[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Mikaruge108]

First thing in the morning (i.e. after Noire and Luna have had time to rest and recover [auto revive]) Spira would request at least 1 Heal Pulse for each of them. With Spira's heartbeat xp, he is now at 18 exp, which will be used to increase Crafts from 3 to 4.

[Dragonstrike]

Spoiler

"....Then what can I do? Nothing? *Sighs, Tone quieting* .....Don't want to do nothing, Nathan. "

*Slowly shakes head* 

"Too much have I choose to not choose, in my life, when I should have. Too much, have I regretted it. I.....no want to repeat that mistake again. Not now. Not with you, my friend. My best friend I have ever had...."

Terra falls silent, his eyes once more downcast as he ruminated over what was causing his brilliant historian of a friend. More and more, his idea about what was wrong with them. Or rather, who.

Him.

If his guess was right, then he was the cause of their current despondent state in some way. That he was the one responsible for them withdrawing back into themselves. 

The mere thought of that being the, much less it being true....it distressed and shamed him greatly. As Nathan's friend, he was supposed to take care of them, share positive experience between the themselves, and generally always be a positive influence and support. To not only fail at being a good friend, but ending up conducting himself as a bad without realizing until now and still not knowing what or how he managed to screw up THAT horribly.....

Yeah....Nathan's not the only that's in a bad mood now. Well, misery attracts company, as they say.

Nathan sighs.

"...I get that you want to help.  I really do.  But I'm not going to ask you to undo your hard work just for my sake and Gallade's.  That'd be selfish of us."

Nathan pauses, then quietly continues.

"...I will see Cosh pay for what he's done, though.  I'm not going to stand by and let him and his organization do as they please, and I sure as heck don't want to give them exactly what they want.  Just because we're working with them for now doesn't mean I have to be all buddy buddy with everyone and be happy about it.  They aren't all bad people, but..."

He pauses again, stopping himself there before he continues with a slightly different topic. 

"...I've got other things to worry about right now, though.  I'm going to go check on my dad and his pokemon again, make sure they're all doing okay.  If we're all going to make it out of here in one piece, we're going to need all the strength we can muster when we head deeper down."

Nathan turns to leave.  Gallade watches Terra for a moment longer to see how the man reacts, though...

If there's anything that should be clear, it's that Nathan has a lot on his shoulders, a lot that's weighing him down. Responsibility is a tough thing.

[Spiritmon]

Rose kinda needs since she was down. And Quetzal get some good rest.

[Lord Windos]

Spoiler

You meditate on the Earthpower and on everything Nathan has ever said about Marco, and on the man you can still somewhat envision within him. 

This will function as a Lucky Chant next time you attempt to heal Marco, which has to wait until the end of Day 81 still. 


With that, it is now Day 81 (the beginning).

Who needed Heal Pulses last night? I can roll those out as a flashback. Also tell me any preparation you make for today's journey - Cosh says you're heading down into a cavern full of freakishly strong Pokemon.

Assuming that Terra and Nathan managed to resolve their conversation in a non-disastrous manner, these are the following preparations he would undertake, after he gets up and fixes breakfast for everyone:

- Terra will suggest that everyone that has some form of Repel should use it once they enter the Living Caverns, so as to ward off at least some of the nasty Pokemon living there. He also still has those three Poke Dolls he trade for earlier, and he's willing to give out two of them to those that think they'll need them.
- He'll also ask if Spira could keep Toya out with him/the group to act as further deterrent against Pokemon attacks with their Pressure, as well as using their own Ghostly Powers to look out and counter the Ruins ruinous Ghosts from ruining us to the point of ruin. If anyone has Pokemon and/or Items with Abilities that seem like they'd dissuade Pokemon from coming near the group, I'd consider having them out with the party. If anyone has a Pokemon with Roar/Whirlwind (Or can teach their Pokemon it), that be a great way to send most Pokemon packing, just in case!
- Additionally, he'll inquire with Nathan if their Ditto could Transform into any Pokemon that might be able to scare off Wild Pokemon, or if they're able to freely Transform in the first place.
- If it's possible, could Terra make some sort of Berry Coffee/Drink out of some of his Chestos and Salac Berries that would grant everyone increased Movement Speed through the Cavern? If so, how many of each would it take to make the brew? The less time spent in there, the better, and if baddies can't keep up with them then they are not a problem! 
- My chara's own choice for the two Pokemon he'll keep out with him are Angie and Pixie, the former because she can fly him/another person + there small Pokemon above the ground + big bulky Dragons are inherently a unappealing target to most, and the later because between Growl, Intimidate, and Terra's own Intimidation (+ possibly Pressure support from Toya), any monster will have a tough time mustering the Will to menace the group. Their Held Items are Life Orb (Angie) and Leftovers (Pixie). As for the rest of Terra's Pokemon, Arete and Oinari will get Sitrus Berries to Hold, Sari will hold the Lucky Egg, and Michael is permanently glued to his Toxic Orb (He's let out to get perma-Poisoned for the day by it too).
- Lucky Chants and Future Sights from the Loyal Pokemon that have those Moves could possibly grant additional blessings/info on the trek ahead. Just FYI, mates!
- Sari would get a private meeting with Terra, it being mainly concerned with stressing how dangerous the Caverns up ahead were, and that if she would not listen to him or have faith in his Orders that she at least not hinder the rest of her partners through action or inaction. 'That would be rather unbecoming of a good queen of your stature, to not to look after the well-being of her subjects. That, and protecting your subjects means they can protect you too,' he'd more or less state to her as rationale for her to all altruistically.
- Oinari gets instructions to use her Illusive powers to disguise herself as the Genesect they fought if he summons her in the cave, as the sight of an pissed off, ruthless killer of a Legend is a pretty good bluff to pull off against most baddies! Especially if he sends out Arete with her! Facing off against Parent Genesect and her child? No thanks!

