[Meta thread] Iron's PokeRole Adventure: The Skull Ruins

[Lord Windos]

Welp, with Shiva's and Terra's Gym Battle now done, the only thing that is left before we can pass to the next day and begin our long awaited/dreaded treck into The Skull Ruins is Shiva's trade. Has everyone decided which Pokemon they want to bring on the trip with them by this point? I'm still a bit iffy on my selection, but I'm more or less certain that Dunny and Oinari are coming along, just for Ghost and Psychic protection, and most likely Anubi for being quite the robust canine companion that could learn Heal Pulse at some point. Maybe Bastiodon too or over Anubi, if everyone wants a Pokemon that can hauls stuff around and cast Wide Guard at a moment's notice.

[Spiritmon]

Spoiler

Welp, with Shiva's and Terra's Gym Battle now done, the only thing that is left before we can pass to the next day and begin our long awaited/dreaded treck into The Skull Ruins is Shiva's trade. Has everyone decided which Pokemon they want to bring on the trip with them by this point? I'm still a bit iffy on my selection, but I'm more or less certain that Dunny and Oinari are coming along, just for Ghost and Psychic protection, and most likely Anubi for being quite the robust canine companion that could learn Heal Pulse at some point. Maybe Bastiodon too or over Anubi, if everyone wants a Pokemon that can hauls stuff around and cast Wide Guard at a moment's notice.

I have a couple of ideas of my own for my team: Gustav, Netune and Oceanus (Palpitoad) to act as spread moves pokemon to give us more control of the field and with the power to reduce any foes accuracy. Koa for one of Heart most strong pokemon and have access to Assurance as SE move. Percival and Honedge for Steel typing, and for Honedge be a strong ghost type with strong moves. Kecleon, Ambipom or Blazer (Wathcog) for be Normal-type and access to some Dark-type moves. Heracross (Hercules) for variety of moves and access to Night Slash for better SE Damage. Typhon in case we might need a extra damage with dark moves all I need is evolve him. Xatu for quickly Teleportation in case things get dired, and with him be a Pokemon we capture in the upper layers of Skull Ruins, he might know a thing of there. 

Rose. Access to many powerfull Fire-moves, and one of Heart most powerfull pokemon. Golett, Viktor and Honedge for Ghost-typing, and in Viktor case, access to self restoration moves. Honckrow for be Dark-type and full obedience. D-Onix for bulky Pokemon and good ability. 

Gagryph, with Leftlovers+Rebuild, capable of self restoration with good bulky style. Along with access to Substitute and Protect. And finally Chespin for strong STAB moves.

And finally D-Pikachu, Nidorino, Nidorina or Weezing for protection and ability to poison foes.

Any ideas people for witch pokemon I should bring with me?

[Lord Windos]

Teleportation doesn't work in enclosed spaces, mate, and bringing ANY Psychic type into the Ruins seems like a bad idea unless they have ways to compensate for Ghosts, so I say leave Xatu behind. It may have been his home at one point, but that doesn't mean he has to pay it a visit!

As for Pokemon choices, definitely bring Honedge, as having a the King's Pokemon while exploring the old palace may potentially turn up secrets/clues/events the group would otherwise not have access too! If you need/want to bring along another Ghost, I suggest going with Atlas the Golett, as he too might have/open up special events in the dread dead place too. Heck, you could bring all three Ghosts with Heart if you want, as Ghost v Ghost is still in your favor, and all of them can pull their weight and last quite awhile!

Gustav would be good choice to bring along too, as having access to Heal Pulse, meat from his claw, and his powerful offensive capabilities sounds too good to pass up while on a perilous trip. That, and its already been proven he's able to handle the Ghosts there, even one that had shenanigans about them, so there's that to consider too!

I'd avoid bringing Flying types into the Skull Ruins simply because its underground, and therefore their ability to fly around will be constrained and the local monster pop will likely have quite a few terribly unkind Rocks among their number that cause them nothing but PAIN. On the other hand, their are also possibly the Vines and Tangrowth to consider if they're still hanging around the upper/lower levels of the Ruins, so it may be a good idea to bring types SE against Grass too just in case. Either Rose or Heracross would fill that niche well, with the former potentially able to learn Slack Off to make her less dependent on Heal Pulses/Items for healing, and the later just having a ton of options and great Abilities to work with!

