So, what's this all about?

This is a Pokémon RP set in the universe of the main series of games (Red & Blue, Gold & Silver, etc.), which follows the adventures of a group of trainers and their Pokémon as they travel the world doing typical trainer things, such as fighting gyms, competing in the Pokémon League, and perhaps a little bit of helping the helpless. Pretty typical so far.

However, this RP has one potentially huge difference to most other Pokémon R Ps:

It is just as much about your Pokémon as it is your trainer.

Huh?!

Perhaps an explanation is in order.

I don't know if this is as common as I think it is, but most forms of Pokémon media seem to pay little attention to the Pokémon themselves. The games, for instance, don't appear to have ANY Pokémon characters whatsoever, the anime does a better job, but it does feel as if a lot of Pokémon are rather secondary at times. Pokémon Special (The most popular Pokémon manga) delegates them to the role of "Magical plot devices" and nothing else. The list goes on...

Sure, there are the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon and Poképark games, but not only are they spin-offs, but they take place in entirely different worlds to the main series, and thus don't focus on Pokémon owned by trainers.

This is also prevalent in most fan-works. A lot of Pokémon R Ps I've seen seem to pay more attention to the trainers then the Pokémon themselves. On most sign-up forms, you'd be lucky to get even a single line describing their personality. A truly sorry state of affairs. Granted, their are Pokémon Mystery Dungeon and Wild Pokémon R Ps, but they suffer from the same problems as their source material.

For a series that claims to be entirely about camaraderie, there's a disturbingly small amount in the actual games.

Get to the point already!

Alright, alight! Sheesh...

This RP could best be described as a cross between the main series of games and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon. While it is set in the world of trainers and Pokémon, it differs in that a lot - if not the vast majority - of humans can understand Pokémon in some way. Be it via learning Monese (the language all Pokémon speak) in school, picking it up via spending a lot of time with their own Pokémon, or using a Psychic type or some other means to translate for them.

Together as trainers and Pokémon, we shall explore the world, fighting gym leaders and earning badges, helping people out with their problems...and maybe eventually challenging the Pokémon league...

...But if you don't want to do it? That's okay! There's more to Pokémon than training and battling! You could work on being a top coordinator, or a Pokéthlete, or even an actor at the Pokéstar studios, amongst so many other things.

Ooh, this sounds interesting!

Glad you think so. If you would be interested in getting an RP like this going, post here, and we'll see what we can do. I'll be posting some more in-depth rules later on, but feel free to ask any questions if you're curious.

Ooh, interested~

Should I post bio here?

I'm certainly interested.

Well, I was going to wait before asking for detailed bios so I could explain what sort of information would be expected from them, but I don't see any reason why you couldn't post a preliminary one for the time being.

Nah, I'll wait. :3

Hello, Roxas~

I'm interested as well~

Sooo, just to be clear: People here sign up as either human or Pokemon, or one signs up as a trainer/coordinator/whatever, and roleplays both the human and his mons?

I'm definitely interested.

Sign up as a human, roleplay as them and their mons.

That's quite worrysome. Roleplaying more than one character, especially if said character are very tight-knit in the narrative, is a rather masturbatory affair.

I'm looking for a nice game, so I'm willing to give this a try ether way.

That's...interesting use of language. ._.

Don't worry, it works for another RP I'm in - which happens to also be where Luke was from originally. It worked there, I'm sure it'll work here.

Eh, I'm in. I still got a character that I made for a different Pokemon RP game (though that was more of an actual tabletop game, rather than freeform RPG). I couldn't actually participate in the particular game because reasons, but I would like to give him a spin anyway.

Well... I don't want to run a full team because I tend to have problems properly characterising more than two characters. However, if I can just play a Pokemon (a la the way some people play Servants in Fate/oath alternative or Fate/genesis), I'd be delighted to join, and if worse comes to worse, I can throw a trainer/coordinator/whatever up as well.
That's all contingent on the RP not being in script format like the various We are Our X Avatars ones, because I can't really RP that way.

Being a Pokémon by itself is perfectly fine. Even though I'm going to be using a trainer myself, he's really only going to be there so I can justify having six mons doing trainer stuff, really.

Also, whether you use Script or Paragraph format is up to the individual player. You can use whichever one you find easiest to write with. Again, I myself will be using script format because I stink at writing paragraphs.

edited 15th Sep '12 2:27:00 PM by Luke924

Sounds interesting...

I know plenty'a people have already expressed their interest, but I think I'll throw my hat into the ring here. Always up for a Pokemon RP.

Alright, I've had a think about it, and I've decided on the rules and regulations for this RP. So without further ado...

Posting Guidelines - What you should and shouldn't do.

Script or Paragraphs?

Either. While most of us will probably be using script format (because it's easier), if you feel like you can write in

paragraphs and everything, by all means, feel free.

What sort of characters can I be?

Either humans or Pokémon. Nothing else. If you want to be an alien or a vampire or a werewolf, then you may want to find another RP, because this isn't the place for that. Furthermore, you can't be one of those Pokémorph things I keep hearing about, or any sort of Pokémon-human hybrid.

What sort of Pokémon can I have?

Generally, any kind of Pokémon that isn't legendary. Shines are okay, but you probably shouldn't have more than one or two. Those things are rare, you know.

