Wow, I've not been on here for a long while. I apologize for that; hopefully the existing content has been amusing in some capacity to someone, somewhere. Well, the new Pokémon games came out today, and I've got to say that I am loving Alpha Sapphire! I've never had a Kyogre before, so I'm really looking forward to it. (Confession time: I never beat Ruby. So...end-game will be a whole new thing.) Because trainer customization wasn't brought back and because they changed May's appearance so that she's lost her neat bandana (replaced with a bow), I've decided to play as the male character, using my standard name for male Pokémon trainers, Remus. So, if you happen across Remus, his Mudkip, Yorick, and Poochyena, Aria, just know that I say hi. The odds of that happening are astronomical; but, still, I say hi.
I'm honestly really pleased that they brought back Contests. Pearl was my first Pokémon game, though I only really got into contests about two years after I first got it. I'm not a feminine person, and the idea of beauty pageants somewhat repulses me, but I liked exploring another aspect of the Pokémon world outside of battling. Additionally, I thought it was funny that the NPCs would enter their Pikachu, Clefairy, Mime Jr....and then there would be a Staraptor sitting there. And, that Staraptor eventually got to winning rather frequently! But, I digress. Now, I can participate in Contests and not have to wear a dress (swapping it out for a rather epic-looking jacket, from what I've seen in the art), and wear a hat that used to be mistaken for my character's hair. I must admit that I was one of the people who believed that...at least, for awhile.
See you in Hoenn!
Friday, November 21, 2014
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Using the GTS to Trade With Yourself Using Only One System
This is...more than slightly off-topic for a competitive Pokémon battling blog, but people have found it to be very helpful in the past, so I'll put it up here as well. This is how you can trade Pokémon with yourself through the GTS in order to have certain Pokémon evolve; be it through trading, like with Machoke, Kadabra, Haunter...or while trading with a held item, like for Seadra, Rhydon, or Clamperl. Obviously, there are more Pokémon that meet these criteria, but I'm not going to list them all off. For the sake of simplicity, I will be using Pokémon X & Y as my example games, though you could theoretically do this with any game that uses the GTS, provided that the GTS function has not been discontinued.
So, what do you need?
- A 3DS
- Two copies of Pokémon X & Y (be it yours and a friend's, or if you're one of those people who, like me, own both X and Y)
- A Pokémon you want to evolve through trading
- An extra "junk" Pokémon
- An Internet connection
- Approximately 10-15 minutes
NOTE: I am calling the "junk" Pokémon "junk" because of the fact that this Pokémon should be of a species that is fairly common in the wild as to prevent trading mishaps. The term is not to be taken to mean that the Pokémon is considered to be junk-like, as no Pokémon is.
Final note: Do NOT upload the Pokémon you are trading for evolution under any circumstance, particularly if it is shiny! You do not want to lose the Pokémon. Always upload the extra Pokémon. This will prevent trading mishaps.
So, onto the real tutorial:
1. Determine which Pokémon you want to evolve and make sure that you are meeting the correct criteria for its evolution.
2. Switch cartridges.
3. Catch (or grab from a Box) your junk Pokémon. You can put them in your party or in a Box; personally, I like keeping the Trapinch I use for this in my party in Pokémon X when I do this, just because I find it a little bit easier to stick the beast I traded for the Trapinch back into the GTS.
4. Upload the junk Pokémon to the GTS and set the trade condition to the unevolved Pokémon you plan to trade from the other game. Set your trading message to "Trading w/ myself," as you have just enough characters to do so, and it may discourage others from trading.
5. Switch cartridges.
6. Go into the GTS and find your other profile; it will likely be the first one under the Pokémon you deposited (search by name). Select it and trade with yourself.
7. Re-upload the junk Pokémon you just got from the trade, with the trade condition being the name of the now-evolved Pokémon (you can use the name entry if it's not already in your Pokédex; just make sure you've spelled it correctly). Set your trading message to "Trading w/ myself" on this game, as well, if you have not already done so.
8. Switch cartridges.
9. Go into the GTS and receive the Pokémon from the other game. It should-- provided that you've done everything correctly-- evolve.
10. Search for your junk Pokémon, and trade the now-evolved Pokémon so that you get the junk Pokémon into the game it is originally from.
11. Switch cartridges.
12. Go into the GTS a final time and receive the now-evolved form of the Pokémon. At this point, your original Pokémon should have evolved, and the junk Pokémon should be back on the game it is originally from.
I know it seems confusing. It takes longer to do the first time you do it; it took me ~15-20 minutes the first time, but less than 10 minutes the second time. I hope this is helpful to someone, and will hopefully go on and post another, more battling-relevant post soon.
So, what do you need?
