Well, I fight the damnable milotic and indeed, glorious difficulty is had! It slaughters my pokemon and I end up stalling it with my cacnea – ingrain + potions or soda each turn, needle arm when I get the chance. I think it’s out of recover (do opponent pokemon even run out of moves, though? Last game I tried that they just kept going.) and try attacking rather than healing yet again, and it knocks out my cacnea and I send in my revived Irin who manages to critical hit it back down to a sliver of health when it recovers yet again, then takes it out. Good job, Irin.

She then effortlessly mangles the bug trainer I come across. Either he and the maze are new, or else this was so boring I forgot it. Okay, so there’s random kecleon on the path, but you can just go around them without even going into the tall grass and going into the tall grass isn’t a big deal anyway.

I run across the bridge and the camera angle shifts and I can see the night sky in the water.

Then an azumarill pops up in that water. At last!

 

Azumarill’s long ears are indespensable sensors. By focusing its hearing, this Pokemon can identify what kids of prey are around, even in rough and fast-running rivers.

Irin’s getting pretty battered, so I have to backtrack.

On my way back down. I realize the watery area is bigger than I realized, and go surfing to find a cave I don’t remember. It’s called scorched earth (and contains the sunny day TM) despite the fact it contains watery areas, and there’s nothing at the bottom so I guess I’ll come back here to fight Groudon maybe?

Cacnea evolves and learns spiky shield, which appears to be a new version of protect that’s better in all ways. It’s not much use in the cave though, as there’s apparently nothing but golbat around.

During the daytime, Cacturne remains unmoving so that it does not lose any moisture to the harsh desert sun. This Pokémon becomes active at night when the temperature drops.

I continue along and run into difficulty with someone else’s cacturne and spiky shield, so yeah, does seem to be pretty good. The trainer then tells me that he can’t catch wild pokemon because they all avoid him, so he has to raise them from eggs. The way he talks makes it sound like he has more pokemon – maybe part of why trainers seem to have so few is that they don’t always take all their pokemon with them? Can’t imagine why, though. Also suggests that actually getting a hatched pokemon like the protagonist of every game does is super rare, and for everyone else it’s either wrestle a wild pokemon down or get an egg.

Onwards onwards… My team is wrecked, and I don’t have anyone who can fly. There aren’t many flying pokemon around, are there?

Oh hey!

All right! shouts the leader of a Team Magma foursome. We are leaving for Mt. Pyre! We are going to obtain that orb before Team Aqua does!

:D my fanfic is real

Shuppet!

 

I make it to Lilycove, where I can heal. Irin is L40, so I swap her for Saurius and head back to finish off the route.

Goldeen’s evolving!

In the autumn, Seaking males can be seen performing courtship dances in riverbeds to woo females. During this season, this Pokémon’s body coloration is at its most beautiful.


Carvanha’s turn. And now that’s evolving.

…whoa, apparently sharpedo don’t have tails. Never realized that. They’re basically the biker version of alomomola.

Nicknamed “the bully of the sea,” Sharpedo is widely feared. Its cruel fangs grow back immediately if they snap off. Just one of these Pokémon can thoroughly tear apart a supertanker.

I do try out surfing on it and yup, it’s different than usual – seems tinier too. I guess I’ve been really overestimating these guys.

Okay, beat the last few people. Also, apparently the giant rock on the side area is something, I think related to the regis probably.

Next time, Mt. Pyre.