Ynez Hollock's Deadly Game is a crossover of a Pokémon X and Y Nuzlocke and Your Turn to Die set in the same universe as SWAP Ensemble and Behind Closed Doors, taking place five years after the former and ten years before the latter. The player character is a twisted woman named Ynez "Nezzie" Hollock who sees other people as Pokémon and forces them to go through deadly trials. The rules are the same as that of a basic Nuzlocke, with some special ''Your Turn To Die'' rules:
- Starting in the second gym, three Pokémon will be assigned special roles that are randomly generated under spoiler tags.
- The Keymaster must lead and must not die, or else it's game over.
- The Sage must switch in if the Keymaster is in danger. In practice, the Sage is the only one who switches in if the Keymaster is active for simplicity's sake.
- The Sacrifice will expire with one other Pokémon unless it faints. In that case, everyone else except it and the next switch-in will expire.
This webcomic was created by Phily K. Illagan (a.k.a. JazzLover5972 or kyanako5972) in early 2022. It was originally posted on r/nuzlocke but was also released on Tumblr from January 18 to March 5 and on DeviantArt from January 17 to April 3. It can be found here
and here.
A sequel, Jack Hollock's Super Easy Adventure, was released in April of 2023. It is a more straightforward Nuzlocke of Pokemon X in which Nezzie's younger brother, Jack, has to follow after her to avenge a woman she killed before the deadly game. A third installment, a Wonderlocke of Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, has been announced but has no planned release date other than after the conclusion of SWAP Ensemble.
Ynez Hollock's Deadly Game provides examples of:
- Action Survivor: Kenna the Bibarel primarily serves as an HM slave but is one of the three confirmed survivors.
- After-Action Report: The nature of the Nuzlocke requires the whole game to have been played before being spun into a story.
- Ambiguous Ending: The fates of the non-participants of the fifth gym. Only Locke, Tanner, and Kenna are confirmed to have escaped.
- Antagonist in Mourning: Nezzie cries over Sophie's death because she admired her.
- Antagonist Title: Ynez Hollock, the title character, is the organizer of the deadly game who effectively kidnapped all of the participants.
- Anyone Can Die: In addition to the standard Nuzlocke rules, the Main Game rules mean that even the strongest characters can die due to no fault of their own.
- Big Damn Reunion: After Donovan the Lucario survives the banquet and escapes, he regroups with the active team. Everyone's overjoyed to see him.
- The Big Guy: Locke the Lapras is the largest of the cast, and he can pack a huge punch due to his training in the Lumiose Badlands.
- Bookends: The Sacrifice clause is invoked at the first and last main game.
- Butt-Monkey:
- All the appearances of Jackie the Froakie/Frogadier/Greninja are of him being overshadowed by Zuri the Azurill/Azumarill or taking a painful hit from a wild Pokemon.
- Saffie the Sneasel is doomed to ridicule the moment she's revealed to have an attack-lowering nature. First, she's banished to Lumiose Badlands, which is a terrible climate for an ice weasel, to raise her attack stat. Then Jack spends at least twenty minutes deciding whether to let her die to Drasna's Dragalge to give Zuri a free switch in. Finally, when the death curse is lifted, she gets knocked out by Nezzie's Altaria.
- C-List Fodder: Several unimportant members participate in the gym challenge to increase the survival odds of the more important ones.
- Counter-Attack: The cause of Sophie the Pidgeot's death, courtesy of a Wobbuffet surviving her attack and using Counter to deal back double damage.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Zuri the Azumarill is tanky and overleveled, so she is able to make quick work of most of her enemies. This includes Xerosic's Malamar and Diantha's Gardevoir, who both caused casualties in Nezzie's team.
- Deadly Euphemism: At least two Pokémon are set to expire in every gym, which is implied to equate to death. It turns out they are locked in Lysandre's lab, but everyone who wasn't already dead is executed when Donovan escapes.
- Deadly Game: The gyms serve as the Main Games of Your Turn To Die. The participants have to conquer the gyms and then lose at least two of their number at the end.
- Death Montage: The main story highlights the deaths and expiration, with other moments serving as context.
- Dice Roll Death: Sophie survived one Wobbuffet that used Mirror Coat, only to die to another that used Counter.
- Downer Ending: Everything past the fifth gym was Donovan's dying dream.
- Dying Dream: Donovan dreams that he escaped with Locke, Kenna, Tanner, and Calvin when he actually died in the fifth gym.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Ynez kidnaps people lost in the Forest Basement to play her Deadly Game, but she does her best to make sure everyone gets to the game in one piece.
- Face Death with Dignity: Charlie the Chesnaught's reaction to his impending death is relief over finally being reunited with Sophie.
- Furry Lens: All of the characters are human, but they're portrayed as Pokemon for the main part of the comic.
