character surprises, not discussing your plans with other players and et cetera, one comment that came up in chatroom discussion:

If you see something strange, speak up. Push discussion onwards. Get your stuff cleared with the other players, in particular if it has an important risk of conflicting with canon and interpretation plans!

Due to more talking in the chatroom, I've come to the conclusion that it may be necessary to create a list of things that people can and cannot do in-RP since it would help keep things more coherent.

Reminder from Silent: A lot of things that have been posted in discussion are well...still open for discussion if needed.

So, in light of the issues from the last few posts (and other stuff) I've been working on a guide for new entrants into the RP. It's now complete, and here it is.

So, if you’re reading this, you probably want to join the RP (or have already joined and just like reading stuff, in which case you should probably still examine this), and you want to know how to make a good impression. To paraphrase a quote from the SCP Foundation, showing up as if you’ve been here for the entire time makes us…jumpy. Introduce yourself in the Discussion thread, give us a little info on your character (or don’t if that’s how you roll), and start posting in the thread. We’re an informal RP, yes, but there are some guidelines that need to be followed for everyone to have fun and feel like they’re contributing.

Important Note: More senior members will occasionally be seen bending or breaking these guidelines for purposes of dramatic convenience (Rule of Cool, Rule of Funny, and Rule of Drama). This isn’t a cause for alarm, because they’ve been around for quite a while and know what they’re doing. If you are reading this, you are likely new to the RP, and I’d advise that you wait until you’ve integrated more with the others before taking creative license with the following.

1) This is a Pokémon RP. It is not Final Fantasy, Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, or any other game in which humans fight other humans. It’s fine if the Pokémon aren't the character focus of everything, but the trainers are not and should not be the go-to medium for battle except in places like the Mindscape (where the Pokémon were not present and those involved gained mild reality-warping abilities) or when they're in Pokeform. However, these are the exceptions, not the rule. If your potential character’s general response to an enemy appearing is not “send out your team” you may want to rethink things.

2) While the battle mechanics run loose and flexible in WAAPT, there is such a thing as too much. Can a Gigalith really dodge a Solarbeam? Can a Scyther really pull off a full Swords Dance, Baton Pass to another mon, and leave enough time for that mon to attack as well, all before the opponent can launch a second Flamethrower? Also, while feats of utter awesome can and do happen (as do feats of improvisation, such as using a Brick Break to throw up a chunk of earth as cover), if you have to shout “Aim for the horn!” to justify something, then there is something badly wrong. However, do note that whatever mechanics you choose to battle by, it is only fair to allow the opponent the same chance. If you use Double Team the way it is used in the anime, then it is quite likely that omnidirectional attacks would puncture multiple duplicates. If you use it like it’s used in the games, then Aerial Ace is going to hit regardless of how much you boost evasion.

2a) Keep in mind that it is your opponent and not you who decides what effect your move is going to have on their Pokémon. If you think they’re godmodding the battle, please tell them rather than making an effort to one-up them.

3) Powers. So, in WAAPT it’s established that humans occasionally have supernatural abilities, ranging from the raw power of Fighting-types to the sneaky tricks of Dark-types. There are also the Attributes, relating to various legendaries. Does that mean your character has powers or an Attribute? The answer is “probably not.” While the powers are listed as most to least common, that is a relative measure. Having any psychic/auric/obscuric ability is rare, and being proficient with it beyond parlor tricks (spoonbending, Pokeball-juggling, etc.) is even rarer. Attributes are more common and not as snowflake-y, so if you have plans involving an attribute, it should be good.

3a) Keep in mind, your character doesn’t need to have supernatural ability to be interesting. There are all sorts of skills that normal humans have that can set them apart from the crowd. Try looking for these, instead of jumping right to superpowers.

4) Shipping. DO. NOT. FORCE. IT. It’s happened before, and it was almost painful. Not all characters need to have significant others. It’s cute when it works, yes, but please don’t try to set up your character with every compatible other you meet (yes, this has happened, and yes, it was irritating).

5) Finally, keep in mind that although you are a PC (and as such will be afforded limited plot armor, unlimited dialogue options, and free mobility), you are not the PC. There are twenty-something (possibly thirty-something at this point) other characters in the story, and if you try to be the most awesome of them all it will only end in fights. WAAPT is, at its heart, a spontaneous RP. If you really want powers, or a relationship, don’t jump right in with it all planned out and expect it to go how you want. Let things build up with time, use foreshadowing (really, it’s brilliant), and let the plot flow naturally. Some of the best (and strangest) aspects of the RP were created that way.

5a) Do note that talking over plans for your character/personal plots frequently helps. While surprises can be fun, things that have major potential to directly affect other characters usually need to be discussed, as do things that would potentially cause you to have to reread this essay.

So, now that you’ve (hopefully) read your way through that, welcome to the world of WAAPT! Enjoy your stay!

That's pretty good.

Great job, Every! -high-fives Every-

. . .Someone forced shipping? When? It wasn't me, was it? 'Cause if it was, I apoligize profusly.

-high-fived- ^_^

Nah, it wasn't you.

It was me! I tried too hard to make Revery cano- *brick'd*

Juuuuust kidding~

Pretty much three consecutive new guys were hitting on Star.

Everybody wants Star.

Well, she is a STAR afterall.