[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Nylon]

Valder uses a potion on Piloswine. Same orders.

[Dragonstrike]

"KIRLIA!  I'll get ya out of there, buddy!"

It's a rare occurence of Nathan actually recalling Kirlia to his pokeball! And in his place, Nathan summons Swiftfire!

"Alright girl, we're facing plants this time! Flame Charge, then Embers!  I want those vines rolling the pearl incinerated, and those Tangrowth out cold!  Calam, help her with more Night Slashes!"

Calam
3 more Night Slashes on the vines, then Tangrowth. Lethal damage for the vines, normal for Tangrowth

Swiftfire
Flame Charge, 2 embers. Vines with the pearl first, then the Tangrowth.

[Lord Windos]

[b]Tangrowth Encounter Round 2[/b]

With his keen eyes, heightened focus, and complete cognizance over the battlefield, Ventus swiftly realized that the Kingdol was not only directing the whole lot of fiendish Tangrowth like it was their trainer, but also had a vested interest in robbing Kirlia of their precious Pink Pearl! An series of actions that he would not stand for. "Apsis, abandon your current targets and retrieve Kirlia's Pink Pearl from those vines, or at the minimum do not let them take it to those ruins! Use Acid Spay to wither the plants if you have to, and once you pick up it up, swallow it! Its not going to be pleasant eating it I imagine, but that way they can't Knock it Off or try to steal it away from us, and you can always regurgitate it latter! Haneal, cover you sister in her retrieval and prevent her from being overwhelmed by either the Tangrowth, Claydol, or the vines, and retialate against them all with scorching Embers! Do not let the enemy get away with their diabolical plot!"

Order: Have Apsis and Haneal more or less play retrevial and get that Pearl away from those vines, and bring it back to Ventus so that he can store it away secure in his satchel. Apsis will use Acid Spray (3 Actions at maximum, less if you count Apsis going after the Pearl as an action in of itself) primary on the vines trying to cart away the pearl, but if that is unneeded for her to pick it up with her mouth, then she'll just use it on whatever that tries to stop her. She'll also subsequent chaw down the pearl the moment she has the chance as well! Haneal is going to deliberately put herself in the way of any and all attack made by the other Pokémon, and fight back with Ember after Ember attacks! Whatever that Kingdol is trying to pull, he's having none of it!

Moves:

Acid Spray
Accuracy: 8D6 - 3/4/5 Actions = 5/4/3D6 Dice
Damage: Known
Effect: Known

Ember
Everything is the same as the last time, so....

Retrieving the Pearl
Don't know how this goes, so its up to you how to handle this mate! If possible, Apsis will wait for Swiftfire to crisp those vines before picking up the Pearl and slithering back to Ventus!

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Who- or whatever that Claydol thought it was, it was a nuisance for Shiva. First it almost hit her with psychic power for whatever reason, then it decided to bereave both her freshly-evolved Psychic of his significant spoon as well as her psychic cat from his beloved Apricorn Nut. It'll pay for that in some way, that was sure! "Both, back to me, I promise that we'll get your Spoon and Apricorn back after the foes are dealt with. Admire your Confusion! We have a different target now." Pure iciness in her voice, matching nicely to Ventus' cold fury and mercilessness.

Once Helios as well as Kyuu, trusting in their Master's words, got themelves a safe place beside their Master and the Espurr embracing her leg closely, in yet another dramatic movement Cottonee and Azurill are summoned onto the battlefield! Immediately they picked up that flared emotions from their Master, and from following her gaze in hope to see what may have caused this, they picked up that the source must be that ancient puppet-thing up there... "Okay, my Fairies, you see that Claydol up there? Please bring it down for me, as you Azurill empower you battle partner's Mega Drains."


---------------
Orders for this Round: The others can take care of the Tangrowth now as they have enough SE-moves, while Shiva will focus to faint that Kingdol - with 3 Mega Drains, 2 of 'em empowered by Azurill's Helping Hand. Helios and Kyuu stay outside of their Pokeballs as this is no official League Battle, ready to retrive their items as soon as the battle has ended.


Accuracy Helping Hand1: 3 Dext + 2 Fight/Contest + 1 Perform - 2 Actions = 4 d6
Accuracy Helping Hand2: 3 Dext + 2 Fight/Contest + 1 Perform - 3 Actions = 3 d6
Effect: +2 dice on Cottonee's next Accuracy as well as Damage Roll.
Side Effect: I remember how Azurill enjoyed this move, so have fun here!
Additional notes: +5 Priority, so going before anyone else.


