Nuzlocke Challenge Standings

I know I seem to be posting a lot about Pokemon recently. And I'm fully aware that 95% of the people reading this are going to judge me instantaneously. The game really is more enjoyable and meaningful to adults who play (I am not going to defend why I love Pokemon...I am NOT going to defend why I love Pokemon...I do not need to defend why I love Pokemon...maybe the more I tell myself these things, the greater the chance they will be true), as it requires strategy , foresight and planning on the part of the player. 


Recently, I have decided to make the game unnecessarily difficult, and have restarted my Platinum game. I am adopting the two main rules of the Nuzlocke Challenge. In case you are lazy like me and don't feel like following that link to the Bulbapedia page (Bulbapedia is the Pokemon everything website and it is amazing), here are the three main rules...

• Any Pokémon that faints is considered dead, and must be released. 
• The player may only catch the first Pokémon encountered in each area, and none else. If the first Pokémon encountered faints or flees, there are no second chances.
• Also it is customary to give all of your Pokemon nicknames, to enhance your bond with them.

Basically, these rules take what is normally a fairly easy game (until the elite four), and turn it into a horrible massacre of death and frustration. It gives the entire game a different mood. If making a Pokemon kills that Pokemon, then think of all of the wild Starlies (plural?), Budews and Bidoofs (okay, nevermind about the Bidoofs. They are only useful as TM whores, so maybe there should be fewer of them.) that you are mindlessly slaughtering! Furthermore, think of all of the other innocent trainers whose quests to be the very best you are halting forever by killing all of their cherished Pokemon!


Okay, ranting aside, this game is hard. My philosophy of how to beat the game is, at this point, to grind incessantly until my Pokemon are super over-leveled for each gym, and hope for the best. I'm going to use this blog as a kind of memoir of the times I spend working my way through the challenge, documenting the Pokemon I catch and the Pokemon I inevitably part with. The Pokemon that die will be represented like this, as they have been released and are no longer within my party or in my boxes.

1. Route 201 (Starter Pokemon): Chimchar, named "Harry," Fire elemental type. His ability is Flash Fire, which gives a boost to fire-type moves. Since I obtained him, he has evolved into a Monferno, who has a Fire and Fighting dual elemental type.
2. Route 202: Shinx, named "Hermione," Electric elemental type. Her ability is Rivalry, meaning that her attack is boosted if her enemy is the same gender, and her attack is diminished if her enemy is the opposite gender. Since her capture, she has evolved into a Luxio, of the same elemental type.
3. Verity Lakefront: Bidoof #1, named "RitaSkeetr," Normal elemental type. Her ability is Simple, which means that any stat change she undergoes is doubled, and she both inflicts and takes quadruple damage when she makes a critical hit. Since her capture, she has evolved into a Bibarel, who has a Normal and Water dual elemental type.
4. Route 203: (I don't remember the place at which the next Pokemon was caught, as he perished before I started this blog. This placement may or may not be correct, but it fits, so there you go. It won't happen again!) Bidoof #2, named "QikQotsQil," Normal elemental type. His ability is Unaware, which ignores any stat changes in the rival, excluding speed. QikQotsQil perished as we were grinding for levels before the Oreburgh gym.
5. Route 204: Starly, named "Ron," Normal and Flying dual elemental type. His ability is Keen Eye, which prevents his accuracy stat from being lessened. Since I caught him, he has evolved into a Staravia, of the same elemental type. His ability changed to Intimidate, which cuts the attack stat of his opponent.
6. Oreburgh Gate: Zubat, named "Filch," Poison and Flying dual elemental type. His ability is Inner Focus, which prevents him from flinching.  Since his capture, Filch has evolved into a Golbat, and at level 23 he evolved into a Crobat!
7. Oreburgh Mine: Geodude, named "Fred," Rock and Ground dual elemental type. His ability is Rock Head, which prevents him from taking recoil damage from moves like Double-Edge. 
8. Route 207: Machop, named "Seamus," who is a Fighting elemental type. His ability is Guts, which raises his attack stat by 50% when he is inflicted with the status ailments Burn, Paralysis or Poison. 
9. Ravaged Path: Psyduck, named "Crabbe," who is a Water elemental type. His ability is Cloud Nine, which eliminates the effects of weather. Since his capture, I have renamed him "Neville."
10. Route 205: Buizel, named "Ginny," who is a Water elemental type. Her ability is Swift Swim, which boosts her speed in rain.
11. Eterna Forest: Budew, named "Luna," who is a Grass and Poison dual elemental type. Her ability is Poison Point, which may cause foes to be poisoned if they come in physical contact with her. 
12. Old Chateau: Ghastly, named "BloodyBarn" (there weren't enough spaces for me to write Baron...sadness...so please refrain from calling him a wounded storage unit for livestock!), who is a Poison and Ghost dual elemental type. ALSO HE HAS A MODEST NATURE!!! I'M SO EXCITED--THAT'S THE BEST POSSIBLE NATURE FOR A GENGAR :) Anyway, his ability is Levitate, meaning he's immune to all Ground-type moves.
13. ...Old Chateau...Event Pokemon: Rotom, named "NrlyHdlsNk", an Electric and Ghost dual elemental type. Its ability is also Levitate, giving it immunity to all ground type moves. Also he's technically genderless. (P.S. I know I really shouldn't have caught two in this area, but I'd never seen a Rotom and came across it without knowing it was present. You can only catch him on Monday nights, so you can imagine my surprise when I came across a Pokemon that I'd never seen before...so I slipped up and caught it. I won't do it again, I promise!

And here are the teams that got me through my battles...

• Oreburgh Gym, Roark and the Coal Badge: Harry, Ron, Hermione, RitaSkeetr, Seamus and Fred.
• Eterna Gym, Gardenia and the Forest Badge: Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Filch. 

...To be continued! 






P.S.
I've stopped doing this challenge. I'm saving all of my good Pokemon and starting over, because the game just wasn't very fun anymore. Sad day!  But I commend anyone who has actually completed this challenge. Even in the short time that I participated, I realized how insane the challenge is, and if anyone has beaten the game while following the rules of the Nuzlocke...well...congrats. You are better than me!