- A 3DS
- Two copies of Pokémon X & Y (be it yours and a friend's, or if you're one of those people who, like me, own both X and Y)
- A Pokémon you want to evolve through trading
- An extra "junk" Pokémon
- An Internet connection
- Approximately 10-15 minutes
NOTE: I am calling the "junk" Pokémon "junk" because of the fact that this Pokémon should be of a species that is fairly common in the wild as to prevent trading mishaps. The term is not to be taken to mean that the Pokémon is considered to be junk-like, as no Pokémon is.
Final note: Do NOT upload the Pokémon you are trading for evolution under any circumstance, particularly if it is shiny! You do not want to lose the Pokémon. Always upload the extra Pokémon. This will prevent trading mishaps.
So, onto the real tutorial:
1. Determine which Pokémon you want to evolve and make sure that you are meeting the correct criteria for its evolution.
2. Switch cartridges.
3. Catch (or grab from a Box) your junk Pokémon. You can put them in your party or in a Box; personally, I like keeping the Trapinch I use for this in my party in Pokémon X when I do this, just because I find it a little bit easier to stick the beast I traded for the Trapinch back into the GTS.
4. Upload the junk Pokémon to the GTS and set the trade condition to the unevolved Pokémon you plan to trade from the other game. Set your trading message to "Trading w/ myself," as you have just enough characters to do so, and it may discourage others from trading.
5. Switch cartridges.
6. Go into the GTS and find your other profile; it will likely be the first one under the Pokémon you deposited (search by name). Select it and trade with yourself.
7. Re-upload the junk Pokémon you just got from the trade, with the trade condition being the name of the now-evolved Pokémon (you can use the name entry if it's not already in your Pokédex; just make sure you've spelled it correctly). Set your trading message to "Trading w/ myself" on this game, as well, if you have not already done so.
8. Switch cartridges.
9. Go into the GTS and receive the Pokémon from the other game. It should-- provided that you've done everything correctly-- evolve.
10. Search for your junk Pokémon, and trade the now-evolved Pokémon so that you get the junk Pokémon into the game it is originally from.
11. Switch cartridges.
12. Go into the GTS a final time and receive the now-evolved form of the Pokémon. At this point, your original Pokémon should have evolved, and the junk Pokémon should be back on the game it is originally from.
I know it seems confusing. It takes longer to do the first time you do it; it took me ~15-20 minutes the first time, but less than 10 minutes the second time. I hope this is helpful to someone, and will hopefully go on and post another, more battling-relevant post soon.
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Dusk At Sac-Anime?
A slightly off-topic post...
I've been at an anime convention in Sacramento (Sac-Anime) since yesterday evening. So, I won't be posting regularly today or tomorrow (I have my phone and 3DS, but no computer). If I happen to StreetPass tag you, hello! (I've set my Mii to my personal one, and renamed it Dusk.) I'm off to search for Pokémon-related things!
I've been at an anime convention in Sacramento (Sac-Anime) since yesterday evening. So, I won't be posting regularly today or tomorrow (I have my phone and 3DS, but no computer). If I happen to StreetPass tag you, hello! (I've set my Mii to my personal one, and renamed it Dusk.) I'm off to search for Pokémon-related things!
Friday, August 29, 2014
Singin' in the Rain: Lapras
Today, I'll be talking about a Pokémon that can work particularly well on rain-based weather teams...and that Pokémon is Lapras. I considered doing a "Competitive Pokémon of the Week" for this peaceful beast, but I thought that, because I'll be using one on my first-ever rain team, I might as well talk about how Lapras can be used very effectively in that weather condition.
1. Lapras can use Rain Dance, and generally not be too affected by using its first turn in this way.
If you have a rain team, you obviously need rain! Unless you happen to have a Politoed with Drizzle (or are using a Kyogre, in which case everything will end up fainting just because...it's a Kyogre!) you'll need to get the rain started. While a multitude of Pokémon can learn Rain Dance, you'll probably want whatever uses Rain Dance to not take a lot of damage in the first turn. Lapras' Defense and HP stats are hearty enough to where it will probably be just fine even if it needs to set up the rain.
2. Even if it does take a lot of damage in the first turn, Hydration can easily fix that. OR: Even if it does take a lot of damage, Hydration can easily fix that.
Having a Lapras with Hydration and Rest is a wonderful combination. Hydration heals any status conditions Lapras has-- provided that it's raining-- meaning that your Lapras can close their eyes, take a brief nap, and then wake up the next turn with full HP.
3. Lapras has Perish Song, and that is why this is called "Singin' in the Rain."
Lapras' ability to use Perish Song makes it incredibly dangerous as a foe in the rain. Why? Provided that you have another Pokémon Lapras can switch out to, whatever is fighting your Lapras-- even if it's difficult to KO-- can easily be defeated. How?
