[X] Nincada, the Trainee Pokémon
- [X] Nickname: Molt
Not hugely tied to the name (again), but I wanted something both appropriate to it's nature (literally being a bug that molts), but also to symbolize that Blake is sorta-kinda doing the same thing, trying to become something else. Shedding her old skin for something new, in a sense.
All I'm going to say is that by the first time everyone gets a new Edge, all the girls will have one form or another of regional gimmick. If I'm extremely obvious about how that's going to work, that's on me.
Amazing, perhaps the first time that the addition of 12-year-old Pokemon Journeys resulted in less parental abuse, as even an unguided Gigantamax pokemon isn't a Grimm trying its hardest to actuallymurder you.
Amazing, perhaps the first time that the addition of 12-year-old Pokemon Journeys resulted in less parental abuse, as even an unguided Gigantamax pokemon isn't a Grimm trying its hardest to actuallymurder you.
This is the first choice I'm having trouble with. If Nincada had Compound Eyes it would be over just as fast as the other two, because I think that Speed Boost Ninjask is way more fitting then Torrent Greninja thematically, and I'm going to assume that you can't change the Ability of the pokemon aha. That said even without Speed Boost Ninjask it becomes tempting as Shedinja is an obvious bonus, 2 for the price of 1, and Shedinja makes a really good thematic parallel to Blake's Semblance. Also even if it's unideal, Infiltrator Ninjask is also pretty good thematically.
Also I like how she finds it after she leaves the Fang. Something Something road to recovery or something.
tl;dr
-Shedinja is like Blakes Semblance
-Ninjask would've been better with Speed Boost
-But is still nice thematically with Infiltrator
-Finding it post-fang is fun
[X] Nincada, the Trainee Pokémon
I have no opinion on the Nickname right now, both options are pretty eh.
Yeah haha I definitely thought about the abilities and didn't just pick the one on a Nincada that's easier to translate into a system that combines accuracy and damage.
(Protean Greninja didn't happen because I only do HAs when they fit a story. Or are REALLY funny.)
Huh, so that's how Weiss' test transpired in this version. Now I'm imagining if Rookidee had won instead of Roselia.
"Weiss, why are you and Aurora staring suspiciously at my partner?"
"...No reason."
[X] Nincada, the Trainee Pokémon
- [X] Nickname: Shroud
I'm voting like this with the assumption that it'll result in a Shedinja as well as Ninjask
With the power of hindsight, I have just realized we could have kind of kept the weapon name theme going with Weiss by just shortening Myrtenaster to "Aster" which is an actual name and a flower. The flower isn't exactly winter themed but whatever. Thank you all for coming to my Ted Talk.
[X] Nincada, the Trainee Pokémon
- [X] Nickname: Shroud
You were a Knight-class automaton.
You were standing guard aboard a Schnee Co.-owned train, northbound toward Vale City, currently passing through Forever Fall, one of Remnant's largest natural forests.
You were guarding a large shipment of Tera Crystals, a vital component of Vale's economy whose extraction and distribution was largely monopolized by Schnee Co., thanks to successful leveraged buyouts and the adaptation of capital and techniques originally meant for extracting Dynamax Energy from the Schnees' native Atlas.
You were purchased as surplus from the Altesian Armed Forces because while humans and Pokémon could be trusted to mine Tera Crystals, they apparently could not be trusted to guard the finished product in transit.
You had no opinion on this, because you were a robot.
A flash of movement from the shadows tripped your sensors as the Tera-powered energy weapon at your side was neatly lifted from its place and, in one smooth motion, pressed under the metallic facsimile of a "face" that you were built with, and its trigger pulled, sending a lance of Normal-type energy piercing through your central processing unit and terminating your functions.
You had no opinion on this, because you were now dead.
"Clear," you said over the radio, even as you softly lowered the fried robot, and its now-useless sidearm, to the floor of the train car. Getting aboard a moving train undetected would normally be impossible, but your training and Adam's planning had served you well. A chittering beside you reminded you that you have another partner to thank, and you nod to the mercenary little rodent who came with your team from Menagerie. You hadn't exactly bonded with Rattata, but you appreciated each other's skill, in particular the plump little rodent's ability to chew through electronic locks, and you tossed him a berry that was devoured instantly as a reward for him getting you in the door.
>Blake's Professional (Operative)
>Blake possesses a fifth Trainer Attribute, representing skills she's developed as an agent of Team White Fang
>The Operative profession covers stealth, infiltration, breaking and entering, and ambushing intelligent opponents
Speaking of Pokémon chewing through things, the door to the car rearward on the train was quickly rent through by gnashing fangs as your partner joined you from his own, less subtle insertion point. Adam Taurus, masked and cloaked in his near-new Admin uniform, followed on the heels of that...mutt that he brought along for this mission, a heavy case of mission gear in-hand.