Concerning D-Onix, if you could possibly Evolve them without suffering too much from increased Disobedience/Loyalty drop, then I suggest that you do so and bring them along, as having a bulky flying snake that can easily dig through stuff is just a great too have on hand! Terra can speak from experience there! Gargryph could be a good choice too, though, so which Rock/Bulky type you bring along is up to you.

And.....I have nothing else to comment on or recommend! Ball's in your court entirely now, so build your team wisely now!

[Spiritmon]

Indeed there is tons of options to use. Dark and Normal could maximize our chances to fight ghosts. So a basic idea for my team would be more or less like this:

- Honedge
- Atlas
- Viktor
- Gustav
- D-Onix/Honckrow/Gargryph
- Rose/Heracross

Well...this make the choice less difficult but I still in conflict about the choice. Any ideas too @PhantomUnderYourDesk, @Dragonstrike and @Mikaruge108?

[Mikaruge108]

Hmm... I wonder, could Spira possibly craft Black Sludge out of the decayed snax (or could they be used as a proxy for Black Sludge)
also, as for Spira's team in the Ruins, definitely bringing Luna along so I can evolve her into Drifblim.
-Luna (mainly to evolve, some Ghost/Flying type coverage)
-Toya (varied type coverage, depending on restrictions {i.e. not being able to use it indoors} of Ghost World travel, a quick method to escape, if necessary. Access to HM Rock Smash/Flash)
-Hida (AoE Fire-type/Rock-Type coverage, access to splash damage)
-Noire (Ghost-type coverage, access to HM Flash)
-Nubi (Varied moveset, HM Flash)
now for the 6th slot, potential candidates:

Spoiler

Neura (Fanged Yanma)
Pros:
-varied type coverage
-Foresight
-boosted accuracy thanks to Compound Eyes
Cons:
-0 Loyalty vs 1 Disobedience
-4x weakness to Rock-type moves

Mero (Linkite)
Pros:
-Cursed Body
-Mean Look
-Curse
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 0 Loyalty
-Small current movepool

D-Lotad
Pros:
-Steel/Ghost moves (Astonish, Gyro Ball, Mirror Shot, Gear Grind)
Cons:
-Current movepool is small

Clamperl
Pros:
-Buff moves (Iron Defense, Shell Smash) Would using those two moves as a combo be a good idea; basically using Iron Defense to cancel out the debuff of Shell Smash.
-Trapping moves (Clamp/Whirlpool)
-No (current) disobedience
-Refresh for status ailment healing and Endure for shielding
Cons:
-Pretty much listed its whole moveset


Beedrill
Pros:
-Focus Energy/Rage for high crit/boosted Strength combo
-Entry Hazard (Toxic Spikes)
-Pursuit/Assurance
-Rock Smash HM
-Swarm to boost Bug moves (1 currently)
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 1 Loyalty
-Rock-type weakness

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Take Mero because they're pretty cool The only thing I can think up that'd speak for 'em is that the trip down the ruins could be nice way to bond with them, train them up and help overcoming the disobediance if there's a desire to do that.

Apart from that, Neura, Foresight is super-useful is used cleverly, lowest disobediance of all unruly candidates and all the fang moves have boosed Accuracy thanks to Compound Eyes.

[Dragonstrike]

Might need some input myself on which pokemon to bring.  Party I've been considering:

- Gallade (mandatory, obviously)
- Calam (dark type, potentially plot relevant, basically mandatory)
- Charizard (the definitive 'dragon', beloved by nobles.  Also has decent type coverage, including Shadow Claw and Dragon Claw)
- Undecided
- Undecided
- Undecided

