[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Little 4x4 Round 4


"Hehe... Hehehehe" ...Oh, whoops, that coy chuckle sounded a little too mischievous it seemed, must be the delight of seeing that wondering in her foe about why her Poochyena was uneffected by that Acid and Kyuu awake again. Rather quickly though, Shiva managed to catch herself again, as that friendly training for Little Cup has turned out very interesting and honestly harder than she might have expected. How splendid, good training. "No, my Poochyena is not holding any item. It's her uniqueness that prevents him from being weakened!"

"Very well done on that Bite Yena, keep it up like that and give it another shot, please. Aim for the shadow again! You, Kyuu... hope you slept well while we battled furthermore! Indeed havin' your own tempo, do you? Now... please show that Oddish how well your psychic powers are."


Orders for this Round:  If Pochyena succeeds his Insight -2 Roll and acts normally, a single Bite on Duskull. As for Kyuu... Let's see how Oddish enjoys three Confusions. Of course holding back if needed to not accidently faint it!

Accuracy Bite: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 0 Brawl -1 Pain = 4 d6, barely crit chance
Damage Roll: 2 Strength + 2 Power of the move + 1 STAB = 5 D6 + 1 autodamage due to SE on Duskull
Additional notes: 3 CD to flinch Duskull again.

Accuracy Confusion 1: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel - 3 Actions = 5 d6
Accuracy Confusion 2: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel - 4 Actions = 4 d6
Accuracy Confusion 3: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel - 5 Actions = 3 d6
Damage Roll: 2 Strength + 2 Power of the move + 1 STAB = 5 D6 +1 autodamage due to SE on Oddish
Additonal notes: 1 CD to confuse the foe.

[Dragonstrike]

All the trainers in the Fortress, other than the one that lets you in with a swipe of your Trainer Card, are clustered around a circular steel stage. A trainer in business casual, sporting glasses and gunmetal-blue-hair, is riding on a yellowish horselike Pokemon I don't think you've ever seen before. It has a steel saddle and helm, the trainer being perched in the former. 

Seems to be some kind of demonstration, for there's no opponent up on the stage. 

(A yellowish horse?  Well, if Nathan doesn't recognize it, it's certainly not a Rapidash, and it's probably not a Girafarig...oh, I've got it!  Must be a Gararewl!  Yeah, Nathan won't recognize that one right off the bat...though I imagine he'd probably recognize the name since it's a fairly common Tandorian pokemon. And if that's a Gararewl, that means the special guest is probably none other than Sheldon based on that description!)

'Huh?  What the heck is going on here?  Hmmm...seems like everyone's over there...'

Nathan can't help but wonder what the big deal is...time to ask a random person in the crowd, I guess?

"Excuse me.  What's going on here?"

[Iron]

Ace Trainer Firestone Round 3

"Flareon! This pattern will work. The moment you land a Burn, we've won! ....That is, unless she can shed her skin again so rapidly...On second thought, double up on those Fire Fangs."

Detect
(3)(5)

Bite
(4)(5)(4) Again, purple fangs sink into fiery shield.
Flinch: (3)(3)

Bite
(3)(1)
Flareon evades.

Bite
(1)

Fire Fang 3
(2)(3)(4)(6)
(1)
Flinch: (4)(5)
Burn: (2)(3)

Fire Fang 4
(6)(3)(3)
Flinch: (4)(2)
Burn: (1)(1) I'm having no luck at all with this part!

Wrap: (3)(1)
Fire Spin: (6)(5) Apsis takes 2 dmg, dropping to 11hp. Ventus uses the Potion, 15/16hp, and Apsis dives right back in!

Ace Trainer Firestone Round 4

Detect
(1)(1)

The Eyes of Apsis strike again! Apsis SEIZES this chance, darting in among the cinders and crashing right through Flareon's failed shield!

Bite 1
(4)(1)(5)(4)
(5) Flareon takes 1 dmg 7/8hp
Flinch: (4)(2)(6)(5)(5) Flareon flinches!

Bite 2
(6)(5)(6) Flareon is too flinched to evade.
(4) Flareon takes 1 dmg 6/8hp
Flinch: (1)(5)(3)(1)(1)

Bite 3
(1)(2)

Fire Fang 3
(5)(5)(1)
(1)
Flinch: (2)(6) Flareon gets revenge, getting a cinder under one of Apsis' tender scales!
Burn: (1)(3)

Fire Fang 4
(2)(3) Miss

Wrap: (3)(4) Flareon takes 1 dmg 5/8hp -1 pain
Fire Spin: (4)(5) Apsis takes 2 dmg 13/16hp -1 pain

Both effects end!