"Did you really have to bring a Poochyena?" you asked, while walking silently toward the door to the next car up. Should have been the Tera Crystal storage. In and out neatly.
"He had the skills needed for this op. Did you really want me to bring the bull on a train?" Adam asked, mocking banter creeping into his mission-ready authority. "Besides, he's technically closer to a cat than a dog."
"Don't care."
>Blake's Phobia >-2 to rolls when the source of her phobia (canine Pokémon) are present
>Hyenas are technically felinoid
>She doesn't care
Blake infiltrates the train, supported by Rattata (d8, d6, -2) vs. DC 4: [8+7-2, 4] Critical Success
Adam forces his way onto the train, supported by Poochyena (d10, d6) vs. DC 4: [5, 4] Success
You silently ordered Rattata to disable the lock leading to the next car, which he did with aplomb, letting you and Adam creep forward into what should have been one of the cargo cars.
Should have been.
Instead it was full of a pack of those robots like the one you just dispatched, active, alert, and weapons ready.
You and Adam nod to each other. Just because something wasn't going as planned was no reason to get excited. You and your Pokémon moved to the center of the cramped car while the androids were running through their target assessment protocols (3...2...1...) and leaped into action before they could. Rattata responded to a gestured order and zipped through the air impossibly fast to kick one of the 'Knights' in the faceplate and begin chewing on the exposed wiring of another, knocking the cheap surplus security over before it could even act, despite their nominally Steel-enhanced defenses. Adam lightly dropped his equipment case, and gestured to his sidekick to flank the next robot to cycle up its weapons, and the Poochyena flanked the android while Adam attacked directly, channeling Dark energy and drawing his blade in a single to slice his target in half while it was off-balance trying to adjust to Poochyena.
No one ever programs these things to account for trainers who can invoke the same energies as Pokémon.
The remaining robots opened fire even as their encircling position was rapidly being cut to ribbons, with one of them firing off machine guns meant to be a match for Pokémon at point blank to try and pin Adam. Your senior in the White Fang dodged easily, the cramped quarters and scanner-obscuring flow of his coat serving as cover to absorb bullets as he never stopped moving long enough for the machine to draw a bead. You, Rattata, and Poochyena similarly scattered among the miscellaneous spare parts and charging stations in the security car, although the small rat took an unlucky hit from one of the remaining robots' bladed arms.
Atlesian Knight x4 initiated a battle!
Terrain: Train Car (restricted movement, cover)
Weather: Clear (no Move effects)
Blake and Adam moved back to back
Atlesian Knights surrounded Blake, Adam, and their Pokémon
Rattata used Quick Attack (d6, d6) vs. Toughness 4: [4, 6+2, -4] Hit It's not very effective....
Atlesian Knight A destroyed!
Adam used Martial Arts [Dark] (d8, d6) vs. Toughness 4: [2, 5] Hit
Atlesian Knight B destroyed!
Atlesian Knight C used Slash (d4, d4) vs. Rattata's Toughness 4: [1, 4+2] Hit
Atlesian Knight D used Barrage (d4, d4) vs. Adam's Toughness 6: [1, 3] Miss
That doesn't stop Rattata from ducking through the cramped quarters and making another prodigious leap to tear out the vulnerable hydraulics on a Knight's "neck" before it can follow through and strike the rodent again. Adam, meanwhile, finishes dismembering the remaining android, one slash of his weapon removing the Knight's hands, and another separating its head and CPU from the rest of the body, then a final fluid motion sheathing the sword.
Terrain: Train Car (restricted movement, cover)
Weather: Clear (no Move effects)
Blake and Adam weave in and out of cover
Atlesian Knights cannot move in the restricted quarters
Rattata used Bite (d6, d6) vs. Toughness 4: [2, 6+1, -2] Hit Atlesian Knight C destroyed!
Adam used Martial Arts [Dark] (d8, d6) vs. Toughness 4: [7, 1] Hit
Atlesian Knight B destroyed!
Blake and Adam won the battle!
It turns out that the next car was what you had been looking for, you and Adam entering a treasure trove of Tera Crystals neatly packed in blast-proof cases, the light of their miraculous energy sealed tightly for transport. Schnee Co. must have added an extra security car at the station last minute.
"You secure the goods," Adam ordered. And then, almost flippantly, he added, "I'll set the charges."
"...what charges?" you asked, stupidly. "This was a requisition."
"Plans changed. We're killing two birds with one Rock. Sending a message while we're here."
"What about the crew? The Pokémon? The civilians at the end of the line?"