Possible Filler

- Dedenne: super small but super duper strong.  May be able to boost electronics' capabilities/cause them to malfunction
- Emolga: Sure he doesn't have any particularly strong STABs right now, but he did say he would help Nathan with finding Marco.  Plus, if he gets enough exp, he can get devastatingly strong STABs in Acrobatics and/or Electro Ball.  He already knows the super useful Encore and Nuzzle, too.
- Ditto: having another potential Heal Pulse user...or just any super flexible pokemon...is always nice.
- Solomon: Another candidate that might be a 'kingly' pokemon.  Has more HP than almost the other pokemon on this list, too.  If Ghosts are a huge concern, some cash could be spent to teach him Foul Play if someone were to chip in and help Nathan with affording that.  Powerful Brines can help end a fight quickly
- Princess: She's a fully fledged queen now.  Maybe that royal authority can count as 'kingly'?  Small movepool at the moment, but she has easy access to Pursuit if she needs a Dark move to use and Fury Cutter for a 'stronger' STAB than Bug Bite and Fell Stinger.  Also has Destiny Bond as a trump card.
- Snivy: Another pokemon that agreed to help Nathan with some Ruins related stuff, this time relating to the dangers that may be related to the vines (such as Claydol).  Much like Charizard, the Snivy line was also somewhat popular with nobles due to some of their draconic traits (even though Snivy and co aren't in the Dragon egg group).
- Porygon-Z: Normal type, has Foul Play, is super strong, additional diverse buffing options...just great all around
- Grid: another of Nathan's strongest and most versatile pokemon.  Can easily be support or offense.  He's almost always a consideration on any serious team of Nathan's.
- Ray: With a little bit of work, he could provide support with Reflect and/or Light Screen.
- Mizu: also has more HP than almost all of the pokemon on the list.  Has some decent moves to use to back that bulk up.  Can learn some powerful Dragon STABs if she saves up enough exp.  Dratini line was also beloved by nobles.

Ones with Spread Moves: Charizard, Porygon-Z, Grid, Ray if he learns Razor Leaf, Mizu if she learns Twister
Ones with AOE Moves:  Charizard, Ray, Snivy, Dedenne

[Dragonstrike]

Hmm... I wonder, could Spira possibly craft Black Sludge out of the decayed snax (or could they be used as a proxy for Black Sludge)
also, as for Spira's team in the Ruins, definitely bringing Luna along so I can evolve her into Drifblim.
-Luna (mainly to evolve, some Ghost/Flying type coverage)
-Toya (varied type coverage, depending on restrictions {i.e. not being able to use it indoors} of Ghost World travel, a quick method to escape, if necessary. Access to HM Rock Smash/Flash)
-Hida (AoE Fire-type/Rock-Type coverage, access to splash damage)
-Noire (Ghost-type coverage, access to HM Flash)
-Nubi (Varied moveset, HM Flash)
now for the 6th slot, potential candidates:

Spoiler

Neura (Fanged Yanma)
Pros:
-varied type coverage
-Foresight
-boosted accuracy thanks to Compound Eyes
Cons:
-0 Loyalty vs 1 Disobedience
-4x weakness to Rock-type moves

Mero (Linkite)
Pros:
-Cursed Body
-Mean Look
-Curse
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 0 Loyalty
-Small current movepool

D-Lotad
Pros:
-Steel/Ghost moves (Astonish, Gyro Ball, Mirror Shot, Gear Grind)
Cons:
-Current movepool is small

Clamperl
Pros:
-Buff moves (Iron Defense, Shell Smash) Would using those two moves as a combo be a good idea; basically using Iron Defense to cancel out the debuff of Shell Smash.
-Trapping moves (Clamp/Whirlpool)
-No (current) disobedience
-Refresh for status ailment healing and Endure for shielding
Cons:
-Pretty much listed its whole moveset


Beedrill
Pros:
-Focus Energy/Rage for high crit/boosted Strength combo
-Entry Hazard (Toxic Spikes)
-Pursuit/Assurance
-Rock Smash HM
-Swarm to boost Bug moves (1 currently)
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 1 Loyalty
-Rock-type weakness

I'm about 99% confident that Beedrill should have 2 Loyalty and 2 Disobedience, actually.  It started with 1 v 2, and gained 1 Loyalty at the end of the Safari Cup stuff (proof)

Something to be REALLY wary of is that there is a high chance that Yanma will evolve into Yanmega when we go deeper into the Ruins.  You could cancel the evolution with the Pokedex, I suppose, but it's still something to consider since Yanmega has a whopping 5 Disobedience.