That should be everything, at least from what I can conceive by myself! Whew, what a mouthful! Better to have a lot to say and have it do a little good, then not and not, though! Ready to venture into the Living Caverns when everyone else is!

Oh, and none of Terra's Pokemon need Heal Pulses (They full healed over night), so Solomon's HPs are free for everyone!

[Dragonstrike]

- Additionally, he'll inquire with Nathan if their Ditto could Transform into any Pokemon that might be able to scare off Wild Pokemon, or if they're able to freely Transform in the first place.

Ditto's random Transformation for today is a Zangoose, so it has 2 Transform slots available today.

[Iron]

You can make a pep-up potion, but it wouldn't be strong enough to reduce the number of encounters.

Note: PokeDolls CAN work on Pokemon who were not affected by Repel.

With all these preparations, I will reduce the number of encounters that are mandatory.

[Iron]

I'll use Gustav for these then.
Noire: (4)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)
Luna: (2)(2)(1)(2)(4)(5)
Rose: (1)(5)(5)(4)(4)(2)(2)

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

With that, it is now Day 81 (the beginning).
Who needed Heal Pulses last night? I can roll those out as a flashback. Also tell me any preparation you make for today's journey - Cosh says you're heading down into a cavern full of freakishly strong Pokemon.

No Heal Pulses are needed from my side, Shiva would happily accept a PokeDoll from Terra/@Lord Windos when he offers. What species does he have, just out of curiosity? That's because she'll choose a doll  that she does not want to keep. Repels she doesn't have any and would not want to use any either because she dislikes the smell of them. She's being bold enough to walk down that cavern with her Pokemon and that Shield, even more so now that the second Artifact is in the whole group's hands!~

Shiva's rest was indeed fruitfull and pleasant, all her tiredness and exhaustion is blown away like an undersized Cottonee on a windy fall's day. What a wonderful feeling, she's so full of energy that she even considered to not waker herself up with a strong+sugary coffee from her storage; but in the end she's not that bold to try that. Huh, fearkisly strong Pokemon ahead? Well then, let them come if they want, after having successfully managed to defeat a pitchblack Shellder and Slowbro in a nightmare-scenario Shiva's feeling accomplished. Very accomplished.

In the 'morning' - there's no sun or sky that'd hint to the daytime, so she's completely relying on her calendar, clock and biorhythm - Shiva takes some time with her Pokemon, to care for them, to play with them, to feed them properly, to check on them, to stroke and pet them, all as a bonding time and preparation for the dangerous path ahead. None of her Pokemon needs any Heal Pulses as good sleep has done wonders to them too. Here's what she notices/does:

• She plays a fierce game of tug of war with Yena, and he wins almost every time as he's just stronger than Shiva is. She'd be worried about his powers and especially his biting force if she wouldn't know for sure that this doggo is obediant as he can be because this woman with the affinity for nature and faries is the undefeated leader of his pack. He chews on the rope with joy, occassionally letting out a small awoo just because.
  At this point, I can either add Strong Jaw Ability (55XP) or let him learn Roar (22XP), I lean into the latter. I have a question though concerning this, @Iron: Can Roar end a battle against multiple foes according to your discretion?
  She also dusts 2 shards of Moonglass and spreads it over Yena's breakfast to prepare him further for the way ahead, that's something she has adapted from Howl. (That's a Training Session that does not count against the Encounter Slots/won't spent one)
  

• Shiva indeed lets her and Primal Espeon use their foreseeing skill to see what the path ahead may bring, but these Future Sights are unable to last long enough to actually hit a foe. Which is better in Shiva's view as that way she can't accidently start a fight against a Pokemon she would have rather avoided.
  

• Azu is playing around with some summoned bubbles, trying to keep them up as long as possible. Shiva notices that they look different, smaller than those she brings up when using Bubble or Bubble Beam. That's because these bubbles here contain some of the healing properties of the Wishing Well, Shiva has no idea how Azu has done that but she now knows how to restore some of her help with these. She learns Aqua Ring for 31XP.
  

• Whimsicott is having her fun with covering everything in fluff and cotton balls this morning because she's a prankful and mischievous fae, and feels certain that this will proof useful in battles against speedy foes. She learns Cotton Spore for 0XP.
  

That are all preparations, she's ready and fine to move on then!~ But I'm tired and will turn in for the night, so no more input from my side for a while.

[Iron]

Roar has to end battle with one foe at a time. Some of Marco's Pokemon have AoE Surprises, including Luxray's Roar.

Mightyena gains 3XP.

[Iron]

You begin ascending down the sunken ship's passage as indicated by Cosh. Halfway along, Sari comes forth from her Pokeball to fulfill her promise!
She wanders down a much smaller side passage than the one Cosh was planning to follow, which soon widens and descends until becoming a large dead end chamber. To one side is a massive golden relief of a circlet crown and a big golden Apricorn symbol. As Sari approaches, it shimmers and reforms into a giant golden Slowking crown, halfway embedded in the wall. She smirks at Terra to show how important she is, then sits on your foot and begins to lick her fur.



One other notable thing happens in the morning. A sarcophagus suddenly descends from the ceiling! Yamask is back, and it's now a Cofagrigus!
Congratulations! Your Yamask evolved into Cofagrigus!

It gains 1 point of Happiness and Loyalty, but 5 disobedience is still very significant. You'll need to register it to a Pokeball to control it, and remember to keep your party at 6.