Accuracy Mega Drain 1: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel +2 HH - 3 Actions = 7 D6
Accuracy Mega Drain 2: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel +2 HH - 4 Actions = 6 D6
Accuracy Mega Drain 3, if Kingdol isn't down by that point: 3 Dext + 2 Fight + 3 Channel - 5 Actions = 3 D6
Damage, empowered by HH: 2 Strenght + 2 Power of move+ 1 STAB + 2 HH = 7 D6 + 1 autodamage due to SE (5 D6+1 for the third Mega Drain)
Additional notes: Heals half of the damage rounded down, minimum 1.

[Iron]

Tangrowth Encounter Round 2

Valder uses a Potion: Piloswine now has 5/7hp.

Helping Hand
(6)(4)(5)(1)
Azurill does a flip and a squeak to cheer on Cottonee!

Night Slash 1
(1)(2)(3)(3)(1)(4) Again, Lucky Chant saves the day. Calam separates some of the vines from their fellows, clearing a path for Swiftfire and Apsis to race down.

Acid Spray 1
(4)(6)(5)(6)(3)
Apsis destroys a large section of vines directly around the pearl, but they're growing back already where Calam cut them! The acid does a pretty good job of "cauterizing" the vines where it hits.

Haneal follows Apsis, granting cover. He also launches an Ember at Tangrowth C, already burned.

Ember 1
(3)(2)(1)(6)(1)
(6)(4) Tangrowth C takes 3 dmg. 1/10hp -3 pain.

Claydol performs another of its special Rock Slides, moving slightly to find another good spot.

Rock Slide 1, targeting Piloswine, Azurill, Cottonee, and Calam.
(5)(2)(1)(4)(4)
(6)(3) They each take 1 dmg.
Flinch: (3)(5)(3)

A Tangrowth slides its arms sharply into play on Apsis' hood, setting the necklace a-jiggle.

Knock Off 1
8 dice, -1 pain, -2 actions = 5 dice
(6)(5)(3)(6)(4)
(6) Apsis takes 1 dmg and loses the Serene Necklace. 13/15hp.
It lands in the area already cleared, so it will be easy to obtain after the battle.

The wounded one seeks sustenance from Piloswine again.

Megadrain 1
7 dice, -2 actions, -3 pain = 2 dice
(4)(6)
3 Str + 2 power +1 STAB -3 vit = 3d6+1
(6)(1)(3) Piloswine takes 2 dmg 2/7hp. Tangrowth now has 2/10hp.

Rose scales the cliff to launch a perfect, spiraling Flame Wheel. (Since Rose doesn't know Fire Spin yet, and doesn't have the XP to learn it, I'm assuming you meant Flame Wheel.)

Flame Wheel 1
(2)(3)(2)(6)(3)
3 Str + 2 power +1 STAB -4 vit = 2d6+1
(6)(2) Tangrowth C faints.
Burn: (6) Also, it's on fire! The vines it was shepherding retreat entirely.
Rose flings ash about triumphantly.

Flame Charge 1
(6)(6)(6)(4)(1)
Swiftfire maintains a very clear path to the pearl. With those actions defending it, there won't be any need to spend an actual action eating it or getting to it.

Cottonee levitates a bit higher to get in range of Claydol. She needs to be close enough that she can suck energy across the distance, but luckily she does not need contact.

Mega Drain
(6)(5)(4)(4)(1)(6)(6) Critical hit!!
9 dice, -3 vit = 6d6+1
(1)(4)(4)(5)(1)(4) That deals a lucky 5 dmg to Claydol.  3/8hp
Cottonee is fully healed.

Powder Snow 1
6 dice, -2 pain, -2 actions = 2 dice
(6)(4)
(6)(5)(6) Tangrowth takes 4 dmg. 4/10hp
Freeze: (2)

Helping Hand
(5)(2)(1)

Calam is not needed on the vines, so he goes for Tangrowth.

Night Slash 2
(6)(4)(4)(6) Crit.
(3)(3)(1)(5)(6)(4) Tangrowth is barely hanging on with 1hp.

Acid Spray 2
(5)(5)(1)
(4)+ Tangrowth D Faints

Apsis chokes down the Clamperl Pearl. She makes a face of immense distaste. You can see a slight bulge where it's working its way through her body.

Haneal razes the vines back, giving the party plenty of time to decide what to do with all these Tangrowth. Claydol is out of reach of these embers and they wouldn't be very effective anyway.

Speaking of Claydol...it uses Teleport.