Ace Trainer Firestone Round 5

"Flareon! Renew that vortex right away!" By this point a small crowd has gathered. It's a pretty flashy battle. They press in as the Fire Spin fades, but the trainer gestures them back as he speaks. One little lad stands in the fountain where he feels safer.
"Slow down a notch. Don't overexert yourself. Let the snake do the overextending."

Apsis renews Wrap, it being a great source of damage against an enemy who just seeks to dodge and deflect!

Wrap
(5)(4)
(4) Flareon takes 1 dmg 4/8hp -2 pain.
Flareon is wrapped!

Fire Spin
10 dice, -2 pain, -3 actions = 5 dice
(4)(5)(4)(6)(6) Critical hit!
2* Str + 2 power +1 stab +2 crit -5 def = 2 dice
(4)(2) Apsis takes 1 dmg 12/16hp. The vortex renews too!

Bite 2
(4)(5)
Evasion: 10 dice, -4 actions, -2 pain = 4 dice
(5)(1)(6)(1) Apsis stares Flareon down, almost hypnotizing it. In its pain, it slows down...and Apsis nips again.
(2)
Flinch: (6)(6)(3)(2)(6)

Bite 3
(2)

Flareon is flinched.

Wrap: (3)(1)
Fire Spin: (2)(2)

Ace Trainer Firestone Round 6

The battlefield descends back into a fury of tooth vs flame. The battlefield becomes so busy you can no longer tell what is happening: cinders from Fire Spin, shed scales from Apsis, steam from the nearby Fountain where the kid is playing and splashing since he can't see the battle anymore.

Both trainers have pretty much locked into a series of commands, but at times they cannot even see who's winning or what's happening.

Here's what happens anyway:

Spoiler

Bite
(2)(4)(6)
Evasion: 10 dice, -3 actions, -2 pain = 5 dice
(6)(2)(3)(2)(3)
(4) Flareon takes 1 dmg 3/8hp
Flinch: (2)(4)(6)(5)(1) Flareon Flinches

Bite 2
(3)(6)
(4) Flareon takes 1 dmg 2/8hp
Flareon is flinched.

Bite 3
(4)
(3)
Flinch: (5)(2)(4)(1)(1)

Wrap: (6)(5) Flareon faints.
Fire Spin: (4)(6) Apsis takes 2 dmg 10/16hp.

When the sounds of battle die down, and the damage is finally assessed, Firestone throws his hat to the ground in frustration. "Agh! So much energy! Couldn't burn through it. Couldn't burn her, either...Tell me, does your Arbok have Shed Skin? Doesn't seem like Intimidate, but with that early Acid Spray I wasn't sure. You fight very well. Here's $1000, all collected in battle from lesser trainers than you. New to Stair City?"

Apsis gains 7Xp. Ventus gains 3XP.

[Spiritmon]

"Ah, okay then." That wasn't the response Heart expect so he thinks it is better to leave by that and finish the job. He still wants to take a look around the city, and perhaps search for a neat Pokemon. He heard about Pokemon who live in the streets of the city, so may find something neat.

You don't have to worry about staying on the same timeline as everyone else here, so when your 8 hours of work are up you can collect your pay (nothing unusual will happen with that) and explore the city.

"Finally. Took much time than I thought." Say Heart after finishing the job. "Ready to go boss. Koa, Gustav, Rose and I finish the job."

"Yeah, 8 hours seems a lifetime when you're doing hard labor. Thanks for your help. Good job controlling that lil dragon today, especially. Here's your equipment and your money. Bye now!"

After putting the pokeball and the potions, Heart decided to walk for a while. It seems he couldn't get much information about Almanac, so a idea came to him. He decides to go to the library and get some ancient information. Perhaps anything about ancient history and about what might be inside the Skull Ruins or about anything that king Saminarok. 

Action: Go to the library and get information and books about King Saminarok, the Skull Ruins, and anything about the Ancient history about the city.

[Iron]

Little 4x4 Round 4

Confusion
(1)(1)(3)(2)(2) Oddish plops himself down into the soft soil, softened by the fountain's water. Confusion cannot get him here!

Insight: (6) Poochyena will act normally. Facing off against a ghost using Brawl skills is a very good time to act disoriented even if you don't fail your action. I'd like to start including more things like that when Confusion is used.