- Girly Bruiser: Sophie is a physical attacker with a frilly top and long, brightly colored hair.
- Group Hug: After Donovan and Mitchell have a Man Hug, the rest of the team joins in to celebrate the former's return.
- Hesitant Sacrifice: When Mitchell asks Ynez if Donovan is the sacrifice in Valerie's gym, she asks him if he's willing to die if he is. Nobody is willing to die for Donovan.
- Immediate Self-Contradiction: Jack says that if he gets a Sneasel, he will love it forever even if its IVs and nature are trash. He makes a big frown as soon as he sees that Saffie has an attack-lowering nature and dumps her in Lumiose Badlands to train.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Mitchell the Charizard is impaled through the torso and both wings by an Aerodactyl's Stone Edge.
- Improbable Infant Survival: Timmy the Skitty is the youngest of the cast and survives an otherwise fatal blow due to being the sacrifice. Subverted in the end, when he dies along with the rest of the party in the fifth gym.
- Ironic Last Words: When facing a second Wobbuffet, Sophie tells the group, "Don't worry, I've got this." The Wobbuffet counters and kills her.
- Lightning Bruiser: Locke's training in the Lumiose Badlands makes him a lot faster and stronger than the typically defensive Lapras.
- Man Hug: Donovan and Mitchell share a hug after the former escapes the Banquet.
- Meaningful Background Event: As Jack enters Lumiose City, the final events of Nezzie's story are visible but out of focus. Locke is fleeing with Kenna and Tanner, while Mitchel is fighting off Nezzie.
- One-Hit Kill: Sophie dies to a Wobbuffet's Counter. Mitchell dies to an Aerodactyl's Stone Edge because he has a crippling weakness to it.
- Please, Don't Leave Me: After being revealed as the Sacrifice, Joy Hawkins the Staraptor begs the team not to leave her to die.
- Prequel: Takes place ten years prior to the mechanically similar Behind Closed Doors. Gustavo speculates that the latter was a Copycat Crime of the former.
- Punny Name: Ynez Hollock is named to sound like "Y Nuzlocke".
- Reincarnation: Joy Hawkins is the direct reincarnation of Joy Maneje of The Eighth Grade Wars.
- Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: Alina the Kecleon takes being the Sacrifice very poorly because she remembers that she was the Keymaster in the real timeline. What a cruel twist of fate.
- Running Gag: Zuri tends to jump in front of Jackie in group shots.
- Sadistic Choice: Take all of the strongest members to the Main Game and risk losing one of them as the Sacrifice, or only take a few and risk a bloodbath.
- The Scream: Jack lets out a scream that takes up an entire panel after Adina the Drifblim switches out and gets hit by an Absol's pursuit.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Tanner the Sableye books it out of Reflection Cave as soon as Sophie dies, even though his complete immunity to Wobbuffet puts him in the best position to avenge her. The rest of the party follows suit, though Mitchell and Joy have to drag Charlie out.
- Senseless Sacrifice: Karelis the Granbull buys enough time for Joy to get patched up before attacking Xerosic's Malamar. Unfortunately, Joy fails to defeat the Malamar and both of them end up dead.
- Shout-Out: Jack calls Zuri "M ---/'/'4" when he sends her out against Xerosic's Malamar, referencing the Azumarill from Twitch Plays Pokémon Emerald.
- Sibling Rivalry: As siblings, Nezzie functions as the rival to Jack's player character. She acts snide with him at the start and is always a step ahead of him until her team wipes out at the Lumiose gym. In turn, Jack shows no sympathy for the deaths in Nezzie's team and calls her out on the cruel game.
- Sole Survivor: Donovan is the only one of the Dummies to make it out alive. Subverted when it turns out to be part of his dying dream.
- Surprisingly Sudden Death: Sophie is suddenly killed by a wild Wobbuffet that used Counter. Mitchell is killed by a Sky Trainer's Aerodactyl that used Stone Edge.
- Take Up My Sword: After Charlie expires as the sacrifice, Donovan becomes the leader of the team. Mitchell takes the spot when Donovan becomes the sacrifice, but Donovan takes it back after Mitchell dies.
- Total Party Kill: The non-participants are left to scatter after the team wipes out in the fifth gym.
- The 'Verse: Shares a universe with The Eighth Grade Wars, SWAP Ensemble, and Behind Closed Doors.
- Villain Respect: Nezzie admired Sophie for having spirit and is genuinely upset that she is dead.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Norelle the Ursaring, Killienne the Amoonguss, and Julia the Gothitelle participate exclusively in the final gym and are executed because the Sacrifice, Henniah the Delibird, had fainted. Since this is after the Banquet, they miss out on the minor development that the other Dummies got.