Teleport
8 dice, -2 actions = 6 dice
(5)(3)(5)(4)(4)(1) Yep, it's gone! (Definitely counts as defeated though). You cannot see where Claydol went at all. However, surveying the remnants of the battlefield and the Skull Ruins, you can see that the vines have not stopped growing over the Ruins. They've given up on the path for now, it seems.
Patrolling one of the distant walls of the Skull Ruins, you can see another Tangrowth. Plus one more scaling a wall of moving vines. They are tiny at this distance.



Everyone gets 5XP to distribute among your Pokemon, and 7Xp for themselves for their heroic actions defending the path!

In the destruction of Tangrowth flesh, you each find one Common/Uncommon Berry of your choice (so it CANNOT be Aspear, Lum, or Sitrus). These half-formed berries will need one full day to ripen properly.

Let me know how you as a party handle the Tangrowth. Minimum XP bid is 1. 2 of them have lethal afflictions that will soon kill them if not treated. You can assume the vines will not return here today.

[Lord Windos]

Everyone gets 5XP to distribute among your Pokemon, and 7Xp for themselves for their heroic actions defending the path!

In the destruction of Tangrowth flesh, you each find one Common/Uncommon Berry of your choice (so it CANNOT be Aspear, Lum, or Sitrus). These half-formed berries will need one full day to ripen properly.

Let me know how you as a party handle the Tangrowth. Minimum XP bid is 1. 2 of them have lethal afflictions that will soon kill them if not treated. You can assume the vines will not return here today.

A flurry of Fire, scythes of Darkness, areolated blast of Poison, life draining Grass, and much more types of moves was used during the course of the conflict against the Tangrowth. In but a span of a few moments, their own show of force and unreleting fury at being ambushed prevailed, and  The battle was over in an instant. Ventus grim façade broke into a nasty scowl as Kingdol, the one who directed the assault against him and his friend, escape with Teleport, but he quickly marshaled his temper into line.

'There is naught we can do about that blasted Claydol now, and my friend and their Pokémon are fine for the most part, so wasting energy and feeling over it is entirely pointless...for now. If I ever cross path with that ancient relic again, then I will demonstrate to it my complete, absolute, and vivid retribution upon it, and make it rue the day it ever set its designs upon us....' the researcher thought to himself, his piercing gaze sweeping over the now partially devined area. As he first though, everyone was more or less in adequate condtion despite their former opposition's show of force, so he proceed to retrieve Apsis' Necklace of Serenity and placed it around her neck, before he ordered her in a much less dour tone of voice: "My sister, you may now disgorge yourself of that Pearl, as I highly doubt you want to end up digesting it and the potent psychic energies it contains. I promise I'll make up for this unpleasant experience by finding you some nice, juicy prey for us to hunt later, so please don't feel to negative about my decision." (I'll let Iron handle this reaction this time!) He also took the opportunity to pick up a half grown Chesto Berry for later purposes!

Once she had done so, the researcher wiped off his snake's internal juices with a towlet from his satchel, before wandering over to Nathan and handed it over to him, before he took a couple of steps back and called his sisters to his side. Apsis slithered other to his left side, while Haneal plodded over to his right, flanking him and facing forwards as they block the boy's sight of the fallen Tangrowth. Only then, once his sisters were in position, did Ventus finally speak with Nate, his arms crossed across his chest as he talked to them in a grave manner.

"Nathan, I want you to listen carefully and with an open mind, before you decided to forstall my actions in regards to those Tangrowth. As you saw earlier, they were responsible for both control, guiding, and empowering these horrible vines from Kirlia's vision that have utterly consumed the surrounding area, and would have continued shepharding them all the way to Stair City had they go unopposed. Additionally, they boxed us in and tried to disarm and incapacitate us all for whatever purpose they had in mind, though its a given that they were not acting with our best intentions in mind. Because of this, we can not just leave these Pokémon here, as they will eventually revive and continue their goal of choaking out the Cheshire region with these vines. So, I am going to do the following: I'll have Apsis use Glare on the Tangrowth that Shiva poisoned earlier, and attempt to capture it with my Great Ball, and allow you the opportunity to catch it or the rest of these plant Pokémon should I fail. If you decline the opportunity, though, then I will have [b]Apsis and Haneal kill every last one of them, as I can not allow them the possibly to cause harm to other travelers and the region as a whole. That is my ultimatum to you: either you help me capture these Tangrowth, or let me do my duty and slay them all, unless you have other alternative in mind that can handle them non-Lethally. I will not entertain the idea of leaving them be, so decide on how you want to handle them, or I will do so myself."

Order: Have Apsis use Glare on the Tangrowth that Shiva Toxiced, then have Ventus toss his Great Ball at it. If that fails/succeeds, I guess we have to wait and see how Nathan reacts to Ven's proposal, and whether or not we'll have our first bidding war in the Game.