Can I be a legendary Pokémon at all?

I'm going to have to say "no" for this one at the moment. My intention for this RP is for us to have to deal with the more "everyday" problems trainers might face, and legendaries are not something you come across regularly. I might change this rule as time goes by, but for now, they're forbidden, I'm afraid.

What about Glitch Pokémon like Missingno' or 'M?

Most interpretations of Glitch Pokémon make them seem like something out of a cosmic horror story. Since Pokémon isn't a cosmic horror story, I'm going to say no to any and all Glitch Pokémon, sorry.

How about Delta Pokémon?

This one is iffy. I think Delta Pokémon are a pretty cool concept, but they're open to abuse. What's to stop somebody from catching a Delta Ghost/Dark Tyranitar and becoming unstoppable? I'd like to say yes for this one, and perhaps I will once we've done a few story arcs. But it's a firm "no" for now.

How do battles work?

Battles work like in the anime. Therefore, you're not tied down by the four move limit of the turn based combat of the games. Take advantage of this to make you battles as dynamic and exiting as you want! Use the terrain to your advantage! Improvise with your moves to create new strategies! But DON'T use this to invoke anime physics and break the established rules. No "Aiming for the horn" or "Thunder Armour" here!

Can we come up with our own moves?

I want to say yes to this one, but creating moves can be tricky as you have to make sure they're not too overpowered as to make them an "I win" button. It can be done, but like Delta Pokémon, perhaps this is something that we'll look into further down the line once things have been running smoothly for a while.

How about Abilities?

Same as above, but harder to justify as abilities are even harder to balance than moves. Again, we'll see how it goes, but don't hold your breath.

Can my trainer fight in battles using Martial Arts/Weaponry/Aura/Magic?

No, that's what your Pokémon are for.

Alright, now that we've got all the political stuff out of the way, it's time for...

The sign-up form!

Don't worry, this won't hurt a bit. Simply fill in the necessary fields as described and you'll be just fine. No walls of text necessary!

Trainer Sign-up:

Name: [Your Trainer's name.]
Gender: [Your trainer's sex. Male or Female, not "Yes please."]
Age: [How old your trainer is.]
Region of Origin: [Where your trainer actually comes from.]
Personality/Bio: [What your trainer is like, and anything important that's happened to him or her up until now.]

Pokémon Sign-up:

Note: You may have as many Pokémon as you feel you can write for. But keep in mind that you'll only be able to carry six Pokémon on you at any one time. The first six you list will be considered to be in your current party when you start off, and any more after that will be wherever you have chosen to store them. Of course, this doesn't apply if you're playing as a Pokémon without a trainer.

Name: [Your Pokémon's name. If you don't use nicknames, just put their species' name.]
Species: [What species this Pokémon is.]
Gender: [Your Pokémon's sex. Same as with trainers, except that "genderless" is now applicable.]
Personality/Bio: [Again, same as with trainers. What your Pokémon is like, and anything important that may have happened to them.]

Now, I would post my own forms...but they're still a work in progress. I'll have them up when they're ready, but for now, fill out your own and post them.

edited 15th Sep '12 2:56:51 PM by Luke924

Guess I'll get a bio up soon. By the way, which region will we be playing in?

I haven't actually decided on that yet. I was leaning towards Unova as seen in Black and White 2, but...nobody has played them yet. ._.

In fact, the overarching plot as a whole is something that's still up in the air. But we can work that out before we kick things off.

Well, let's see... I know! An Eeveelution duo, if that's acceptable. If not, just the Umbreon.

• Name: Divum.
• Species: Umbreon.
• Gender: female.
• Ability: Synchronize.
• Nature: Quiet.
• Moves Known: (four, ATM, will suffice, I think.)
  • Pursuit
  • Confuse Ray
  • Quick Attack
  • Sand-attack
• Personality: Sleepy and thoughtful. While not on the move, she prefers to lie down and think. She is also quite withdrawn and not easily befriended. She is, however, a steadfast friend and a staunch defender of the weak — once she's roused out of her lethargy, that is.
• Bio: Divum and her brother Koutarou were born to a trainer very enthusiastic about Eevee and its evolutions. They travelled with him for quite a long time, but when he settled down as a weaver in a small village, he released most of his Pokemon. Divum, Koutarou and he parted as friends; the duo travelled far and wide since, sightseeing and, perhaps, looking for another trainer.

• Name: Koutarou.
• Species: Jolteon.
• Gender: male.
• Ability: Volt Absorb.
• Nature: Jolly.
• Moves Known:
  • Thunder Fang
  • Agility
  • Thunder Wave
  • Sand-attack
• Personality: happy, chipper, and energetic. Koutarou will befriend anyone and anything easily enough, and while he prefers the company of his sister Divum or other Electric-types, he isn't too picky — as long as you're not outright evil/annoying, you're more than welcome to hang around.
• Bio: See Divum's entry.

edited 17th Sep '12 5:09:51 PM by desdendelle

Eevees already! I guess it was inevitable really. :P

And the two of them are just fine. Nice to have them on board!

Eevee are huggable.

Expressing my interest.

Might make a Boke and Tsukkomi Routine out of two Pokemon. Won't that be funny...

Oh, and in case I didn't state this already: I will be posting my own bios once they're ready. Don't worry.