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Counting Sheep - A Pokemon Trainer quest

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ReverendSwing said:
It's a bit strange, considering that, Nidorina and Nidoqueen being unable to lay eggs, they have the exact same standing as the Nidorino and Nidoking. Maybe an artefact of them actually being distinct species, as opposed to a severe case of sexual dimorphism.
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Aren't they the same species though? I always figured this was literally just how Pokemon had to show sexual dimorphism in the early games because they couldn't exactly do it any other way. They even gave them similar names and looks etc. This is the first time I've seen them described as actual different species.
 
AzureShogun said:
Aren't they the same species though? I always figured this was literally just how Pokemon had to show sexual dimorphism in the early games because they couldn't exactly do it any other way. They even gave them similar names and looks etc. This is the first time I've seen them described as actual different species.
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See instinctively that's what I would have figured (and it surely was the intention when making Gen 1), but the fact that they never fixed it to make them the same species in the pokedex and a few other details made it feel like I could play it that way. For example, assuming Nidoran are the same species it's the only pokemon whose sexual dimorphism not only leads to different evolved forms, but means that its base form has different stats. They have a slightly different moveset, too, which is also unique.

Is calling them different species a bit of a stretch ? Absolutely, by all means Game Freak just never bothered fixing that early stuff, just like they never bothered fixing Mr. Mime to adjust for the creation of gender. But it was more fun that way, and was vaguely justifiable, so I just went with it.
 
ReverendSwing said:
See instinctively that's what I would have figured (and it surely was the intention when making Gen 1), but the fact that they never fixed it to make them the same species in the pokedex and a few other details made it feel like I could play it that way. For example, assuming Nidoran are the same species it's the only pokemon whose sexual dimorphism not only leads to different evolved forms, but means that its base form has different stats. They have a slightly different moveset, too, which is also unique.

Is calling them different species a bit of a stretch ? Absolutely, by all means Game Freak just never bothered fixing that early stuff, just like they never bothered fixing Mr. Mime to adjust for the creation of gender. But it was more fun that way, and was vaguely justifiable, so I just went with it.
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You just gave me idea for a missus mime and i hate you for it...
 
Right, that pretty much looks like all she wrote so I'll just leave it overnight for any late stragglers and close the vote tomorrow - call it twelve hours from now, so 11:15 BST. Might not be around at that precise moment to officially close it, but anything after that point will be null.
 
Adhoc vote count started by ReverendSwing on Jul 22, 2022 at 6:13 AM, finished with 55 posts and 22 votes.
  • [X][Joan pic vote] number 5
    [X] Plan Show off Marigold
    -[X] Do our normal set up - Electric terrain, Charge, etc. Try and keep moving while doing so
    -[X] Expect Ronnie to close in the distance fast - focus on few Thundershocks when the Pawniard is closer with more power and accuracy
    -[X] Try and keep Marigold in her mobile dodging style rather than turtling up - claws + wool is a bad combination. Exploit Static if it happens, but don't try and force it. Expect Pawniard to keep close and the pressure up.
    -[X] Possibly try and Thundershock the Pawniard at the moment it uses Steel Claw, for a moment of disruption? Or Electric Terrain?
    [X] Plan Counter, No Normal
    -[X] Do our normal set up first - Electric terrain, Charge, etc.
    -[X] Have Marigold exclusively use Thundershock to deal damage the opponent
    -[X] Use her magnetic sense to sense Pawniard's location if/when she turtles up to recognize counter opportunities, just like in her trainings.
    [X][Joan pic vote] number 6
    [X][Joan pic vote] number 2
    [X][Joan pic vote] number 4
    [X][Joan pic vote] number 3
    [X][Joan pic vote] number 1
    [X] Plan Counter, No Normal
    -[X] Do our normal set up first - Electric terrain, Charge, etc.
    -[X] Have Marigold exclusively use Thundershock to deal damage the opponent
    -[X] Use her magnetic sense to sense Pawniard and counter opportunities, just like in her trainings.
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Alright, so it looks like pic number 5 is our winner, and plan Show Off Marigold wins ! No ETA on when the next chapter drops, I'm seeing family for the next couple of weeks so that'll take priority.
 
Just a little heads up - considering you've knocked down so many of the poor things, I figured you'd earned Wingull's dex page, so I wrote it out during a short heat break and added it just now.

Forgot to mention it last time around too, but in case you missed it I added Joan's youth league record on his charsheet a few days ago.

Update plodding along at a very sedate pace, so don't expect anything too fast.
 