"What about them?"
You didn't want to think about those words. Didn't want to address them. Didn't want to see the pattern that started long before Adam made Admin. Before even the start of his meteoric rise in the Team. Did the boss give him these orders, or......
Thankfully, your need to respond to that was interrupted by something trying to kill you - another undocumented addition to the security detail. A flash of Steel-type energy ripped off the roof of the car you were in, and you, Adam, and your Pokémon reflexively fled forward before the assailant followed up and overloaded any of the Tera Crystals. Once you'd sprinted out onto the next car, a flatbed, you saw your attacker turning to follow you - a huge arachnoid robot, bristling with machine guns and Tera-charged weapons.
"Keep it pinned, I'll take care of it in a second!" Adam ordered, sprinting further along the car. You just rolled your eyes. He was going to do something flashy and idiotic.
That said, you realized that "flashy" might be called for here, checking your left wrist to ensure your Normalium-Z is properly braced into the Z-ring on your wrist. You nodded to Rattata. You were both Menagerie natives, you knew the deal. Taking the time to move in close while the huge robot clumsily clambered down to your level to engage with its pointy limbs, you stood behind your Pokémon and the pair of you made the ritual motions to invoke the Z-Crystal's power - arms braced, arms to the size, then the symbolic "Z" in two parts, imparting Rattata with the power of deities that predated history. Just as the machine began lining up its guns again, Rattata leaped forward and crashed into it with exponentially increased power, striking the machine off-balance.
Still, it was a huge robot made of metal. It's not very effective, indeed. You did have time to get under cover from the incoming barrage of energy, but Adam's Poochyena wasn't so...no, wait. He did this on purpose, you realize, letting the (ugh) dog take a minor attack on the chin to retaliate even harder with Assurance, the spite-based Dark energy lashing back into the robot and doing nearly as much damage as your trump card had...but with the robot still clinging stubbornly to the surface of the train, pinning you between it and the next, locked, railcar.
Atlesian Spider Droid initiated a battle!
Terrain: Flatbed Car (restricted movement, cover)
Weather: Clear (no Move effects)
Adam delayed his action
Blake engaged Atlesian Spider Droid
Atlesian Spider Droid climbed down to the flatbed
Blake used a Mastery to initiate a Z-Move
Rattata used Breakneck Blitz (d12, d12) vs. Toughness 5: [9, 11, -4] Hit
It's not very effective...
All terrain effects cleared!
Atlesian Spider Droid took 1 Wound
Atlesian Spider Droid used Barrage (d6, d6) vs. Poochyena's Toughness 4: [1, 4] Hit
Poochyena took 1 Wound
Poochyena used Assurance (d6, d6, +2) vs. Toughness 5: [5+2, 3] Hit
Atlesian Spider Droid took 1 Wound
"Adam, if you're going to do something, do it quick," you shouted, gesturing to your Pokémon to get under cover as the robot drew in Steel-type energy for another shot of its main cannnon.
He just smirked.
What an asshole, you thought.
The robot guardian's Flash Cannon fires down the middle of the train car, scorching but not knocking out Adam's Dark-type partner, but its need to pause to fire apparently gave your 'mentor' the opening he needed to invoke his Darkinium-Z and charge up the now bloodied and angry Poochyena. Adam and the canine (it's definitely not felinoid, you don't care what taxononmy says) mutually mimed out the feral, threatening-animal, definitely ridiculous-looking on a humanoid frame ritual for Black Hole Eclipse, the car behind you becoming engulfed in a massive vortex of Dark-type energy, crushing the body of the spider drone into unrecognizable shards as you kept...running.
Atlesian Spider Droid initiated a battle!
Terrain: Flatbed Car (restricted movement)
Weather: Clear (no Move effects)
Blake and Rattata disengaged
Adam and Poochyena braced themselves
Atlesian Spider Droid used Flash Cannon (d10, d6) vs. Poochyena's Toughness 4: [6, 3] Hit
Poochyena took 1 Wound
Adam used a Mastery to initiate a Z-Move
Poochyena used Black Hole Eclipse (d12, d12) vs. Toughness 5: [12+5, 1] Critical Hit
The terrain became obscured
Atlesian Spider Droid took 2 Wounds
Atlesian Spider Droid was destroyed!
Blake and Adam won the battle!
Blake gained 1 Pokémon EXP
You found yourself one car ahead, standing in front of the locked door to the next train car. You looked back to Adam, to the badly wounded Pokémon he had as a partner on this mission, to the suspicious briefcase in his hands you now realized was full of bombs. You looked back to the little Rattata saboteur you'd brought along without ever getting to know it. You looked at Adam's mask, and you made a decision.
"Goodbye."
