Filthy Casual

Hooray! Arcanine is back! That thing can put in work when you get Flamethrower!

I'm quite busy. I'm afraid I will have to reject the invitation. Thank you though!

Thank you! To respond to your two points: 1) I feel as if shinies aren't as important in this game as they are in the main series, as they have a much higher chance of showing up. Besides, Sarah Palin (Bibarel) can now tell that guy how she can see Russia from her house. 2) A puccho is a type of candy made in Japan. I think English speakers pronounce it as "Puck-O". Still, I've now learned a bit about insults in Greece, lol.

I really like them! They feel like harder versions of the Insurgence gyms, where they stick to themes rather than types. I'm likely going to be sticking with only alternate gyms, as I'm curious to see what themes will be used for each leader.

Dear god, things are getting intense! I'm going to need some party suggestions soon. I have an idea of who I'm going to replace soon, but things are starting to get really intense! The adventure started off with us exploring the Lapis ward. You know the drill. Amaria tries to save the Oshawott but can't, Cain saves it, Oshawott joins the team, then reaching in Cain's pants and evolving into a Dewott by grabbing and eating a rare candy from his pocket... ...wait, what?! I really wish I could do that! That's so cool to see! Also, gross, Cain! After our victory, we decided to take on the PULSE Tangrowth. The battle itself wasn't too hard. Tipsy Bear (Spinda) easily handled the beast with Psybeams (as well as paralysis from Puccho the Pachirisu's Nuzzle). We even got an evolution after the battle! After defeating the creature, we did a bit more exploring, where we found this interesting building. Needless to say, the people here have a surprising amount of character for NPCs! I know I'll be visiting this place a fair amount. Until then, we still had a rematch with Fern! Despite our win, we still had to take on Florinia. We decided to go for alternate mode again, and my god, this fight was brutal! Next time, we are going to be taking on Taka in the Jasper Ward! I'd love to hear suggestions on how to improve my team. I feel as if I'm going to need it soon. Puccho (Pachirisu) is probably getting boxed for Mareep, but only time will tell what happens soon. Current Team

In the garden in Hardcore, it turns out you can use Headbutt on the trees to find a Taillow. I'm not sure if they all have Lucky Eggs, but I'm happy mine did! I may do the alternate battles, as they seem to be a bit harder. I love a good challenge, and I'll definitely need it, too, as I suck at traditional Pokemon games!

In the development blog, Ame mentioned that we may have the opportunity to catch some legendaries in this episode. With that in mind, which legendaries do you think we'll be able to capture? Here are my predictions: Regirock: This one perfectly fits the desert theme. Also, while it's defense is really impressive, it's special defense is not as stellar (good, but not good enough to live attacks from Amaria). Uxie: This one is more of a personal opinion, but out of all the Lake Trio, I feel as if Uxie is the worst. It can put in a decent amount of work on the last few gyms (disregarding Titania), but I don't think it's going to see that much use.

A lot of changes have been made since the last update! First, we found some awesome new Pokemon! Let's meet the new members! That wasn't all, however. We found that Fern robot, and... ...well... ...THIS IS SO COOL! I may use this one day for a gym battle. The fact that we always have the option is really cool! Regardless, we ran into Florinia, who requested our assistance with a PULSE Tangrowth on the loose. The only way to reach it would be to travel through the alley. Unfortunately for us, someone didn't quite think it was such as good idea. The only way we could make it past would be to defeat her in a battle! With our victory, we were allowed passage into the alleyway. There, we caught yet another new team member: Eventually, after making our way through the alley, we stumbled across a group of Scraggy, as well as their leader. It was time to fight! With our victory, we now have access to the Lapis Ward. Next time, we'll be taking on Florinia for our next badge! Current Team

What are you looking to trade?

Honestly, ice seems like a great type for the first gym in a game like this! Easily breakable, but can hit hard if not careful! Her bio is also extremely intriguing. Well done!