1. Have a Lapras equipped with Perish Song and another Pokémon equipped with a binding move (or, if you're willing to use eugenics, a Lapras equipped with Whirlpool).
2. Send out the Pokémon with the binding move (or, in Doubles, just use the binding move) and use it.
3. Send out Lapras (or, in Doubles, just use the move) and use Perish Song.
4. Switch out Lapras to another Pokémon.
5. Whatever is trapped in the binding move will faint in three turns provided that it does not become untrapped.
4. It's a Water/Ice type.
This is fun for a whole variety of reasons; mostly that you can down dragons and Grass-types with relative ease before they do serious damage to your team.
Will your Lapras sing in the rain?
1. Lapras can use Rain Dance, and generally not be too affected by using its first turn in this way.
If you have a rain team, you obviously need rain! Unless you happen to have a Politoed with Drizzle (or are using a Kyogre, in which case everything will end up fainting just because...it's a Kyogre!) you'll need to get the rain started. While a multitude of Pokémon can learn Rain Dance, you'll probably want whatever uses Rain Dance to not take a lot of damage in the first turn. Lapras' Defense and HP stats are hearty enough to where it will probably be just fine even if it needs to set up the rain.
2. Even if it does take a lot of damage in the first turn, Hydration can easily fix that. OR: Even if it does take a lot of damage, Hydration can easily fix that.
Having a Lapras with Hydration and Rest is a wonderful combination. Hydration heals any status conditions Lapras has-- provided that it's raining-- meaning that your Lapras can close their eyes, take a brief nap, and then wake up the next turn with full HP.
3. Lapras has Perish Song, and that is why this is called "Singin' in the Rain."
Lapras' ability to use Perish Song makes it incredibly dangerous as a foe in the rain. Why? Provided that you have another Pokémon Lapras can switch out to, whatever is fighting your Lapras-- even if it's difficult to KO-- can easily be defeated. How?
1. Have a Lapras equipped with Perish Song and another Pokémon equipped with a binding move (or, if you're willing to use eugenics, a Lapras equipped with Whirlpool).
2. Send out the Pokémon with the binding move (or, in Doubles, just use the binding move) and use it.
3. Send out Lapras (or, in Doubles, just use the move) and use Perish Song.
4. Switch out Lapras to another Pokémon.
5. Whatever is trapped in the binding move will faint in three turns provided that it does not become untrapped.
4. It's a Water/Ice type.
This is fun for a whole variety of reasons; mostly that you can down dragons and Grass-types with relative ease before they do serious damage to your team.
Will your Lapras sing in the rain?
 |
| (Via thvbh.wordpress.com.) |
Thursday, August 28, 2014
The Bizarre Case of Mega Kangaskhan
Kangaskhan is a Pokémon that was, until relatively recently, forgotten. Its concept was interesting: a Normal-type marsupial with its young "child" in tow, ready to witness its mother participate in battles. Even in Generation I, Kangaskhan was listed as "Under-Used," where it-- for the most part-- remained for its competitive life before falling into "Never-Used" during Generation V. Generation VI has been exceptionally kind to Kangaskhan, perhaps even to a fault. She was given a Mega Evolution with huge offensive capabilities; each move Kangaskhan uses hits twice, because, after five generations of simply observing, Kangaskhan's "child" has come to battle as a rather fearsome opponent.
You might be wondering: why is this so strange? Plenty of Pokémon from Generation I were given massive upgrades with Generation VI, from the introduction of Fairy types to Mega Evolutions which may be less than fair in terms of power boosts.
Don't get me wrong; I've always been fond of Kangaskhan! Ever since I first saw her design at roughly the age of eight or nine, I found her adorable and impressive, even if just in design. Kangaskhan's inclusion of her child in her battling career is unlike any other Pokémon in existence, and it should make sense that an ability like Parental Bond is put into place in order to better harness this potential. So, what's the problem?
Kangaskhan is a member of the Uber tier and banned alongside Mega Blaziken (and occasionally Mega Gengar) in a large percentage of tournaments.
I suppose we were expecting it with Blaziken, as that fiery chicken/martial artist has been a member of the Uber tier since Generation 5 due to possessing Speed Boost. (Even before this, it was fairly powerful.) Gengar gaining the ability to use Dazzling Gleam alongside its collection of Ghost- and Poison-type moves makes it a feasible threat, especially with the boosted power granted by Mega Evolving. Kangaskhan transformed from a Pokémon that was stuck among various other Normal-types in a category the average competitive battler disregarded, into one of the most deadly powerhouses in the Generation 6 metagame overnight. (And it didn't need help from a Ditto!) Parental Bond is Kangaskhan's Speed Boost; and, like Blaziken, it gains this ability as soon as it Mega Evolves. Kangaskhan's child hops out of its pouch and readies itself for combat, copying its mother's moves exactly...and hitting the opponent again. While its attacks have their power decreased by 50%, the fact that Mega Kangaskhan does 150% damage with every attack is frightening enough. Combine this with STAB and/or moves that hit more than once, and the once-forgotten marsupial mother becomes a sweeper capable of downing half a Trainer's team in no time flat.