[Dragonstrike]

Nathan takes the pearl back, but he's staring at Ventus with a very hard look in his eyes.  Kirlia pops out of his pokeball again now that he can sense the danger's passed (but his ankle's hurting AGAIN!  OW!  Why'd it have to be the same one that got bitten by that stupid scorpion...?)

Nathan brings Starmie out to clean the Pearl once again, and then Kirlia picks it up once it's free of Arbok spit (ah, memories...he still found Nathan getting covered in it slightly funny).  He promptly sits down to relax for a little bit and use Calm Mind to keep himself distracted from the pain.  He knew Nathan would take care of it soon enough...

Swiftfire is looking really tired again.  Yeesh, it's been a hard day...Skiddo is once more by her side, trying to be a comforting presence now that Shiva doesn't really need his help due to being on flatter ground.  Swiftfire's not paying him much mind currently.  Skiddo looks around a little, then ends up rolling a half bloomed Ranc Berry toward her that he'd spotted among some of the vines.  Swiftfire's not particularly impressed with it, but she does accept it.

Predictably, Calam's staring at the Skull Ruins.  So, it has begun...

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Ventus, let me through so I can heal the poisoned and burned Tangrowth.  You saw how that Claydol was directing them.  For all we know, the Tangrowth weren't doing that of their own volition.  And it's not our place to decide what happens to them.  We are right outside Stair City, one of the capitals of Creshire.  The League will have representatives present soon enough, or we can go fetch some very easily.  They can decide what to do with these Tangrowth that were involved in a regional threat.  The Skull Ruins are taken VERY seriously by EVERYONE.  And we need to tell the authorities how they can deal with this.  It won't matter how many pawns are taken out if the kings remain standing.  Catch them instead if you like, but do NOT kill them.  You won't achieve anything useful by doing so."

[Lord Windos]

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Ventus, let me through so I can heal the poisoned and burned Tangrowth.  You saw how that Claydol was directing them.  For all we know, the Tangrowth weren't doing that of their own volition.  And it's not our place to decide what happens to them.  We are right outside Stair City, one of the capitals of Creshire.  The League will have representatives present soon enough, or we can go fetch some very easily.  They can decide what to do with these Tangrowth that were involved in a regional threat.  The Skull Ruins are taken VERY seriously by EVERYONE.  And we need to tell the authorities how they can deal with this.  It won't matter how many pawns are taken out if the kings remain standing.  Catch them instead if you like, but do NOT kill them.  You won't achieve anything useful by doing so."

"....That still does not diminish the threat they represent, Nathan, regardless of whether are not they acted of their own violiton or under the command of that Claydol, and you should be well aware of that fact. I also disagree that the League should be the sole entity deciding the Tangrowth's fate, as we know just as much about these creatures and their nebulous agenda as they do, if not more. We are the trainers on site that saw what these Grass types are truly capable of if they are allowed to operated unchecked, and their attempts to subdue us for their own nebulous purposes shows they threats to not only us, but public safety as a whole, so I believe that in this instance the League would not fault us for taking action ourselves."

"As for not 'taking out the Pawns' , while they might not be the ones in control or the mastermind behind whatever scheme the Vines are involved, they still are a part of its infrastrutue and base of support. The Tangrowth are their foot soldiers, their vine shepards, and part of the means by which they exert influence over the given territory they now control, so if one were to wage war against them, uproot and undermine their operations, and totally dismantling them from the ground up, taking them out would paramount. Unless you know specifically were their 'king' is and have a way to overcome or sidestep the most likely considerable defenses they have in place, then you will have to remove their base of support in order to make them vulnerable enough to be directly targeted. Eliminate enough 'Pawns'  from the board and/or limit the mean they can move across, and their entire chain of command will end up collapsing in on itself from internal and external pressures, rendering their a non-threat that can be easily be disposed of. In the long game, every little advantage you gain and disadvantage you inflict upon your opponents builds on themselves to the point of significance, so I find myself in complete disagreement towards on this point as well."

Ventus says all of the above after a short time of deliberation, his serious expression and disspassioned tone of voice unwavering as he reviewed his friend's arguement and proceeded to tear it into pieces with his own cold, ruthless logic. Tension between the researcher and the young rancher were at that moment at an all time high, and it seemed as if nothing would be resolved between the two without some outside interventions. Then, after moment of uneasy silence, the empath , after everything he just said and the argument he built up in favor of exterminating the fallen Tangrowth, he did the unexpected: he closed his eyes, let out a extreme weary and disappointed sigh, before he motioned for Apsis and Haneal to unbare Nathan's path.