Bite - 4 dice is only a crit chance if you have Super Luck or something.
(2)(2)(1)(4)
(6)(4)(2) Duskull takes 2 dmg! It retreats to the sidelines on its own.


Lucky Chant Oddish pops back out and does a long-delayed victory dance over Cherubi. Those little feet and that little face makes for a great dance.
2 Dex + 1 Fight + 3 Perform - 2 actions = 4 dice
(5)(1)(3)(5)
You can see the sound waves from the dance reverberating in the Fountain, spreading luck over the nearest few bystanders and their Pokemon!

Confusion 2
(1)(3)(4)(4)
(2)(1)(5) Oddish takes 2 dmg 3/5hp -1 pain.
Chance: (3)

Acid
(2)(5)
(2)(6) Poochyena takes 1 dmg 3/6hp -2 pain.

Confusion 3
(2)(6)(6)
(6)(3)(3) Oddish takes 2 dmg. That's three Pokemon down!

Will Shiva switch Pokemon?

[Iron]

'Huh?  What the heck is going on here?  Hmmm...seems like everyone's over there...'

Nathan can't help but wonder what the big deal is...time to ask a random person in the crowd, I guess?

"Excuse me.  What's going on here?"

"Sheldon is here! Probably the second best Steel trainer in the whole world! He came all the way from the faroff Tandor region in a strange vessel that rivals even Stair City technology! Sadly he's not giving out Pixel Badges. We've been looking forward to this for weeks! He has Pokemon I've never seen before! A big fish with a sword for a head! A robot! This weird metal horse, Gararewl! A little Geodude in a helmet! A metal cat! Wow!"

[Lord Windos]

When the sounds of battle die down, and the damage is finally assessed, Firestone throws his hat to the ground in frustration. "Agh! So much energy! Couldn't burn through it. Couldn't burn her, either...Tell me, does your Arbok have Shed Skin? Doesn't seem like Intimidate, but with that early Acid Spray I wasn't sure. You fight very well. Here's $1000, all collected in battle from lesser trainers than you. New to Stair City?"

Apsis gains 7Xp. Ventus gains 3XP.

Throughout the scorching match, Ventus maintain his cool, calm serenity, his smile never wavering as watched his sister duke it out against the fire fox, her overbearing bulk and harashing Bites pited against Flareon's flightiness, Detects, and Fire Fangs. Even when he couldn't clearly see the action taking place on the battlefield and the status of Apsis, his empathy and strong both with her told him that she was fairing extremely well against. 'I have utter confidence and faith in you, my regal sister! Take down this Eeveelution, the same as you did to Zamboni's Glaceon,' the researcher though, internally cheering them on as he carefully watch the events unfold whenever he could.

Eventually, Apsis' endurance and grinding damage won out against the fierce Flareon, causing a full blown and magnificent grin to blossom across Ventus' face, while Firestone's post defeat antics earned them a couple of playful chuckles. He briskly crossed the distance between him and the hot temper Ace Trainer, and accepted the offered prize money with that friendly grin and a handshake, before they responded to their inquiry.

"You'll be hard pressed to find a hearty opponent than in Apsis and myself, my friend, though I didn't think such fortitude would grant us Burn protection against your Flareon's potent flames! Such is the way of battles, I suppose: chaotic, tense, yet invigorating and exciting! She does has Shed Skin, but due to the necklace she's wearing its not active in battles, but instead it bestows upon her has a pseudo form of Serene Grace, which is likely the reason why her Bites Flitched your fox more often than not! Mind if I ask what their ability was as well in turn, friend? Oh, and yes, I'm new to the area. I've stopped here to gain some respite from my cross region research journey with my friend, and was exploring the city with one of them just now! Do you know any areas of particular interest we can visit later, as I rather not miss out on what Stair has to offer to a wayward, worrisome wanderer like myself!"

[Dragonstrike]

"Sheldon is here! Probably the second best Steel trainer in the whole world! He came all the way from the faroff Tandor region in a strange vessel that rivals even Stair City technology! Sadly he's not giving out Pixel Badges. We've been looking forward to this for weeks! He has Pokemon I've never seen before! A big fish with a sword for a head! A robot! This weird metal horse, Gararewl! A little Geodude in a helmet! A metal cat! Wow!"

Sheldon?  Wait a second...that sounded familiar...

And as soon as the stranger mentioned Tandor, it clicked.