Is it wonderful? Yes. Is it frightening? Yes. Should it be banned? Yes. Should we start to hate Mega Kangaskhan with a passion? No.
It's true; Mega Kangaskhan is very, very powerful. (It does have an Attack stat of 125!) It can be a particular pain in Doubles, and still a valid tormentor in Singles. The fact that a Pokémon once forgotten by the competitive world can become so powerful so quickly is amazing, and sort of inspiring. Even before it could Mega Evolve, Kangaskhan could still function well in battle. Those who love it dearly can still use it without Mega Evolution, and those who paid it no mind can dabble in the Uber-ranked power of mother and child.
You might be wondering: why is this so strange? Plenty of Pokémon from Generation I were given massive upgrades with Generation VI, from the introduction of Fairy types to Mega Evolutions which may be less than fair in terms of power boosts.
 |
| Kangaskhan in Gen 1 (Yellow). (From http://pokemondb.net/sprites/kangaskhan.) |
Kangaskhan is a member of the Uber tier and banned alongside Mega Blaziken (and occasionally Mega Gengar) in a large percentage of tournaments.
I suppose we were expecting it with Blaziken, as that fiery chicken/martial artist has been a member of the Uber tier since Generation 5 due to possessing Speed Boost. (Even before this, it was fairly powerful.) Gengar gaining the ability to use Dazzling Gleam alongside its collection of Ghost- and Poison-type moves makes it a feasible threat, especially with the boosted power granted by Mega Evolving. Kangaskhan transformed from a Pokémon that was stuck among various other Normal-types in a category the average competitive battler disregarded, into one of the most deadly powerhouses in the Generation 6 metagame overnight. (And it didn't need help from a Ditto!) Parental Bond is Kangaskhan's Speed Boost; and, like Blaziken, it gains this ability as soon as it Mega Evolves. Kangaskhan's child hops out of its pouch and readies itself for combat, copying its mother's moves exactly...and hitting the opponent again. While its attacks have their power decreased by 50%, the fact that Mega Kangaskhan does 150% damage with every attack is frightening enough. Combine this with STAB and/or moves that hit more than once, and the once-forgotten marsupial mother becomes a sweeper capable of downing half a Trainer's team in no time flat.
Is it wonderful? Yes. Is it frightening? Yes. Should it be banned? Yes. Should we start to hate Mega Kangaskhan with a passion? No.
It's true; Mega Kangaskhan is very, very powerful. (It does have an Attack stat of 125!) It can be a particular pain in Doubles, and still a valid tormentor in Singles. The fact that a Pokémon once forgotten by the competitive world can become so powerful so quickly is amazing, and sort of inspiring. Even before it could Mega Evolve, Kangaskhan could still function well in battle. Those who love it dearly can still use it without Mega Evolution, and those who paid it no mind can dabble in the Uber-ranked power of mother and child.
 |
| Battle on, Kangaskhan. Battle on. (From officialnintendomagazine.co.uk.) |
As to my Disappearance and General Updates
I understand that I have become very inactive with this project for the past month. It is not that I have lost interest; far from it. I have simply had too many other things going on, like the injury of a family member and the fact that my school term resumed on the 5th of August. I intend to become active with this blogging project again, and post as soon and often as is acceptable and possible for me. I apologize for my disappearance and will prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Updates Relevant to Scheduling
Hello! This is not relevant to Pokémon, but to myself as a human being...so, if you're looking for the Pokémon content, you won't find it in this particular post. I realized that I had failed to mention that I will be away from the 27th until the 31st of July, as I am taking a mini-vacation with my family (which consists of myself and my parents). I will be taking my 3DS, but will be leaving my laptop at home. So, while I'll be playing Pokémon, I won't be blogging about it.
My school year also starts very early, on the 5th of August. While term begins much earlier than most schools, we have three weeks off for winter break, and begin summer earlier than other schools. It balances out, but there may be an absence of posts around the 5th due to re-acclimating to a school schedule.
I just wanted to broadcast that in case it seems like I've stopped posting for a bit...I'm still here; I'm just a bit busy!
My school year also starts very early, on the 5th of August. While term begins much earlier than most schools, we have three weeks off for winter break, and begin summer earlier than other schools. It balances out, but there may be an absence of posts around the 5th due to re-acclimating to a school schedule.
I just wanted to broadcast that in case it seems like I've stopped posting for a bit...I'm still here; I'm just a bit busy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)