It's a fun game so far! I found this bug by walking up on the bookcase:

As I continue through this game, I'm getting even more impressed. First, let me just say that I was not prepared to fight Team Meteor! It really does test your skill level so far, and I really appreciate this game for doing so! Because these grunts were at such a high level, however, we got two more evolutions! It took us a while, but we eventually made it to the most boring character in the game Sirius! I always feel kind of let down when I see Sirius, because I feel as if there could have been so much more done with his character. Still, we were at least able to take on Aster and Eclipse, and... ...the fight was pretty unremarkable. Then again, this is because I had Puccho (Volt Absorb Pachirisu) and Achilles (Marshtomp). The battle was over as soon as it began. After that quick defeat, we went into the gym, ready to challenge Julia. However, as we entered her room, we were pleasantly surprised to discover none other than Johnathan waiting for us! He told us that we could either fight Julia with her normal team, or with her "alternate" team. Curious to see what that meant, we decided to fight her alternate team. Honestly, with the 4v6 battle, I was happy we did! It was a challenging yet fun fight! Before we decided to end this session, we walked back to the grand hall, wanting to see if Johnathan had anything for us. Indeed, he had what is arguably one of the coolest things I have ever seen. YOU CAN BECOME PLAYABLE CHARACTERS! I don't know who's idea this was, but bravo to whoever thought that! That's such a fun idea to implement! They even play completely differently, as they can only use specific Pokemon. Seriously, that's such a cool idea! Regardless, next time, we'll be hunting down more of these characters, as well as attempting to head through the alleyway! Current Team

If you think Drought Vulpix is broken, perhaps Darumaka could work?

I'd also like to change my starter choice from Starly to Nidoran. I'm pretty surprised that they aren't getting too much love, as their stats are overall pretty solid.

Sounds like an interesting concept! I only remember a bit about royalty in fan games I've played (Zeta/Omicron/Insurgence), but in those, they were only alluded to rather than play a main role in the story. To see this play a role is extremely encouraging!

This play through is going to be slightly different. Since this isn't going to be told as if it's a story, I'm going to update this through quick thoughts/reactions. Just keep in mind that I'm a casual player. This means if I am angry at something in this game in particular, it's because I suck rather than something the game did (cough cough FULL MOON cough cough). This is especially true given the fact that this is my very first run through Hardcore mode. With that in mind, let's get started! Before we begin, we've got to pick a name for our hero. As such, here's the name of our character for this run-through. As a casual Pokemon player, there's only one starter I'll ever be thrilled using, of course. You can probably guess from the profile picture, but here he is! After quickly exiting the building, we decided to train Achilles (Mudkip) up for a bit. I've always been used to fighting a scientist as one of our first battles. However, when talking to him... ...well, things got quite a bit more interesting... Needless to say, there's not only a Reborn League, but a "Hardcore League", as well! I'm looking forward to seeing what this league will bring to the table, but until then, this person had a task for us. He even told us that he had an EXP Share. We never got it, but if we can get it early, that would be awesome! In a game like Hardcore where fights are much more difficult, I feel as if the EXP share would almost be a necessity. Regardless, we knew if we were to survive, we would need to catch some more team members! As such, let's meet the new recruits! After we trained up our team, we did a bit more exploring, where we ran into none other than Fern, a person who's obnoxious behavior would even give Jake from Zeta/Omicron a run for his money. It was time for a battle! After our battle, Fern rage quit, claiming he was needed elsewhere. As such, next time, we'll be taking on the first gym! Current Team

You can't just add Fury Cutter Venusaur and ignore that POWERFUL Focus Punch Gengar, lol.

Update! During our hiatus, we challenged the amazing @Paul25 to an online battle! It was really close and fun! After the fight, we decided to do a trade. As such, the first of our Starly's (bred from Corey the Crobat and Starlight the POWERFUL Staraptor) is now gone. However, in exchange, he gave us a new team member! Meet the newest member of the squad... Once again, shoutouts to Paul25 for this amazing new edition to the team!

Since it sounds like E5 is making pretty good progress overall, I'd love to hear who you all have for teams in Spork. Here's my squad I've been using:

Who's up for a battle?