This was THE Sheldon.  From Vinoville Town.

The same one who helped the rangers fight off the Nuclear pokemon when they started swarming Route 11 after Power Plant Zeta exploded.  And he'd participated in the following year's Championship Tournament too, if he remembered correctly...

Gararewl sounded pretty familiar too...oh yeah, now that he thought about it, it did look kinda like that one picture he'd seen awhile ago...Sheldon definitely must be showcasing some of Tandor's rare Steel types...hmmm...

He probably wasn't going to be able to find Dagny tonight, was he?  Well, might as well enjoy the showcase while he was here...maybe he could find an opportunity to talk with Sheldon and ask him a few questions...or maybe he'd just have to settle for a training battle after Sheldon finished...though he was kinda interested in testing himself against one of Tandor's gym leader's if an opportunity presented itself, even if there wasn't a gym badge at stake...

"Is he just showing off his pokemon, or is there something else he's going to do while he's here?"

[Iron]

After putting the pokeball and the potions, Heart decided to walk for a while. It seems he couldn't get much information about Almanac, so a idea came to him. He decides to go to the library and get some ancient information. Perhaps anything about ancient history and about what might be inside the Skull Ruins or about anything that king Saminarok. 

Action: Go to the library and get information and books about King Saminarok, the Skull Ruins, and anything about the Ancient history about the city.

There's a whole room of books about that stuff. 

"The Depths of the Skull Ruins, by Fossil Maniac Occi"

There are layers upon layers of ancient construction in the Skull Ruins, much of it predating Sarimanok. This historian believes that to go as deep as it's possible to go, one must explore not the city's center of commerce, but the fathomless dungeons of Sarimanok's castle.

We know of the seemingly endless Barrow Downs, haunted with ghost Pokemon (and possibly even by ghosts!), where lay the valiant dead of the revolution. 

We know of the weird subterranean halls, akin to the Ruins of Alph in Johto, where strange hieroglyphs sometimes appear. Despite needing a permit from the League to enter.

We know waters run beneath these layers, where oh-so-very few have dared to explore.

We suspect more masonry and artifacts could be discovered below our radar's reach if we could but find the paths.




"Stepping Stones: A Collaborative History of Stair City"

Stair City can't truly be considered ancient, for it's less than a millennium old. There was a small villa here before the first masonry was erected. However, the stairs carved into the mountains are from civilizations preceding anatomically modern humans. We know almost nothing about them.

From the beginning of the new Pokemon League, Stair City served as a capital of innovation and excitement. Crime is kept low despite the large population, for Team Rocket and its ilk never made much ground here. The class struggle takes its place, from the old "robber barons" and "bandit kings" to today's technovariety of upper crust. Always the working class of Stair City have both admired and simultaneously clashed with the heiresses and self-made landowners. 



"Inside the Skull of Sarimanok the Great"

A complex figure to be sure, Sarimanok. Surely Creshire was never wealthier than under his rule. Pokemon were stronger. Inventions came more rapidly. Much of the current League technology owes its origins to items invented by King Sarimanok and his unique Pokemon. 

Yet there are many today that spit at the very sound of his name. King Sarimanok came to believe the ends justified the means. As one might expect, this lead to glorious ends, at the cost of the citizens he came to see as resources. 

Even when his power was at its peak, Sarimanok was revered in song, story, and poll. It is said he never made one man sad unless it made two men happy. 

Personally? I think the source of King Sarimanok's power was leverage. Or the multiplication of force. This lend to nigh-endless resources for the man, and we benefit from that philosophy today. When was the last time your Pokemon was infused with bounteous healing energy, all for free? 

What benefits do the Trading Machines offer, even to providing us with unique species not seen before Sarimanok's time? Granted, some species such as Alakazam and Steelix can appear in the wild, but what of Scizor and Electivire? They would not exist without the trading machine.
Even more interesting are species such as Politoed, who were never seen in the wild until Sarimanok's reign, and are now almost plentiful.

Though seemingly all-powerful, Sarimanok voluntarily crafted a functioning parliamentary democracy, and even sometimes did what the Prime Minister said.

[Iron]

"Is he just showing off his pokemon, or is there something else he's going to do while he's here?"

"The posters say he's just here to showcase Tandor's steel. But *I* heard a rumor he came to look for meteors. He's visiting here first, and then Alola. So that was scheduled since months ago. Now that he's here, I'm sure he'll advise Dagny on her projects, and maybe this Skull Ruins thing."