I'd probably stick with D-Lotad or Beedrill for reliability, tbh.

[Mikaruge108]

Spoiler

Hmm... I wonder, could Spira possibly craft Black Sludge out of the decayed snax (or could they be used as a proxy for Black Sludge)
also, as for Spira's team in the Ruins, definitely bringing Luna along so I can evolve her into Drifblim.
-Luna (mainly to evolve, some Ghost/Flying type coverage)
-Toya (varied type coverage, depending on restrictions {i.e. not being able to use it indoors} of Ghost World travel, a quick method to escape, if necessary. Access to HM Rock Smash/Flash)
-Hida (AoE Fire-type/Rock-Type coverage, access to splash damage)
-Noire (Ghost-type coverage, access to HM Flash)
-Nubi (Varied moveset, HM Flash)
now for the 6th slot, potential candidates:

Spoiler

Neura (Fanged Yanma)
Pros:
-varied type coverage
-Foresight
-boosted accuracy thanks to Compound Eyes
Cons:
-0 Loyalty vs 1 Disobedience
-4x weakness to Rock-type moves

Mero (Linkite)
Pros:
-Cursed Body
-Mean Look
-Curse
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 0 Loyalty
-Small current movepool

D-Lotad
Pros:
-Steel/Ghost moves (Astonish, Gyro Ball, Mirror Shot, Gear Grind)
Cons:
-Current movepool is small

Clamperl
Pros:
-Buff moves (Iron Defense, Shell Smash) Would using those two moves as a combo be a good idea; basically using Iron Defense to cancel out the debuff of Shell Smash.
-Trapping moves (Clamp/Whirlpool)
-No (current) disobedience
-Refresh for status ailment healing and Endure for shielding
Cons:
-Pretty much listed its whole moveset


Beedrill
Pros:
-Focus Energy/Rage for high crit/boosted Strength combo
-Entry Hazard (Toxic Spikes)
-Pursuit/Assurance
-Rock Smash HM
-Swarm to boost Bug moves (1 currently)
Cons:
-2 Disobedience vs 1 Loyalty
-Rock-type weakness

I'm about 99% confident that Beedrill should have 2 Loyalty and 2 Disobedience, actually.  It started with 1 v 2, and gained 1 Loyalty at the end of the Safari Cup stuff (proof)

Something to be REALLY wary of is that there is a high chance that Yanma will evolve into Yanmega when we go deeper into the Ruins.  You could cancel the evolution with the Pokedex, I suppose, but it's still something to consider since Yanmega has a whopping 5 Disobedience.

I'd probably stick with D-Lotad or Beedrill for reliability, tbh.

Must have forgotten to update it. fixed. Gonna use Beedrill as it has the better health score (10HP)

[Dragonstrike]

Indeed there is tons of options to use. Dark and Normal could maximize our chances to fight ghosts. So a basic idea for my team would be more or less like this:

- Honedge
- Atlas
- Viktor
- Gustav
- D-Onix/Honckrow/Gargryph
- Rose/Heracross

Well...this make the choice less difficult but I still in conflict about the choice. Any ideas too PhantomUnderYourDesk, Dragonstrike and Mikaruge108?

I would definitely highly recommend bringing Honedge, for a few reasons.
a) Ghost type
b) Might be able to fill the 'kingly pokemon' requirement
c) If evolved with a Dusk Stone, it immediately learns Wide Guard.  And because it gained 2 Loyalty in that battle with Spira and has less Disobedience than a typical Honedge, it should be obedient after evolving.

Gustav is basically a necessity thanks to Mega Launcher Heal Pulses.

Atlas and Viktor are both solid choices due to being Ghosts, and bringing Atlas here might help reveal clues about its evolution.

Honchkrow is a strong pick if he's obedient.  Same with D-Onix, but to a lesser degree since it isn't as large as a fully grown standard Onix (yet?).  Gargryph isn't as strong combat wise (particularly since Sandstorms can harm the group just as much as they help Rock types), but is particularly useful for healing human characters.

I'd probably bring Rose over Heracross, if only because Blaze and the innate Charcoal buff plus Black Belt makes her an absolute powerhouse and one of Heart's most powerful pokemon.