Just caught up on this in reader mode and the think the premise is super interesting, not sure how much talk has been had about themes and Pokémon to catch going forward.

But my initial though was looking at going with a group that all live or are found in herds/flocks/groups? Could lead to quite a wide variety of types also fits in with the fact we could potentially take an son/daughter of the named Nidoqueen. Also things like Tauros, Kangaskhan, Pyroar and Lapras that I personally haven't seen used in many Pokémon quests/fics I've seen could potentially be used.
 
There has been lots of talk about it, though I believe said talks ended up stalling until we know more?
 
That's a place to start probably, though I'm not sure we have enough information to make an informed decision.
 
Hex said:
That's a place to start probably, though I'm not sure we have enough information to make an informed decision.
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Well we know our protagonist became a Trainer to explore, is a soft boy archetype and it's a bit of a sore point for him, has no problem wresling friendly but newly met nidokings and nidoqueens, wants to be strong enough to "bend the world around him". His starter is a mareep who isn't a popular starter and her line is more seen as a cute mascott than fearsome.

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Enhanced Senses and its evolutions would work for his explorer focus, even if it's a bit of a generic Trait.
 
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What comes to mind is the phrase "An iron fist in a velvet glove."

While that phrase itself probably doesn't fit the trainer's theme, there could certainly be a trend to have pokemon that are considered cuddly and cute hiding incredible battle prowess.
 
LotusPocus said:
Well we know our protagonist became a Trainer to explore, is a soft boy archetype and it's a bit of a sore point for him, has no problem wresling friendly but newly met nidokings and nidoqueens, wants to be strong enough to "bend the world around him". His starter is a mareep who isn't a popular starter and her line is more seen as a cute mascott than fearsome.
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I had more meant we lack information on themes themselves, and how they fully work. We can theorize but we don't know for sure. We also don't know what opportunities to catch things we might have, which could change plans.

Another good question though would be what pokemon might make good partners for Mareep while keeping a theme.
 
Personally I'm still in favor of some kind of Theme involving community oriented Mon(herds/packs/flocks/etc) though the exact specifics are still up for debate in my eye.

Actually the latest Pokemon Direct gave me an idea for a central theme involving Fidough named "We're not CaveMon" revolving around Pokemon that substitute for some advancement in society.

Pokemon that are used in the modern day for Construction, Electricity, Agriculture, Medicine, or more specific things like Lighthouses (Ampharos), Bread Making (Fidough), "Adult Juice" (Shuckle), etc (I know the list isn't that substantial yet I literally just got the idea).

Though a lot of those Pokemon aren't native to Johto and we're still just learning about Paldean Mon so getting any of them would be a long shot.
 
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Frankly, while we have decent amount of info on themes, they are broad enough that without a second pokemon they can go wildly different directions.

I personally would like a Swablu and a Vulpix, I think they fit a cute/tough theme and are cool pokemon. But you could easily link in another theme entirely and get more pokemon and it would work just as well.
 
So far it seems like we would love to find a Swablu, though the odds of finding one any time soon are low...and would come with complications from the Dragon Clan.

I wonder what we will find next that we might want to catch. Maybe a prankster Cottonee could fit with the fluffy but threatening idea? One of those can completely shut down an enemy after all.
 
Maybe I misunderstood but isn't theme steam more the way we train our pokemon than things like species?
If so, then to conceptualize our theme need to focus on traits. What kind of traits will click with Joan in possible partners? Which traits will attract said partners to join his team? And what kind of traits our training style will create?
I keep using "attract" despite how awkward this word is because it is unlikely Joan will be able to get the funds anytime soon for an egg that will be up to his standards. Also, I assume people would prefer befriending a potential companion.

I just finished binging this great quest and I'm curious what you guys think.
 
unmatchingsocks said:
Maybe I misunderstood but isn't theme steam more the way we train our pokemon than things like species?
If so, then to conceptualize our theme need to focus on traits. What kind of traits will click with Joan in possible partners? Which traits will attract said partners to join his team? And what kind of traits our training style will create?
I keep using "attract" despite how awkward this word is because it is unlikely Joan will be able to get the funds anytime soon for an egg that will be up to his standards. Also, I assume people would prefer befriending a potential companion.

I just finished binging this great quest and I'm curious what you guys think.
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After the talk we had about the bond between trainers and pokemon and how it affects the trainer as well, it seems that aside from any practical concerns about the training itself, the biggest concern about the theme is managing said influences. So essentially there should be some kind of ideal that the trainer wants to cultivate within themselves and then translate that into what kind of pokemon they want to train and how they want to train them.
 
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