You lobbed the rodent's empty Poké ball back, and pulled the emergency release.
>Blake's Wanted
>Adam will remember this
>The White Fang will remember this.
>Blake's Always Broke
>You have a way out in Vale City. That's about all you have.
You wandered for a while. Riding the train all the way in wasn't an option, and you had to go slow without a Pokémon, which meant nearly a week to get from where you were to Vale City.
Maybe you should have recalled that Rattata, explained the situation, but...no. Pokémon believed in the cause as much as faunus did. That was what made you different from them. There was no way some soldier you had no bond with would just accept your decision to...run away.
The Grimm, fortunately, didn't find you. You never were particularly good at hiding yourself from them, compared to things with real eyes, but you were good at dipping in and out of the cleared paths through this forest. Scavenging edible food that wasn't some random Bug-type's prized honey was a problem, though. And what little you managed to scrounge attracted the attention of...
It crawled up from under the ground. It must have been hiding there. Or...hibernating? You remembered reading about Nincadas. You definitely remembered that it was weird for one to be all alone and not part of a cacaphonic swarm. But here was a muddy little bug vaguely waving its claws in your direction. Even without a Pokémon or being able to channel energy, you could probably beat--
--no, there was no reason to fight it. It wasn't a threat. You could have fled and ignored it, but--
Where would it get food, anyway?
You shared some of the less person-edible-looking fruit you had with it and it seemed to agree with the little bug. That was good. Hopefully it would find whatever horrible swarm of bugs it came from...and now it's following you.
Well. You had this coming, feeding a wild Pokémon like that. You guessed you could make sure it got somewhere safe when you got to the city. It would probably want to leave when it found a good spot. Maybe another place to burrow.
It didn't.
And finally,
[X] Yang Xiao Long
Hm? Your name and gender? That's alright, I've got that down, thank you, if there's no changes. I just need you to sign a few insurance waivers. Oh, and which Pokémon you brought with you, of course.
I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about. I make every student sign these forms, and I'm sure you wouldn't want to incriminate yourself in anything by suggesting otherwise.
[ ] Jangmo-o, the Scaly Pokémon
- [ ] Nickname: [Write-in]
Type: Dragon
Ability: Bulletproof
Once upon a time, your father's family belonged to a storied Dragon Clan from far off Mistral. The Xiao Long Clan has long since been scattered to the winds by violence, but some of the old ways are alive, including the knowledge of where to find and tame the strongest of all Pokémon types. You introduced yourself to Jangmo-o under your father's supervision as a young girl, and after the expected ritual combat, they became your partner. While they're surprisingly the level-headed half of your partnership, you value them as family just as much as Dad or your sister.
Yang and Jangmo-o endure. No matter how many times they get knocked down, they get up again, ain't never gonna keep them down. Persistance pays off, or at least pays something. Whether the returns on that tenacity are good or bad, they'll keep moving forward.
[ ] Torchic, the Chick Pokémon
- [ ] Nickname: [Write-in]
Type: Fire
Ability: Blaze
Some people value Torchic for being an energetic but empathetic Pokémon that makes a good partner for young trainers. While that's true for this particular Torchic as well, Yang also values them for their proclivity to run screaming toward an enemy and beat the hell out of them. Fiery, passionate, and above all dedicated to protecting the weak from the crude, Torchic was an obvious partner for Yang when she began her journey and education.
[This blurb closed for repairs after Yang and Torchic burnt it down in the pursuit of truth and justice.]
[ ] Pancham, the Playful Pokémon
- [ ] Nickname: [Write-in]
Type: Fighting
Ability: Iron Fist
You've highly trained yourself in martial arts from a young age, seeking a means to make your way in the world by the skill of your arm alone. You often sparred with your sister in the woods, but realized you may have overdone it one day when young Pokémon started challenging you to prove their own skill. Most of them were pests, but a young Pancham quickly became a favored sparring partner of yours, eventually earning enough mutual respect that he allowed you to put him in a Pokéball in the hopes that you'll help him achieve...something. Neither of you is sure of where your journey is taking you, save that you're going to get there by the fist.
Yang and Pancham are here to perfect the art of combat, fist-to-fist. They each have their own reasons, but they're happy to dance through life until they discover them, and in the meantime, understanding the world through the simple art of punching it very, very hard.
I'll have you know I picked Yang's starters before I started writing this, and the fact that two options are the Pokémon she gets in Boldores and Boomsticks are just proof that I am a genius with good ideas. But also consider: Punchbear.
Also as a mechanical note, rolling d20s for the Max moves in the previous update was an error. The standards in the system I'm using are d12s, and I'm going to keep it that way for Max Moves and similar nonsense (Z-Moves in this update).