".....However, I'm not going to argue with you over this any longer, Nate, as in this instance its futile for me to do so. Time and time again, not matter what the circumstance, reason, or logic, you refuse acknowledge even the possibility of more punitive actions against those worthy of it. Its frustrating, disappointing, and so unequvicolly exhausting trying to breach through those hide bide and prohibitive ideals of yours and make you see my reason, especially when you have a base to so stubbornly stand upon (The League Reinforcement, basically). So, once again, I will show mercy to those that truly do not deserve it, when other would not fault me for doing otherwise, all for your shake, and your shake alone. My beliefs and reasoning, both currently expressed and distantly mentioned in the past, have not changed in the slightest, and I want you to remember that. I want you to understand them, Nate, in the event that I can no longer be the one to make the hard decisions...."

The researcher uncrosses his arms as he turned around and begins making his way towards the Toxiced Tangrowth. "....That you are able to make them instead. I'll cure the Tangrowth of its Poisoning after I have Paralyzed if my attempt at capturing it fails, as being under the effect of double Status improve my odds of success. I'll leave the burnt one to you."

Order: The Tangrowth get to live after all, so almost everyone (Except Ventus) can stay happy! Now that is resolved, I want Ventus to Paralyze that Toxiced Tangrowth and try to capture it with my only Great Ball. If that fails, then he'll use an Antidote on it, and avoid Nathan and Shiva completely for the time being. He needs some alone time to decompress after this battle and dealing with Nate's stubbornness.....

Also, since we are not betting XP, I'll use the 40 XP I have earned up to this point to raise my Vitality up to 5! Ventus is the first character to reach a cap on his attributes, guys!

[Iron]

Congrats on the Vitality! That's badass.

Great Ball: (1)(5)(6)(6)
Will: 8 -5 -2 = 1
(1)

Tangrowth was caught! He/she was badly poisoned for three rounds, so he's at -3. For purposes of common sense, we'll keep his original Vitality of 4 until you've trained him up a bit, meaning he'll die at -10, so he has 7 hours to live.

These guys have Chlorophyll, Sleep Powder, Poison Powder, Vine Whip, Bind, Growth, Mega Drain, Knock Off, and Ancient Power.
They have 3 Disobedience and this one will have 0 loyalty or happiness.

[Lord Windos]

Tangrowth was caught! He/she was badly poisoned for three rounds, so he's at -3. For purposes of common sense, we'll keep his original Vitality of 4 until you've trained him up a bit, meaning he'll die at -10, so he has 7 hours to live.

The still Unfettered and highly disgruntled sociologist promptly sends the Tangrowth he captured to his PC, before letting out a slight sigh and shaking his head. 'At the very least, I have personally confirmed the removal of one of their Vine Shepards from the Barrows Down area, and didn't have to expend any medicinal items on it. Now comes the task of how to decide how to prevent it from becoming a nuisense or danger to the region, though I am certain I don't want it in my possession any longer than necessary. Hmm....perhaps that woman would be interested in taking it off my hand for a fair price? They certainly have provided me exactly what I wanted in the past, so would they be amenable to another deal, if I can somehow get in contact with her?' Ventus thought to himself, as he pondered what the Kyurem hell he was going to do with the Grass type he just caught away from everyone else. He needed time to restore himself to 'normal' functions, and he quite frankly didn't want to put up with Nathan anymore right now.

Apsis, while still somewhat unnerved by her the now slight aura of frightening ruthlessness, was more or less relieved that she and her master managed to not only endure those pesky Grass types and the Kingdol's assault, but were able to completely crush them all! The only thing she didn't appreciate was Nathan being (In her opinion) stupidly obstinate about not pruning those weeds that pretend to be Pokémon, and having to scarf down his Kirlia Pearl! Considering all the good things her master has done for the boy, the poisonous cobra expected them to at least return the favor like a good pack member, but nope, they continue to frustrate and hurt them by being unreasonable! Perhaps, as she stared at the boy with narrowed eyes and an air of mischevousness around her, he needs another 'Kiss' from her to put him in his place, *Hiss!*

Haneal, meanwhile, was comfortably hovering around Ventus' ankles, providing a warming, soothing presences to help them unwind after such an harrowing battle. She didn't overthink about things between her master and his current actions, nor didn't think ill of the boy that caused them to isolate themselves for the time being. They each had their own reasons for doing things the way they did, and she will not fault either of them for it. The fire camel was just happy that everything turn out alright, and wanted to make sure could at least try to bring some peace of mind to the researcher (and their friends later, if allowed).